Lunchtime Procedures: For Full Time Nursery Children
Lunchtime is an exciting part of the school day for the children. We are proud of our Healthy School Gold Status and work with families to ensure that all children enjoy a healthy and nutritional lunch.
Parents of full-time nursery children can send in a healthy packed lunch for their child, or they can choose to purchase a hot school meal provided by Caterlink – Nursery children are not entitled to a free school meal, under the government's Universal Infant Free Schools Meal (UIFSM) scheme or the Mayor’s Programme. Our school lunches are freshly prepared on site in our fully equipped school kitchen and, in our experience, children are much more likely to try new food (and enjoy it) when they are not with their family, so it is a good idea to let them try out a hot meal in their first half-term. We do not want the children to go hungry – we will keep a close eye on how much they eat during this period and liaise with parents where necessary. Remember no news is good news!
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Lunchtime Options |
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Purchase a Hot School Meal |
As well as a hot lunch, the children are free to choose from a piece of freshly baked bread and from the salad cart, which offers a range of freshly cut vegetables each day. The school menu offers vegetarian and Halal options and, through liaison with families, the kitchen team can accommodate allergy and dietary needs – please speak to a member of staff from the admin team with any queries of this nature. Menus change twice a year. Our Junior Leadership Team works closely with our catering providers to ensure school meals are both nutritious and appealing to our children. You can view the current menu on the school website. Click here to view a sample menu on our website: https://www.hillcross.merton.sch.uk/virtual-office/school-dinners |
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Packed Lunches |
If you choose to provide a packed lunch for your child, this must be in a named lunch bag or box. We suggest that a small amount of food should be provided (most parents provide enough food to feed a whole class when their child first starts school!) and this can be gradually increased if your child eats everything and is still hungry. We will liaise with families in these circumstances and will ensure no child will be left feeling hungry – they will have access to fruit and milk throughout the day. We actively promote healthy lifestyle choices in line with our Healthy School status. Children should not have chocolate, packets of biscuits, sweets or fizzy drinks in their packed lunches. Suggestions for items to be included are:
Please note that we are a NUT FREE school, so please do not send any nuts or products containing nuts (such as peanut butter, nutella or cereal bars with nuts) into school with your child. |
The children will be supported in the dining hall by two members of the EYFS team and their Midday Play Leaders (MPLs). They are encouraged to eat their healthy savoury option first, then their fruit and finally their treat. Water is available on the tables for all children to drink. All children are encouraged to eat at least half of their lunch by staff, but we cannot force them to eat. They will then play outside in the EYFS playground, supervised by the MPLs.
