20 January 2023 , 11:13
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A mum has claimed her son is 'coming home hungry' due to 'terrible' food at his secondary school.
She claimed the food served to her son at lunchtime at Royds Hall school in Paddock, Huddersfield, hasn't been good enough recently, although she said the food used to be 'amazing'.
The school claims that the food it serves is nutritious and is eaten by staff as well as pupils.
The mum shared three lunchtime food photographs that her son had taken.
The mum, who did not want to be named, said: "At Royds Hall the school dinners are terrible - my child is coming home hungry and he just showed me some of the school dinners for the past week.
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"When my child was in years 7 and 8 the school dinner was amazing; however, the school has got a cheaper food service called Mellors Catering and the food has just gone downhill."
She says others have raised similar concerns but told her that they don't want to speak out.
One of her son's basic lunches (YorkshireLive/MEN)She claimed the only choice of drink for pupils is a 330ml bottle of water.
She told Yorkshire Live: "I just wanted to let everyone know that the meals they are giving our children are terrible. Some children are going to school for that one meal of the day but don't want to speak out."
A spokesman for Royds Hall said pupils made their own selection of food from a range of hot and cold main and side dishes, alongside sandwiches and jacket potatoes.
In a statement, the school said: "We take our responsibility to provide nutritious food very seriously. We check the standards frequently and listen carefully to any concerns raised by pupils, staff or parents. The feedback so far this year has been positive.
"Our catering service offers a range of nutritious food. Pupils make their own selection from a range of hot and cold, main and side dishes, alongside a selection of sandwiches and jacket potatoes which are available daily, all served to the pupils by the catering team.
"Pupils can choose from bottled mineral water or flavoured water."
Catering company Mellors also issued a statement. It said: "We pride ourselves on using quality products and local suppliers for the provision of our school meals across the Share Mat (multi-academy trust) where we have worked in partnership feeding the pupils and staff for four years.
"We comply with the food school standards to ensure that every meal served to our customers is healthy and nutritious."
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