A council championing healthy school dinners has been met with backlash by parents who say their children won’t eat the meat-free or healthier options. Some parents have called for the return of chicken nuggets, pizza, and chips.
Middlesbrough Council introduced the “revamped” menus for primary schools across the district. The dishes offer more fruit and vegetables, less added sugar, and more vegan and plant-based options for “those who want them”, Teesside Live reports.
However, parents complained that the portions were small and that their children weren’t offered enough choice. Dishes on the menu include stir fry, katsu curry, and Quorn korma, as well as the “old favourite school meal dishes” such as roast beef and a Yorkshire pudding or macaroni cheese, a post on Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston’s Facebook page states.
The post was met with more than 380 comments with the majority criticising the new menus, though it does also have more than 100 likes. Mother-of-two Becky Eason, 36, said her daughter, eight, has been “coming home and asking to go on packed lunches all the time”.
Becky, from Marton Manor, Middlesbrough, initially thought her kids were being “fussy and a bit picky” but after taking a look at the two hot options on the menu each day she believes they’re not “child friendly”. Making pack lunches is an extra cost the mum doesn’t want to take on due to the cost of living crisis.
She said: ”Some of the meals on the menu itself didn’t feel very child friendly in my opinion. It’s not really a choice to give them either Quorn chicken curry or a vegetable lasagne in one day. I don’t think there is much of an option there for them.”
Becky added: “At the minute we have so many worries as parents. We are going out to work so we are paying for childcare options. Then, worrying about when my daughter is at school is she having anything to eat.
“We are worrying about fuel prices. We are worrying about the cost of living with prices of food. It’s not a nice feeling to be sat at work thinking what is she having to eat today.
“Then coming home to her being upset and wanting feeding straight away. It’s just another stress on your mind you don’t need.”
The post also states that pupils are given access to a pasta and salad bar, along with the option to have a jacket potato, sandwich, roll, or wrap, with a filling of their choice. The menus also change every four weeks to suit the season, it states.
Another mum, Kelly Doolan, added: “My two older girls - aged five and 10 - are constantly coming home hungry because they've either not had enough or haven't liked the food that's on offer. The portions aren't big enough.
“They both constantly ask for packed lunches but with four kids I honestly can't afford to do so as they all like different things. Times are hard as it is. It's the kids that are suffering. They need to bring back the foods kids love like nuggets, pizza, and chips. They can still add the veg and salad and fruit.”
The menu change was brought in to help combat the levels of child obesity in Middlesbrough, which has some of the highest levels in the country. Around one in 10 children are obese when they start school in Middlesbrough, and one in five are obese by the time they reach Year 6.
Fellow mum Annalee Dee said her son, who has autism, has a limited diet which isn’t being helped by the menu change. She added: “All the mams are complaining they’re all going hungry, some have been forced to give packed lunches and that ain't exactly a healthy option, a cooked meal is much more filling for them.”
A primary and nursery school meal costs £2.15 a day currently, although children from low-income families can receive free school meals. All children in Reception, Year 1, and Year 2 receive free school meals.
Some commenters on the mayor’s post were in favour of the changes. One wrote: “Much better than in my day. Which was very many days ago. Glad to see such good menus.”
Last week, Heather Adams, head teacher at Pallister Park Primary School, said the meals were healthy, tasty, and nutritious and said the catering staff were working hard and doing a great job. Barrie Cooper, Middlesbrough Council’s Executive Member for Environment, previously said: “We are sure these new revamped menus will be popular with both children and their parents.
“They have been designed to improve the options available to our little learners and to make sure they are getting plenty of fruit and vegetables and a little less sugar, while also making sure all their favourites remain.”
Middlesbrough Council has been contacted by Teesside Live for comment.
