30 August 2023 , 07:48
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Teachers have shared the worst packed lunches pupils have brought in – and the contents are hard to swallow.
One primary school pupil brought in a pork pie and a can of shandy. He made the lunch himself because “that’s all there was in the fridge” he told the teacher in Halifax, West Yorks. Another was sent in with a can of Red Bull and a bag of Monster Munch corn snacks. A teacher in Leeds said a child arrived with a packet of ginger biscuits explaining mum had been “too tired” to go to the shops.
She also questioned the mother of a pupil with a can of Red Bull and was told: “He’d had a late night on his Xbox and seemed like he needed a pick-me-up.” A member of staff at a school in Birmingham was sent to school with a Happy Meal box with a cold McDonald’s burger and fries. Their gran explained it had been bought the day before but the pupil hadn’t wanted it so it was a “shame for it go to waste.”
In Manchester a teacher found an eight-year-old lad had grabbed a can of dark fruits cider thinking it was a soft drink. A child with no packed lunch or cash for a meal said he’d had cereal with water on it for breakfast because “mum needed the milk for her coffee.” The teacher – one of dozens sharing stories on Facebook – said: “I’m not ashamed to say I cried when he told me that.”
Staff in primary schools monitor packed lunches. Unhealthy or unsuitable items can be confiscated and handed to parents at the end of class – instead children get a free school meal worth around £2.20. The NHS ’s Change4Life healthy eating campaign advises parents making packed lunches to include a healthy sandwich or wrap, a piece of fruit, a treat like a jelly or malt loaf and a bottle of water or sugar-free drink. And they are advised to replace crisps, chocolate and biscuits with homemade plain popcorn, plain rice cake, or fruited teacakes.
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