Staff Mail
Children must bring in a healthy packed lunch in a named lunch box or bag. Please ensure the packed lunch includes healthy choices. Children are not allowed to bring in sweets, full sized chocolate bars or fizzy drinks.
As part of our healthy school status, no chocolate bars or crisps are allowed on a Monday. This is a rule created by our School Council.
Getting ideas and inspiration for what to include in your child’s lunchbox can be a difficult task. Healthy eating is simply about getting a better balance and eating a wide variety of foods.
Healthier Lunchbox Checklist – Have you included?
For more inspiration please click on the following links
http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/childhealth6-15/Pages/Lighterlunchboxes.aspx
http://www.nhs.uk/Change4Life/Pages/healthy-lunchbox-picnic.aspx
In order to maintain sugar levels and an active mind, it’s important that children eat a healthy snack at break time. For children in Nursery – Year 2, the Government’s fruit and vegetables scheme provide each child with a snack each day.
All children in Years 3-6 are encouraged to bring a healthy morning snack to be eaten at morning playtime. This may be a piece of fruit or vegetable and should be clearly named, kept separate from the child’s packed lunch and put in an agreed place in the classroom when they arrive at school. Dried fruit such as raisins, apricots or prunes can be sent in but this does not include processed fruit snacks which often have more sugar in them (all be it natural sugar) than Haribo sweets. Sugar highs do not help children learn and are not healthy options.
All children must bring in a named water bottle to school every day. We encourage all children to drink throughout the day to develop healthy drinking habits. Children can refill their bottles at school.
All children under five are entitled to free school milk and the government provides this to schools, without the need for you to register. Once your child is five their entitlement to free school milk stops, however you may continue to buy school milk for your child by registering at http://www.coolmilk.com/.
Children will be encouraged to drink milk but we do not keep a daily record of who has drunk their milk.
We are proud to offer children an excellent school meal service and work closely with our catering providers to ensure school meals are nutritious and appeal to young children. All meals are prepared and cooked on site daily by our fantastic kitchen staff.
Menus change regularly and children are offered a range of healthy meal choices. You can view the current menu through our link on the school website. The school menu also offers vegetarian options and can accommodate allergy and dietary needs – please speak to a member of the office staff if your child has specific dietary requirements.
All children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are entitled to a free school meal, under the Government’s Universal Free Schools Meal scheme. Our current costs are listed on our School Dinners page, click here to view. School meals (free or paid for) must be booked on a half termly basis for all children via the school office. Please email info@morden.merton.sch.uk if you would like your child to have a school dinner. Please ensure that payment is made for school dinners via Parent Pay in advance of your child taking a meal.
It is the parent’s responsibility to inform the admin team in writing if you wish your child to stop having school dinners. If you do not do so, you will continue to be charged.
However, during the first half term of a child’s Reception year we can be flexible in allowing children to try school dinners on a weekly basis (up until October half term). If you choose to send your child to school with a packed lunch on some days, you will still be charged for the school dinner if you have booked for the half term. Please contact the school if there are special circumstances where a change needs to be made mid-term.