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KS1 school dinners/lunches

(39 Posts)
Atqui Fri 05-Jan-18 19:26:55

After reading about Public Health England's recommendation for a limit of calories for children's snacks, I googled a few school meal menus. The free school meals for all ' infants' was introduced so that every child could eat a nutritious meal every day . It seems that all schools offer fresh fruit and yogurts as an alternative to the set 'dessert' , but I wonder how many 4/ 5 /6/7 year olds would actually choose an apple over sticky toffee pudding with custard or flapjack? In my opinion none of these puddings should be on offer, as they are not healthy.(Im not saying they should never be enjoyed by children, when the parents have control over the frequency of special treats).

Maggiemaybe Sat 06-Jan-18 18:41:37

So say you get rid of all puddings that you see as unhealthy, Atqui. Out of interest, what are you going to replace them with, apart from the yoghurt already mentioned? Bearing in mind that KS1 already get fruit as a snack mid-morning.

As vampirequeen states, nutritional standards for school kitchens are very strict, and I think you'd be surprised at just how little sugar and other nasties there are in the "sugary carby food" you want to ban. I just want my DGS to learn how to make healthy choices, certainly, but also to enjoy their food and not develop an unhealthy obsession with it.

Atqui Sat 06-Jan-18 18:57:32

I don't know many people who have puddings at midday, or for that matter in the evening except for special occasions. If the main course is nutritious why do they need anything else? Also what would be wrong with having another piece of fruit ? However, my main gripe is the double standards- one hand telling parents to limit calories of snacks while the other provides starchy puddings.

Atqui Sat 06-Jan-18 19:00:33

P S I don't know how one makes e.g. sticky toffee pudding without sugar -and I certainly wouldn't want my GC to be given artificial,sweetners.

NanaandGrampy Sat 06-Jan-18 19:01:43

I have pudding after my main meal ???

loopyloo Sat 06-Jan-18 19:09:25

When I was at the grammar school , years ago, the food was horrible and we used to fill up on the puds. Thames mud was a chocolate tart and death on the concrete a jam tart. That and milk then I would go home for a decent tea.
Mind you, my teeth are dreadful now and I am a type 2 diabetic.

Maggiemaybe Sat 06-Jan-18 19:14:31

Well my DC bake with their children, and there are umpteen recipes these days for low fat, low sugar hot puddings. And for many children of course, the free school lunch is their main, or even their only, meal. Artificial sweeteners aren’t allowed in a school kitchen, btw.

Jalima1108 Sat 06-Jan-18 20:02:34

We had to eat everything when I was at school, even the gristle.

Artificial sweeteners aren’t allowed in a school kitchen, btw.
I am relieved about that, dreadful stuff.
If they have a pudding then are thrown out into the playground most children will run off the calories; if they go home to a nutritionally balanced tea or supper they will be fine, it is those who eat the junk food constantly who are in danger of becoming obese.

I ate large school lunches plus the puddings, then a large tea or another dinner in the evening and was an extremely skinny child with legs like matchsticks.

Nandalot Sat 06-Jan-18 20:24:32

At my DGC’s primary school, the meals are brought in and parents have to order the meals by the previous Weds at the latest. For mains, there is a hot meal choice, a veggie choice, a jacket potato choice or a cold box. For desert there is a pudding perhaps a sponge, jelly, crumble or flapjack, but as well as that there is the choice of yoghurt or fruit or cheese and biscuits. I think that is absolutely brilliant and they will continue to have them even when they get to the ‘paying’ years.

lemongrove Sat 06-Jan-18 20:38:56

Nothing wrong with children having a pudding, remember they are actually growing and run around in the playground anyway.

Jalima1108 Sat 06-Jan-18 20:41:21

Growing? My DGS is nearly as tall as me (still another 2 years in primary).

EdithCrawley Sat 06-Jan-18 22:36:45

I'm a KS1 teacher in a huge school in a deprived area, and I'm grateful for our kitchen staff's attitude to fill our children with as much as they can at lunchtime.

For a frighteningly large number of children, this might be the only meal they get in a day. To begrudge them sticky toffee pudding makes me so sad.

Jalima1108 Sat 06-Jan-18 22:43:26

EdithCrawley that is so true.
One child who was interviewed said he didn't like the school holidays because he got dinners at school and nothing much at all in the holidays.

Auntieflo Sat 06-Jan-18 23:30:28

Jalima, Infants and Juniors to me as well, Also I am stuck when talkig to a mum who says Year 5 or whichever it happens to be. I am still with 1st year, 2nd year and so on.