We got a note from DS1's primary school today. It states that from next Easter Devon County Council will no longer provide a school meals service, due to LA spending cuts.
There are three options: getting a new contractor to continue to provide meals (at higher costs), school taking over providing meals (again, at higher costs) or the school no longer providing a hot meal at all (children getting free meals will be given a packed lunch).
DH and I are absolutely LIVID about this.
We believe that hot meals at school are fundamental to good nutrition and health, enabling children to concentrate and especially important in winter.
I think removing this service will affect vulnerable children who rely on school meals to get their only hot meal of the day, as well as those who attend after school child care and have no time for hot meals in the evenings.
What makes it particularly ironic is that on teletext news there is a story about how ministers are urging schools, employers, the food and drink industry and communities themselves to promote healthy lifestyles - and that councils are to get a ringfenced budget to help with this.
Do they not realise the importance of good nutrition and meals on the health of our children? How can they possibly justify removing hot meals for the sake of a £1.5 million saving - a drop in the ocean for the whole of the county!
We are trying to put a list together of organisations that we can contact about this to try and get them to change it.
We would value any thoughts people might have and suggestions of who to contact.
Many thanks