School Dinners
Discussion
Read an article in the news in which it was stated that school dinners are often tiny, with kids home early already checking the fridge. Article was talking about meals being made free as impoverished kids often eat nothing for lunch.
Also mentioned teachers helping poor kids by giving them food and having food provided for the impoverished. How that would work, with the most poor being provided for and not being bullied, lord only knows.
What do school lunches usually consist of these days anyway, do your kids comment?
Finally, what were yours like? I loved lunch time, good school yes, don't ever remember anyone complaining except perhaps about having to eat either a standard or small plate of veg, lunch was something to look forward to. Proper plates and cutlery, none of this tuppaware moulded plastic stuff, shepherds pie with golden slightly crispy tops and an incredible aroma in the halls the lesson before lunch was served. Brings back good memories.
If you give your kids money daily, how much? I still don't see what is wrong with a packed lunch, costs nothing and delivers far better range and quality of sandwiches than anything they can go out and buy. GF's kids insist on being given money...
Also mentioned teachers helping poor kids by giving them food and having food provided for the impoverished. How that would work, with the most poor being provided for and not being bullied, lord only knows.
What do school lunches usually consist of these days anyway, do your kids comment?
Finally, what were yours like? I loved lunch time, good school yes, don't ever remember anyone complaining except perhaps about having to eat either a standard or small plate of veg, lunch was something to look forward to. Proper plates and cutlery, none of this tuppaware moulded plastic stuff, shepherds pie with golden slightly crispy tops and an incredible aroma in the halls the lesson before lunch was served. Brings back good memories.
If you give your kids money daily, how much? I still don't see what is wrong with a packed lunch, costs nothing and delivers far better range and quality of sandwiches than anything they can go out and buy. GF's kids insist on being given money...
I once saw a council sponsored advert in the early '90s claiming "School Dinners are Cool Dinners".
As a kid in Dorset they'd knocked primary school dinners on the head in the early '80s so it was packed lunches only (from home or the council free lunches) and then secondary school had a cash canteen (or meal ticket for poor kids) but they only made a tiny amount of nice food so if you weren't in the first few people in the queue you only had the choice of burger'n'chips or hot dog'n'chips. I continued to bring sandwiches.
As a kid in Dorset they'd knocked primary school dinners on the head in the early '80s so it was packed lunches only (from home or the council free lunches) and then secondary school had a cash canteen (or meal ticket for poor kids) but they only made a tiny amount of nice food so if you weren't in the first few people in the queue you only had the choice of burger'n'chips or hot dog'n'chips. I continued to bring sandwiches.
My kids get this menu
http://www.rctcbc.gov.uk/en/relateddocuments/publi...
It's £2.08 a day, how much do others pay?
You can choose between school dinner or sandwiches on a daily basis, but every kid in the school opts for school lunches on Friday as it's 'chip shop day' !
http://www.rctcbc.gov.uk/en/relateddocuments/publi...
It's £2.08 a day, how much do others pay?
You can choose between school dinner or sandwiches on a daily basis, but every kid in the school opts for school lunches on Friday as it's 'chip shop day' !
Edited by SwanJack on Friday 14th December 09:59
Photo was taken by a girl who set up a blog to post pictures of her school lunches every day. Made the headlines when the council tried to gag her. Now had 8 million views. Now has pictures of school lunches overseas too.
http://neverseconds.blogspot.co.uk
The favourite dish for us was the 'turkey burger' because
(a)it was cheap and you'd be able to get chips with it for your standard daily £1. (This was early 90's).
(b)we were obsessed with the strange (we thought Romanian) dinner lady who'd ritually ask "Dulki Bulgger?" to everyone in the queue.
(a)it was cheap and you'd be able to get chips with it for your standard daily £1. (This was early 90's).
(b)we were obsessed with the strange (we thought Romanian) dinner lady who'd ritually ask "Dulki Bulgger?" to everyone in the queue.
Well, when I was back in infants school, probably aged 5-6 or so, our school dinners were that awful that I refused to eat them.
The school then noticed and I was given permission to go home for lunch, so as you can gather, they were absolute s
t. From what I recall the fish fingers served were cheap minced fish made from pollock, I presume, and all that horrible turkey twizzlers and things like cheap sausages etc.
Glad I didn't eat it to be honest.
The school then noticed and I was given permission to go home for lunch, so as you can gather, they were absolute s
t. From what I recall the fish fingers served were cheap minced fish made from pollock, I presume, and all that horrible turkey twizzlers and things like cheap sausages etc.Glad I didn't eat it to be honest.
We have no complaints at all from two of ours - either that they don't like it or that they're hungry - and only sporadic ones from the fussy bugger middle sibling.
The food is all cooked at the Junior School, iirc, and then shipped over to the Infant school 5 minutes down the road, so they all get the same lunches, despite being in two different schools.
Their meals this week have been the following:
Macaroni Cheese with Onion Bread
Vegetable Medley
Pear and Chocolate Cake
Tuna and Cucumber filled Jacket Potato
Grated Carrot & peas
Peaches with Ice Cream
Roast Gammon with Gravy and Roast Potatoes
Cauliflower & Broccoli
Yoghurt
Chicken Balti with Wholegrain Rice and Naan Bread
Sweetcorn & Green Beans
Ginger Sponge with Vanilla Sauce
Sausage and Bean filled Yorkshire Pudding with Mashed Potato
Peas
Flapjack
They also have pretty decent looking veggie options (in so far as this is humanly possible, of course), and can choose fruit or cheese & biscuits instead of pudding if they like.
Seems like a bargain for £2 per day.
One thing I don't really understand is why people take offence at school meals being served in pre-formed plastic tray things rather than on china plates. Surely the kids are less likely to drop these than they are a plate sliding around on a tray, there will be fewer breakages if they do drop them, and it saves massively on cleaning up compared to individual plates, bowls & trays. What's not to like about that?
The food is all cooked at the Junior School, iirc, and then shipped over to the Infant school 5 minutes down the road, so they all get the same lunches, despite being in two different schools.
Their meals this week have been the following:
Macaroni Cheese with Onion Bread
Vegetable Medley
Pear and Chocolate Cake
Tuna and Cucumber filled Jacket Potato
Grated Carrot & peas
Peaches with Ice Cream
Roast Gammon with Gravy and Roast Potatoes
Cauliflower & Broccoli
Yoghurt
Chicken Balti with Wholegrain Rice and Naan Bread
Sweetcorn & Green Beans
Ginger Sponge with Vanilla Sauce
Sausage and Bean filled Yorkshire Pudding with Mashed Potato
Peas
Flapjack
They also have pretty decent looking veggie options (in so far as this is humanly possible, of course), and can choose fruit or cheese & biscuits instead of pudding if they like.
Seems like a bargain for £2 per day.
One thing I don't really understand is why people take offence at school meals being served in pre-formed plastic tray things rather than on china plates. Surely the kids are less likely to drop these than they are a plate sliding around on a tray, there will be fewer breakages if they do drop them, and it saves massively on cleaning up compared to individual plates, bowls & trays. What's not to like about that?
I have what someone might call a sad phobia of enjoying reading menus. Brain must give off chemicals which respond positively to food fantasy. Found the three week food rotation menu really interesting, read the whole thing! we didnt have one, we just ate what was slopped up on the day
£2.15 ish doesn't seem like much. Multiply by three kids is you have three kids plus yourself in the city, it's an easy tenner a day. Not a problem for most, but there are kids who take a great deal more than £2 with them to school daily and, there are days as an adult where nothing other than a 40p peanut butter sandwich will hit the spot.
I wonder how much bullying or "being too different" kids feel, if they take their own lunch. Do your kids hint at what percentage take lunch with? (Sorry, curious, it was either/or at the schools I went to, hot lunch only, or packed lunch only).
£2.15 ish doesn't seem like much. Multiply by three kids is you have three kids plus yourself in the city, it's an easy tenner a day. Not a problem for most, but there are kids who take a great deal more than £2 with them to school daily and, there are days as an adult where nothing other than a 40p peanut butter sandwich will hit the spot.
I wonder how much bullying or "being too different" kids feel, if they take their own lunch. Do your kids hint at what percentage take lunch with? (Sorry, curious, it was either/or at the schools I went to, hot lunch only, or packed lunch only).
Kermit power said:
We have no complaints at all from two of ours - either that they don't like it or that they're hungry - and only sporadic ones from the fussy bugger middle sibling.
The food is all cooked at the Junior School, iirc, and then shipped over to the Infant school 5 minutes down the road, so they all get the same lunches, despite being in two different schools.
They also have pretty decent looking veggie options (in so far as this is humanly possible, of course), and can choose fruit or cheese & biscuits instead of pudding if they like.
Seems like a bargain for £2 per day.
One thing I don't really understand is why people take offence at school meals being served in pre-formed plastic tray things rather than on china plates. Surely the kids are less likely to drop these than they are a plate sliding around on a tray, there will be fewer breakages if they do drop them, and it saves massively on cleaning up compared to individual plates, bowls & trays. What's not to like about that?
Sounds a lot nicer then what we used to get. I remember on some days, the veg option was fish (which I don't eat) so instead I was given a heap of grated cheese!The food is all cooked at the Junior School, iirc, and then shipped over to the Infant school 5 minutes down the road, so they all get the same lunches, despite being in two different schools.
They also have pretty decent looking veggie options (in so far as this is humanly possible, of course), and can choose fruit or cheese & biscuits instead of pudding if they like.
Seems like a bargain for £2 per day.
One thing I don't really understand is why people take offence at school meals being served in pre-formed plastic tray things rather than on china plates. Surely the kids are less likely to drop these than they are a plate sliding around on a tray, there will be fewer breakages if they do drop them, and it saves massively on cleaning up compared to individual plates, bowls & trays. What's not to like about that?
On a totally OT note, were you driving through Ewell village earlier this week around lunch time? If so, your car sounded very nice indeed!
H_Kan said:
On a totally OT note, were you driving through Ewell village earlier this week around lunch time? If so, your car sounded very nice indeed!
Highly likely! It's the only ZT V8 of that colour, and I'm the only person who drives it, so very unlikely to be anyone else! 
Sadly, it will be for sale in the new year, once Ford sort out their striking Belgians and manage to deliver our new S-Max.
our daughter varies between having the school lunch or taking in a packed lunch at secondary school here in kent. We have to put money onto a card for her, but can see exactly what she has bought at any time. I looked the other\day when i topped the card up......she was averaging £4-5.25 a day for her in huse meals which were basically a jacket potato with a couple of fillings ( say cheese/onion) a drink and a choc bar/bag crisps. that was the 1st time i'd seen the costs and i was surprised at the cost - given we only have 1 child it isn't too bad, but add in the travel cost and that make it £140 a mth to send a kid school without the ususal extra books that are needed.
greengreenwood7 said:
our daughter varies between having the school lunch or taking in a packed lunch at secondary school here in kent. We have to put money onto a card for her, but can see exactly what she has bought at any time. I looked the other\day when i topped the card up......she was averaging £4-5.25 a day for her in huse meals which were basically a jacket potato with a couple of fillings ( say cheese/onion) a drink and a choc bar/bag crisps. that was the 1st time i'd seen the costs and i was surprised at the cost - given we only have 1 child it isn't too bad, but add in the travel cost and that make it £140 a mth to send a kid school without the ususal extra books that are needed.
A fiver a day sounds steep. Judging by other people's posts, I guessed school lunches at £2 were, roughly speaking, not for profit. Gassing Station | Food, Drink & Restaurants | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff