evening meal or not??

**kat27** · 24-09-2014, 01:12 PM

Hi everyone,

Second on my debatea going on in my mind with myself lol.. wondering what is the norm?

I am working 7.30- 5.30ish at the moment. I am providing breakfast, morn snack, lunch, afternoon snack and cooked evening meal.

Considering instead of increasing my prices stopping doing an evening meal. (Still cooked lunch though and snacks as usual) how many of you don't provide tea? Its nothing to do with the allergen stuff in Dec.

TIA Kat x

toddlers896 · 26-09-2014, 06:51 PM

Hi Kat

I don't do evening meals or lunch. I ask parents to provide a packed lunch and have never had a problem. when I first started out I did it but it really frustrated me as I felt like my hands were never out of the sink, there was food all over the floor and most of the meals went in the bin as kids don't eat everything. Its the best decision I ever made. If the food is wasted I don't care as its their food and I only have plastic plates and cups to wash x

**Mouse** · 26-09-2014, 08:38 PM

I don't do an evening meal. I have children going home at 3.30, 4, 4.30, 5 and 5.30. I would never find the right time to feed them all.

I don't provide breakfast either. I do morning snack, lunch (sandwiches, pasta, jacket potato, something on toast) and an afternoon snack.

**natlou82** · 27-09-2014, 04:56 AM

I do provide an evening meal as most of my children stay until 5:30 - 6pm, anyone leaving before 5:30 don't get a meal. It is hard work and usually there's always somebody complaining that they don't like what I have made. I mainly decided to provide a meal as my own children would struggle to wait until after 6pm for their dinner and tbh once you start providing its difficult to change. Give it some serious thought and do whats best for you. Just another thought if you have school children under 7 they now get free school meals so if you wanted to provide food you could do a hot meal at lunch for your little ones and a light tea.

**Pixie dust** · 27-09-2014, 09:24 AM

I have decided to change from serving a hot meal at tea time to just a light snack as it was getting a bit crazy here trying to get the tea ready, supervise the children. We are going to have a hot meal at lunch time. I have 3 reception children who come after school as like already said they are having a school dinner now so they don't need another hot meal.
As a family we eat when all the children have gone home as it's mainly just me and ds2 who is 16 (dh works away so is only home for a couple of weeks then away for 3)

**tess1981** · 27-09-2014, 12:06 PM

I do breakfast morning snack cooked lunch and evening snack. There is no way I'm cooking a meal again at evening time. My own children need to sit down with me to eat in the evening. Evening meal is family time. My last child leaves at 5.45 and it's up to parents to provide their dinner. My evening snack is 4pm and can be toast fruit pancakes garlic bread what ever going the older children have asked me if they can have cereal at 4 one day next week for snack so I'm going to do that for them. It's a bigger snack that the morning one as the older ones only in at 2.50pm and do tend to be hungry. As someone said trying to look after everyone and cook another meal is not worth the effort or distress

**MrsP2C** · 27-09-2014, 10:26 PM

I do decent snack after school (fruit + cake/toast/biscuits etc) then light tea at 5:30pm. I found the older ones ravenous after school but then too full for tea at 5pm so pushed tea back to 5:30pm. 3 of my 5 mindees have gone by then so it's much calmer & obviously less mouths to feed (plus it makes my previously always late 5:30 pick-up be quite punctual as mum knows we sit down on the dot of 5:30 & her dd is left hanging around if she's late!)

All my existing parents were fine with this especially as all ks1 now get free school hot lunches so parents can do lighter tea when they get home.

**natlou82** · 28-09-2014, 06:30 AM

Mmm, it's definitely good for thought lol! I'm thinking whether to change what I'm doing, as I said previously I am finding it hard work, but don't know the best way forward if I was to change!?! To the OP I think it's clear from the other posters that a large snack or light tea may be the way forward :-)

**kat27** · 28-09-2014, 07:32 AM

From 1st jan i will be implementing some changes, not providing hot meal for tea will be one and like most posters just a snack. Can I ask of any of you did originally provide tea what did you write or say to implement the change. I have 1 parent who isnt going to be impressed! Any help welcome on that front lol xx

**alwaysright** · 29-09-2014, 03:12 PM

like most others i dont provide breakfast just moring snack, lunch-sometimes hot, sometimes cold, and afternoon snack, i did use to give two little ones tea but it was provided by mum and even that was a nightmare! i was tied to being at home for this particular time just so i could feed these two children who would go hour less than one hour later and if i was a t home i would have to supervise other children as well. i spoke to mum and just said im sorry but they are now old enough to last until they get home for tea as its unfair on the others, she wasnt too happy but accepted it and its been brilliant since i've done it. i had just got into the habit as when they were tiny they needed feeding.

**AliceK** · 29-09-2014, 04:04 PM

Seeing as I recently discovered that young children should get the highest amount of their nutritional requirements at lunchtime and not tea time I have just recently changed to providing a hot meal at lunch time and then a substantial snack at tea time. It's bliss. No more rushing home from the school run and having to cook. My life is so much easier doing it this way.

xxx

**TabbyTuTu** · 30-09-2014, 08:42 AM

I plan on being open 7am-6pm, so breakfast shall be provided to any child arriving before 8am, a light snack (e.g. fruit and crackers) at around 9:30-10, a cooked lunch (Jacket potatoes, home made soup, veggie curry, mainly things that can be left cooking, or prepared in advance then reheated) around 11:30-12:30 (Depending on if I have pre-school pick-ups), and another snack around 3:30 after the school run (toast, fruit cake etc)

No dinner. My own little ones have there's after 6pm (They don't go to bed if it isn't straight after tea) so it makes sense for our family to not provide one, plus it will be easier for me. With a cooked lunch and large snack in the afternoon most parents will only have to provide something light. I think it is important to have dinnertime as family time.

Just need to get DH helping me to get the dinner ready ;-)

**natlou82** · 30-09-2014, 09:46 AM

Well I've got one LO sleeping so just finished typing my letter to parents that after half term I ll only be providing a light tea. I'm hoping that they accept it OK. I've given it a lot of thought and just typing the letter feels like a weight has been lifted! I think as a newbie (6months CM) I felt I had a lot to prove and promised the earth! Now I'm settling into the job and realised I can't be superwoman as much as I'd like to be lol x

**tess1981** · 30-09-2014, 02:07 PM

Originally Posted by natlou82

Well I've got one LO sleeping so just finished typing my letter to parents that after half term I ll only be providing a light tea. I'm hoping that they accept it OK. I've given it a lot of thought and just typing the letter feels like a weight has been lifted! I think as a newbie (6months CM) I felt I had a lot to prove and promised the earth! Now I'm settling into the job and realised I can't be superwoman as much as I'd like to be lol x

It may also help to say to parents you didn't realise when you started that an evening meal was too much pressure and you are still learning what makes your setting run smoothly and that's the important thing

**natlou82** · 30-09-2014, 05:12 PM

Thanks, I've given most of my letters out now and mentioned to parents on collection. So I ll wait for the reaction. It is true I didn't realise how stressful it would be x to the OP what have you decided to do?

**mama2three** · 30-09-2014, 05:46 PM

I am tempted to drop my main meals at tea time too - but don't feel I can. It is a major part of the 'package' I offered when parents chose to use my service and I would feel it was unfair to make a major change now I have their contracts iyswim.

**natlou82** · 30-09-2014, 07:52 PM

This is the reason I haven't dropped completely just an easier to prepare option eg something on toast, pasta, jacket potato rather than big dinners made from scratch. I feel that it's a happy medium tbh plus as a newbie I priced my after school to compete with after school club (cheap) and that has since closed and I've still been providing big meal at a low price so they've been getting a very good deal. Still learning lol :-)

**kat27** · 01-10-2014, 01:05 PM

Originally Posted by natlou82

Thanks, I've given most of my letters out now and mentioned to parents on collection. So I ll wait for the reaction. It is true I didn't realise how stressful it would be x to the OP what have you decided to do?

I have decided instead if increasing prices i am going to stop cooked evening meal and just offer a snack x