Reply to: Margaret Thatcher, milk snatcher

[OwlHoot]

You're right. It's not the schools' place to educate children about food. Ban all food on the premises other than school food, they'll soon get hungry enough to stop wimpering about 'intolerances'

Very sound idea - And they'd have to eat the wobbly and gristly bits too.

[d000hg]

Sounds like a pretty outmoded school of thought, for the simple reason that most kids are unbelievably finicky about food these days. Many will only eat synthetic crunchy things, fizzy drinks, and other such chemical muck.

So most free food would just be wasted, whereas thirty or forty years ago, when cooking was more conservative and there wasn't so much artificial junk food, most kids would wolf down anything put in front of them.

You're right. It's not the schools' place to educate children about food. Ban all food on the premises other than school food, they'll soon get hungry enough to stop wimpering about 'intolerances'

[OwlHoot]

There is a school of thought that suggests all School dinners should be free.

Sounds like a pretty outmoded school of thought, for the simple reason that most kids are unbelievably finicky about food these days. Many will only eat synthetic crunchy things, fizzy drinks, and other such chemical muck.

So most free food would just be wasted, whereas thirty or forty years ago, when cooking was more conservative and there wasn't so much artificial junk food, most kids would wolf down anything put in front of them.

[d000hg]

I have no objection to the provision of good nutricious school meals.
I also understand that some parents do not look after their kids and thus school meals
are very important for some kids. Both my parents came from large single parent families when their
were no benefits, despite their poverty there was always food on the the table.

It's not so much poverty as terrible parents. Back in the good/bad old days you pretty much had to cook as ready meals and takeaways weren't so prevalent. Benefits families can be very lazy and it's that more than starvation which I'm talking about... benefits do a good job of providing money that people actually can afford food, in general anyway. But giving your kid a pop-tart and a can of Coke is not a meal.

For the parents, I'm of the opinion "screw them" but I do pity their poor children who are only going to end up the same being brought up lazy and malnourished (and there are strong links between diet and learning).

[shaunbhoy]

I have no objection to the provision of good nutricious school meals.
I also understand that some parents do not look after their kids and thus school meals
are very important for some kids. Both my parents came from large single parent families when their
were no benefits, despite their poverty there was always food on the the table.

There is a school of thought that suggests all School dinners should be free. This would remove any stigma that might prevent the more needy from partaking properly, and would ensure that all kids got at least one healthy meal a day.
No doubt this would involve an initial cost, but that might be mitigated by long term health savings. Seems to work in Finland anyway IIRC.

[Green Mango]

You don't realise what it's like in poor places in the UK. Lots of poor ex-mining villages round here and it's not unusual for kids to come into school with no breakfast (or clean clothes) and for school meals to be the only proper food they get. In households like that (think typical chavvy benefits houses) kids might never see milk or any fresh fruit/veg.

I have no objection to the provision of good nutricious school meals.
I also understand that some parents do not look after their kids and thus school meals
are very important for some kids. Both my parents came from large single parent families when their
were no benefits, despite their poverty there was always food on the the table.

[Platypus]

So why not give those poor undernourished kids milk with their free (healthy) school meal?

Rather than waste money giving free stuff to people (the majority) who don't need or want it?

EDIT: quick Google, and it seems that milk is already available free to kids who qualify for free school meals.

[Platypus]

You don't realise what it's like in poor places in the UK. Lots of poor ex-mining villages round here and it's not unusual for kids to come into school with no breakfast (or clean clothes) and for school meals to be the only proper food they get. In households like that (think typical chavvy benefits houses) kids might never see milk or any fresh fruit/veg.

So why not give those poor undernourished kids milk with their free (healthy) school meal?

Rather than waste money giving free stuff to people (the majority) who don't need or want it?

[HairyArsedBloke]

You don't realise what it's like in poor places in the UK. Lots of poor ex-mining villages round here and it's not unusual for kids to come into school with no breakfast (or clean clothes) and for school meals to be the only proper food they get. In households like that (think typical chavvy benefits houses) kids might never see milk or any fresh fruit/veg.

What is really odd is that around this part of London are some of the supposedly poorest people in the country. Bengali immigrants with no English spoken at home, oppressed women, etc, etc, etc.

How come I see none of this dirty unfed kids lark? They all look normal to me.

There may be relative poverty in the UK, but there is no absolute poverty anywhere.

[TimberWolf]

We should use the money to give bigger bonuses to bankers.

[d000hg]

These days, how many kids really need it ?

This is not a third world and undernourisment does not appear a problem.

You don't realise what it's like in poor places in the UK. Lots of poor ex-mining villages round here and it's not unusual for kids to come into school with no breakfast (or clean clothes) and for school meals to be the only proper food they get. In households like that (think typical chavvy benefits houses) kids might never see milk or any fresh fruit/veg.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Im sure I am not alone in saying I would prefer that funds allocated for this socialist Childrens Milk fiasco would be better allocated to the Trident upgrade fund.

Most children these days suffer from obesity - they need less milk - not more - whilst the Trident Upgrade will benefit all - apart from those on the receiving end - bien sur.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

Patience, my pretty: whom the gods would destroy, first they make mad.

Indeed and only the good die young as evidenced by the continued survival of the evil old hag.

[Old Greg]

Is it Halal milk?

When I saw the title of this thread I was hoping the evil witch had finally kicked the bucket.

Patience, my pretty: whom the gods would destroy, first they make mad.

[Alf W]

Is it Halal milk?

When I saw the title of this thread I was hoping the evil witch had finally kicked the bucket.