DS starts reception in september..school dinner VS packed lunch debate???

[Nemoandthefishes]

Ds wants packed lunch although I prefer idea of school dinner plus its only £6.50 a week.

Anyways part of packed lunch criteria means no crips,cake,biscuits,chocolate,sweets,juice etc etc etc
however the school dinner menu has a pudding every day of things like cake and custard, chocolate shortbread so why are school dinner children allowed cake but not packed lunch?

[aintnomountainhighenough]

My DD does 2 days school lunches and 3 day packed lunches, I find it works really well. I have tried to do the school lunches on days she does after school activities eg. swimming. If the school lunches have these things that I think you would be ok to put them in a packed lunch box. Agree with tmmj - I would checkout what the choices are and if they are policing what they have.

[Nemoandthefishes]

thanks
will be doing packed lunch but will possibly put cake in and see what happens then argue it if they can have it on school dinners

To be fair the menu for school dinner doesnt even include chips and parents select childs meals for the week meaning ds couldnt go on a whim.

[imaginaryfriend]

Dd has school dinners but they're very good meals, made on the premises and it's meant she's tried a lot of things she wouldn't normally have eaten at home. If I gave her a packed lunch it would be very 'samey'.

Also I was told that as dd has a severe peanut allergy the school lunches were better as they guarantee they are nut-free whereas if she was having a packed lunch and someone brought something in that had nuts she might try some and be in danger. I don't know if that's part of the reasoning for not letting kids bring cake with their packed lunch? Doesn't explain crisps or juice though.

Finally when they eat school lunch they have to use a knife and fork whereas if they're eating sandwiches the use their fingers. Reduction of germs with the school lunch.

[VanillaPumpkin]

DD1 has school dinners. She eats anything so I am not worried about her going without if she doesn't like it. I like the fact there is a proper pudding. She is in reception and does not stop all day, and so I think needs the energy. I like the formality of it and it is much much easier for me .
Also I read a study that was done that showed a significant improvement in behaviour and concentration amongst children who had a school dinner. I think it was in the TES about a school in Hull......
Plus my Mum is a teacher and recommended it too . We pay £1.75 a day. We can pick and choose each week (there is a four week rolling menu) so alot of the children mix and match.
Your schools pack lunch rules are quite strict though aren't they? No cake!

[Anngeree]

In my sons school we're not allowed to give reception children packed lunches, the reasoning behind this is it takes to long for younger children to eat & they aren't able to open packets etc. I would have prefered to give my son a packed lunch as I know what he likes & could guarantee he would eat something at dinner time, as he is a bit picky. At first I was bringing him home for dinner but over the winter I wanted him to eat a hot meal so gradually reduced the amount of days I brought him home. We have the occassional day where he gets upset doesn't want to go to school because he might not like the dinner but most of the time he comes home telling me the different things he's eaten & he gets a greater variety than I offer him. He even eats fish at school which he won't touch at home so it has been beneficial perservering & sending him to school dinners. Next year when he goes into yr1 I might give him packed lunch on days I know theres something on the menu he doesn't like. £6.50s a lot for school dinners each wk Nemoandthefishes we only pay £2.80 a wk!

[MadBadandDangeroustoKnow]

DD has school lunch. She only really likes 'cooked' (ie hot) food so making a nutritious, varied packed lunch for her would have been impossible - it would have been bread and tomatoes every day. Our school meals are good value and imaginative - we can see the week's menu on the LEA website. We have similar rules about what's permitted in packed lunches; although biscuits are permitted, chocolate isn't and Penguins etc are therefore a grey area! I think cake is permitted but certainly not crisps, nuts or juice.

I'd never really thought about the table manners aspect before but it is true that eating with a knife and fork at school has probably been a civilising influence!

[teslagirl]

I believe the school dinner route is a good one to take. It's WAY less hassle and, tbh, you don't get to see thus stress yourself about what they DON'T eat as the evidence doesn't come home in a crumpled, leaking, yogurty mess, seeing as there's not much you can do about making them eat more whilst they're at school! I think the 'no cake' is a blanket ruling aimed at those parents- and there are a surprisingly large number out there- who'd send a DC to school with a can of coke, a mars bar, a bag of crisps and a slice of (bought) cake every day, whereas the cake in the school meal is 'allowed' as part of the balanced element of the entire meal- though of course, you don't know if DC has actually eaten ANY of the 'good stuff'!

DS2 (7) has school dinner every day ( but wants sandwiches purely because of the wasted footy time queuing for his meal engenders...) but sadly, DS1 (9), who's shy and anxious, had a 'bad' experience when a delay put him as a Yr3 in a lunch queue with Yr 5s and 6s who he CLAIMED teased him..... BUT he does have cooked dinner on a Friday which seems not to be an issue. Mmm.

[muggglewump]

DD has dinners which is far better for me anyway as she's entitled to free meals.
She gets more variety than I could be arsed to give her in a packed lunch and I especially like her to have a hot meal in winter.
We get the menu home weekly so she chooses but I can see what she's having. It's a balanced menu, not ridiculously healthy but not utter junk.
She's a human dustbin not fussy either so always happy with the food.

I'd go for dinners if your son will eat them, less hassle all round

[EustaciaVye]

Ours will be £9 per week. And my DD is quite fussy. So she will be having packed lunches.

[sundew]

Anngeree - you school dinners are very cheap - ours cost £1.85 a day.

Nemo - My dd has school dinners all week in the winter and now it is warmer she has 2 packed lunch and school dinners 3 days a week.

I like the fact that I don't know what she has had as I worry when her packed lunch box comes back only half eaten .

Does your school not allow you to go and try the school dinners - as part of dd2s settling in school visits one includes school lunch with the parent invited to stay as well. If you are unsure about which option to choose ask if the school does this.

[francagoestohollywood]

Ds used to have school dinners when at school in the UK. He prefers hot food.
It was less hassle for me too, and also I preferred he had hot meals (I'm not english so I don't have a sandwich and crisps culture iyswim)

[muggglewump]

Our school did that too Sundew, I had a tomatoey pasta dish which was simple but nice and then a fruit smoothie.
I was quite impressed for a school meal actually and that was two years ago and they are improving constantly so even better now.
They often list organic meat on the menu (not always though)
They do a choice of sandwiches and jackets each day too that kids can opt for so most will like something.
I think that's great especially for the free meal kids who are fussy but parents struggle with money

[imaginaryfriend]

at dd's school the school lunches are supervised and they aren't allowed to have their 'pudding' unless they've eaten a significant amount of their main course. With packed lunches they're not supervised so I guess if parents put in cake and crisps that might be the only thing the child eats.

[SmugColditz]

Ours are £9 and we are in a deprived are, so I don't thing £6.50 is dear at all!

[mumwhereareyou]

Ours are £2.10 a day so that makes it £10.50 a week and i have two at school with a third due to start soon. Would love them to have school dinners all week, but can't afford it. So comprise we have hot dinners twice a week and packed lunch three times a week.

[bythepowerofgreyskull]

I have thought about this alot.. DS1 starts reception in September..

We have decided to go with 3 days school dinners 2 days packed lunches.
I have 3 days a week that I am busy with DS2 all day so knowing I don't have to prepare a packed lunch those days is going to be great.

However, we can apparently change our minds weekly so we will go with this for the first half term and see how it works out.

The school meals are £1.25 each day

[Nemoandthefishes]

I dont think ds can split between the two but they are doing the invited for one meal option so may suggest to ds that we try it.

[bozza]

We have to decide on a half term by half term basis. DS has always had school dinners and he is nearing the end of Y2. His cost £8.25 week.

[seeker]

Why do people think it's important to have a hot meal?

[imaginaryfriend]

I'm not sure the 'hot' part matters to me as dd will sometimes choose a sandwich or cold lunch. For me it's more to do with the variety, the balance of things, the fact that their eating is supervised etc.

[Clary]

Our dinners actually very rarely include cake for pudding.

More often fruit smoothie, fruit salad, fruit platter (ie cut-up apple or orange). Chips once every 3 weeks.

I like dinners as a) I am too busy to do 3xpack ups in the am b) At £1.55 it's cheaper imho (I have costed out a typical pack-up) c) mine eat lots and this way they can d) social aspect of lining up/choosing food/asking nicely etc.

I always laugh (to myself) at people who say they like to know what their kids eat - and I see it and it's a packet of wotsits, a jam roll (uneaten) and a choc mini roll.
(not you of course mmj )

I have also had school dinner a few times and always found it excellent - veg lasagne and pototoes and veg and salad and garlic bread plus fruit etc. yummy