One of the kids brought home another glossy newspaper-style magazine produced by my local council’s school meals people.
Regular readers will know that I’ve complained about school meals in the past specifically about the rewards schemes they run to get kids pressuring their parents for school meals and reward children that are entitled to free school meals even though they don’t need any incentive other than the meals being free.
At the bottom of the front page of this magazine it says:
FREE School Meals. Are your kids getting theirs? – Imagine that, no bills, no time spent making packed lunches and the guarantee your child will have a tasty, nutritious meal every day. See back page for more details.
Sounds great! I could spend another half an hour in bed in the morning if I didn’t have 4 packed lunches to make. What do I do to make sure my kids get their FREE, tasty, nutritious meal every day? Is there a form to fill in? A number to call?
Your child may qualify for Free School Meals if they are in full time education up to the age of 19 and you and your partner work fewer than 16 hours a week; or receive Income Support, Income Based Jobseekers Allowance or receive Child Taxes Credits and have an annual taxable income of less than £15,575
Ah yes, the same old rules then. Those of us who work full time or earn more than minimum wage are discriminated against as per bloody usual. Tell me who’s in a better position to pay for school meals – some scrounging layabout who gets their rent and council tax paid and extra benefits for every child they have or someone who works for a living, has to pay all their own bills and earns the same regardless of how many children they have?
Technorati Tags: School Meals, Discrimination
Ignoring my views on state benefits completely:
You’re saying that because certain people did not, for whatever reason, manage to make a decent living with their lives, their children, who have done NOTHING, should suffer. Of course these people are going to continue to sponge off benefits if their children can’t eat at school, so drop out and don’t get the skills required to get a real job and contribute to society. If you don’t want to make packed lunches by the way, you’re always entitled to pay for them with your income, which obviously isn’t that low.
No, I’m saying that all kids should get free school meals and if they’re not then they shouldn’t be going to such great lengths to rub the nose of people who have to pay in it.