The Labour Party under Andy Burnham

[Razorblades]

Regardless of what one thinks about the new school meal requirements, what do schools plan to do about children on packed lunches? Would they actively encourage teachers and staff to confiscate someone's KitKat or would they consider it not worth the hassle given it's a parental decision outside the school's control?

According to the Daily Express:


'Children’s lunch boxes will be policed as part of Labour's crackdown on school dinners. Headteachers will need to publish lunchbox policies online to coincide with new Government rules, which require schools to scrap sugar and processed foods for healthier natural options.

The Department for Education (DfE) announced the changes on Monday as part of an updated set of school food standards, which will come into effect from September 2027. It recommends banning sugary drinks, crisps and confectionery from children’s lunch boxes, and rewarding students with prizes for healthy lunchboxes. The updated checklist, originally produced in 2019, shows parents what is acceptable to pack in lunch boxes.'

Link to article here:

Children’s lunch boxes to be policed in huge nanny state crackdown

This feels like peak nanny state

www.express.co.uk

 

[em81]

You'd be surprised. Kids now have much wider palates than in my day and that's a good thing. My 17 month old goes to nursery and her lunches over the last 5 days have been:

Savoury mince with vegetables, mixed beans and new potatoes
Mozzarella and cherry tomato pasta with spinach
Chicken and vegetables in a basil and tomato sauce with couscous
Pepper quiche with herbed potatoes, peas and onions
Mild vegetarian curry with rice and mini naan

And she eats all of it. Kids don't have a concept of joyless food, most of them really like a wide range of it if you let them try it early and eat appropriate "adult" meals at the table with you. I would never have thought a toddler would like floured basa fillets or stroganoff or turkey mince curry but you learn something new every day! When I was at school I had chips and beans most days with something like a turkey twizzler or breaded chicken or dalesteak. It's not great to be honest, I wish I'd have been weaned on what my kid is getting now!

It's sounds like it's progressed from working class cafe style food to middle class high street restaurant style food.

I hated school dinners. Even when we had a healthier option like a topped baked potato it was prepared half an hour earlier and had turned into a half cold melted mush by the time it was eaten.

 

[Sorcerer]

According to the Daily Express:


'Children’s lunch boxes will be policed as part of Labour's crackdown on school dinners. Headteachers will need to publish lunchbox policies online to coincide with new Government rules, which require schools to scrap sugar and processed foods for healthier natural options.

The Department for Education (DfE) announced the changes on Monday as part of an updated set of school food standards, which will come into effect from September 2027. It recommends banning sugary drinks, crisps and confectionery from children’s lunch boxes, and rewarding students with prizes for healthy lunchboxes. The updated checklist, originally produced in 2019, shows parents what is acceptable to pack in lunch boxes.'

Link to article here:

Children’s lunch boxes to be policed in huge nanny state crackdown

This feels like peak nanny state

www.express.co.uk

At the risk of giving the Daily Express a bit too much credit I'm not sure I agree with a crackdown on packed lunches. School dinners I can sort of understand because those will be coming out of taxpayer money which is also used to fund the NHS where obesity is actually a huge cost. But packed lunches are a parental choice and state enforcement strays a bit into overreach territory in my opinion (excluding age-restricted drinks for obvious reasons).

(For disclaimer purposes I must acknowledge that there is a chance the Daily Express, having a right-wing bias, could very well be dishonest with some of it's reporting here given that the right-leaning press has been printing staunch anti-Labour hysterics since day one).

 

[AlterEgo]

The state isn't enforcing children's lunch boxes. Schools are merely being asked to issue guidance to parents.

All that is required is an update to existing guidance which has been around for several years. An example of such guidance is here: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...UQFnoECHoQAQ&usg=AOvVaw27iHuspOhKm20CHLnpaIq1

(Link is to a large PDF of example guidance, which is worded along rhe lines of "please try to include" and "should be made up of")

 

[Sorcerer]

The state isn't enforcing children's lunch boxes. Schools are merely being asked to issue guidance to parents.

All that is required is an update to existing guidance which has been around years. An example of such guidance is here: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...UQFnoECHoQAQ&usg=AOvVaw27iHuspOhKm20CHLnpaIq1

(Link is to a large PDF of example guidance, which is worded along rhe lines of "please try to include" and "should be made up of")

A much more sensible approach in my opinion. I wouldn't want to stop parents deciding what to feed their children but I'd be lying if I said I'd have no concerns about irresponsible ones giving them something like a Red Bull for lunch (which I believe counts as an age-restricted product anyway).

(Looks like I was right to make that disclaimer about the Daily Express as well )

 

[Harpo]

(For disclaimer purposes I must acknowledge that there is a chance the Daily Express, having a right-wing bias, could very well be dishonest with some of it's reporting here given that the right-leaning press has been printing staunch anti-Labour hysterics since day one).

Alternatively - ‘It’s a newspaper’

 

[Brightonboy]

The state isn't enforcing children's lunch boxes. Schools are merely being asked to issue guidance to parents.

All that is required is an update to existing guidance which has been around for several years. An example of such guidance is here: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sou...UQFnoECHoQAQ&usg=AOvVaw27iHuspOhKm20CHLnpaIq1

(Link is to a large PDF of example guidance, which is worded along rhe lines of "please try to include" and "should be made up of")

Notwithstanding that it has been issued as guidance, I predict that somewhere in the UK a school is preparing 'rules' that must be complied with and that there will be protests somewhere before Christmas.

 

[Cross City]

This is hardly some new thing is it? I remember my junior school lunches having do's and don'ts back in the late 90s. No fizzy pop, no chocolate bar etc.

 

[Harpo]

This is hardly some new thing is it? I remember my junior school lunches having do's and don'ts back in the late 90s. No fizzy pop, no chocolate bar etc.

Most schools bar nuts and products containing them too, but for allergy reasons. Unfortunate when they are such an excellent natural food.

 

[styles]

Notwithstanding that it has been issued as guidance, I predict that somewhere in the UK a school is preparing 'rules' that must be complied with and that there will be protests somewhere before Christmas.

Protests, or the opening of catering vans outside schools. There was a school in Rotheram where this happened, then the school banned children leaving site, so instead a handful of mums took orders before school then would pass burgers and chips through the railings at lunch.

 

[AlterEgo]

Notwithstanding that it has been issued as guidance, I predict that somewhere in the UK a school is preparing 'rules' that must be complied with and that there will be protests somewhere before Christmas.

It will definitely be one of those academies you find occasionally which is stricter and more awful than Royal Marines basic training and with more stringent uniform and hair standards.

 

[styles]

It will definitely be one of those academies you find occasionally which is stricter and more awful than Royal Marines basic training and with more stringent uniform and hair standards.

Speaking of which, last week the government brought in 3-4 branded uniform item limits, including for PE kit. He's promised that by the end of the year there will be stricter rules on the deals schools have with suppliers.

I think this is a really good thing, though the specific rules will be interesting. School uniforms used to be a lot simpler, with our high school's only branded clothing were a polo shirt, or the school tie if you chose to wear a formal shirt instead. When I last drove past at kick out time, they had introduced branded blazers and even branded rucksacks. They appeared to be wearing branded trousers and skirts which I've just checked and yes, they're mandatory. So branded items alone you've got tie, blazer, rucksack, and trousers/skirt for the main uniform, plus whatever branded items they've decided on for PE. That can't be a cheap shop, and of course the problem is children grow out of them.

Edit: just priced it up and one bundle would be £95-£100 depending whether you go for skirts or trousers, polo or tshirt for PE, etc. That's before the optional bits like the school jumper and the school PE hoody. And of course that you usually want more than 1 pair of trousers or 1 shirt for the whole week.

Whereas at Asda, you get a pair of black school trousers for £4-7 each.

From what I hear, under the new headteacher, behaviour has gone downhill, so all of this probably isn't achieving the oft-proposed purpose of improving discipline or reducing bullying.

 

[Harpo]

It will definitely be one of those academies you find occasionally which is stricter and more awful than Royal Marines basic training and with more stringent uniform and hair standards.

Yes! Those who lock toilets during lessons and insist on girls wearing tartan skirts (single supplier of course ) hundreds of miles from Scotland.

 

[BuhSnarf]

Protests, or the opening of catering vans outside schools. There was a school in Rotheram where this happened, then the school banned children leaving site, so instead a handful of mums took orders before school then would pass burgers and chips through the railings at lunch.

And we wonder why we have a childhood obesity problem!

 

[Tetchytyke]

Notwithstanding that it has been issued as guidance, I predict that somewhere in the UK a school is preparing 'rules' that must be complied with and that there will be protests somewhere before Christmas.

Oh absolutely.

And it will be one of those Academy schools run by some narcissistic man (it is nearly always a man but they are always narcissistic) where they also have a very tightly-defined uniform (all branded, all from one supplier, trebles all round) and are hugely over-zealous in its enforcement.

The Isle of Man Government did this to our school dinners last year, cutting out a proper dessert (you can now have either a small glass of milk or a piece of fruit) "for the health of the children."

Needless to say that the price I pay for my daughter's school dinner still went up this year, even after they cut an entire course out of the meal. I don't even object to them trying to save money (though I'd rather pay more and still get two courses, I'm lucky that I can afford to do that). It's the way they always try and spin a blatant cost-cutting measure as something that they're doing for our benefit, not theirs.

Same with this idea of cutting back meat (which is expensive unhealthy) and replacing it with lentils and pulses (cheap healthy).

 

[Broucek]

Speaking of which, last week the government brought in 3-4 branded uniform item limits, including for PE kit. He's promised that by the end of the year there will be stricter rules on the deals schools have with suppliers.

.....

Edit: just priced it up and one bundle would be £95-£100 depending whether you go for skirts or trousers, polo or tshirt for PE, etc. That's before the optional bits like the school jumper and the school PE hoody. And of course that you usually want more than 1 pair of trousers or 1 shirt for the whole week.

Whereas at Asda, you get a pair of black school trousers for £4-7 each.

From what I hear, under the new headteacher, behaviour has gone downhill, so all of this probably isn't achieving the oft-proposed purpose of improving discipline or reducing bullying.

I have a BIG ethical problem with this... If you are going to mandate a supplier then it needs to be extremely affordable!

 

[greatkingrat]

Not an expert on school uniform, but it seems like governments from both parties announce something similar to this every few years. What will be different this time?

 

[sor]

As someone who doesn't have kids, and who left school not all that long ago, I'm surprised how ridiculous the situation was allowed to become. My primary school had no mandatory branded items, and my secondary school only had one - the tie. For the rest, unbranded clothing of the same colour was acceptable, though they did sell branded jumpers more or less at cost. I fail to see how the rest of the branded items are necessary, especially not branded backpacks!

Even a maximum of four items seems excessive. I wonder if this is yet another consequence of the wretched academisation process where state-funded schools became a lot less accountable to parents and voters.

 

[Brightonboy]

Back in the early 2000s I was a parent governor at my sons' high school for about 8 years. When they started there, the uniform was black/dark grey trousers and a polo shirt in whichever colour was correct for their house. The precise shade of colour was not specified so, for example, my sons had school polos in about 3 - 4 different shades of green. However, it was the pupils' school council that came to the leadership and asked for a blazer & tie uniform which was introduced (for the new intake only) in the year that I stopped being a governor. Having seen other schools turned around by disciplinarian heads (1 got rid of almost as many staff as he did pupils in his first term in office) my experience suggests that a smart uniform is often appreciated by the pupils and contributes to standards. That said, I do think the upper limit on 'branded' items should be about 3 - 4 items, even though (many years ago) I went to a grammar school where we had badged blazers, ties and 2 sets of sportswear. All our local high schools now have blazer uniforms although I don't know what other branded items are mandated (or optionally available).

 

[Mr. SW]

My school uniform was supplied by the recommended retailer - however they were Jewish, so they were closed on Saturdays. And on Sundays as well, just to make sure.
But it's quite interesting to the fuss about school dinners considering the utter sewage we were expected to consume back in the day. Getting food into kids is hard work as it is and grey quivering pig swill that I was served in the 60s and 70s should give people a stark indication of the "Good Old Days". People complaining about turkey twizzlers and fried food have nothing to compare to seven-year-olds crying because they wouldn't eat the cardboard-flavoured tapioca pudding.

 

[brad465]

How often do schools do jumble sales of old uniform to pass down to lower year groups? While they are not a full solution, if many parents can pass on clothes that no longer fit their children to lower year groups, this would both save money and reduce clothing waste.

 

[Brightonboy]

How often do schools do jumble sales of old uniform to pass down to lower year groups? While they are not a full solution, if many parents can pass on clothes that no longer fit their children to lower year groups, this would both save money and reduce clothing waste.

I think quite a few schools (or their PTAs) run some form of uniform exchange/resale 'shop' - certainly round my way they all seem to.

 

[styles]

Speaking of narcissistic headteachers, this story from today is intriguing, though obviously it's one word against another.

Headteacher suspends 25 pupils in a week – including for ‘loud bag zipping’

Some parents have described Frome Community College as ‘like a military base’ – but interim principal Dan Jeffries has defended his actions, saying the children were suspended for ‘persistent disruption’

www.independent.co.uk

Headteacher suspends 25 pupils in a week – for ‘zipping bag too loudly’ and ‘laughing’

Some parents have described Frome Community College as ‘like a military base’ – but interim principal Dan Jeffries has defended his actions, saying the children were suspended for ‘persistent disruption’

The Education Secretary has spoken quite a bit about tackling pupil behaviour, but what about heavy handed headteachers?

 

[BuhSnarf]

How often do schools do jumble sales of old uniform to pass down to lower year groups? While they are not a full solution, if many parents can pass on clothes that no longer fit their children to lower year groups, this would both save money and reduce clothing waste.

At my kids school they have a resale shop at least once a half term.

They also have a uniform display at induction day where the new intake can take whatever they want from the seconds shop for free, my daughter got nearly a full school uniform for free. Which is much better than my eldest where 7 years ago I had to shell out just shy of £300.

Schools also have become much more reasonable about allowing non branded uniform.

 

[Richard Scott]

How often do schools do jumble sales of old uniform to pass down to lower year groups? While they are not a full solution, if many parents can pass on clothes that no longer fit their children to lower year groups, this would both save money and reduce clothing waste.

My local school definitely does, markets them as pre-loved!

 

[coppercapped]

Subscriptions you can’t easily cancel, sales that aren’t sales – I’ll end the rip-offs that British people hate | Andy Burnham

These everyday hassles are small, but they add up – especially in a cost of living crisis. That’s why my government will tackle them head-on, says UK prime minister Andy Burnham

www.theguardian.com

Subscriptions you can’t easily cancel, sales that aren’t sales – I’ll end the rip-offs that British people hate​

Andy Burnham

Definition of "ripoff"

An act of cheating or exploiting someone; something that is overpriced or of lesser value than claimed.

I was just re-reading this thread and for some reason this post didn’t register with me the first time around but if what is reported is true then it is unbelievable.

What on earth is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom doing wasting his time on dealing with auto-renewable subscriptions when there are many, many more serious issues which should be demanding his attention?

A short list of really serious issues in no particular order:

• how do we create a social and legal framework which will encourage enterprise and the creation of jobs?
• how to get the UK economy to expand under the current world wide trading conditions?
• how do we protect ourselves against international blackmail whereby some state potentially could threaten a tactical nuclear strike on our North Sea windfarms?
• what steps can be taken to ensure energy sources are diversified and less exposed to international shocks?
• what steps can be taken to cope with the possibility of restrictions in the supply of important raw materials?
• how do we encourage the development of an independent computer, software and electronic communications industry operating under UK - or at least EU - law?
• given the changing climatic conditions what steps could/should be taken to ensure that domestic food production is maintained?

These are the sort of issues that should concern the Prime Minister. Any perceived issue which has occurred because of automatically repeating subscriptions should have been treated at ministerial level and not get elevated to the Cabinet. By getting himself involved in trivialities Burnham is doing nobody any favours and is showing himself to be as much a populist as Boris Johnson. Oh dear.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 21 Sep 2026 ==

There's a spectrum. Given that there are loads of people who are so useless at travel they only go on all inclusive holidays so they don't have to be "stressed" by any of this sort of thing it's reasonable to assume that there are plenty one step up from that. Or operating from older guidebooks from when HeX was enough of an improvement over Connect/Piccadilly line it could make sense for more than niche use cases. Etc.

What's a 'guidebook' grandad?

 

[Egg Centric]

What's a 'guidebook' grandad?

Back when we had hovercrafts it was how you knew whether they were full of eels. Young whippersnappers like you wouldn't know anything about that though, with your 6s and 7s and all that.

 

[coppercapped]

Back when we had hovercrafts it was how you knew whether they were full of eels. Young whippersnappers like you wouldn't know anything about that though, with your 6s and 7s and all that.

('Young whippersnapper' - nicest thing anyone has said to me all day!!)

 

[SynthD]

how do we protect ourselves against international blackmail whereby some state potentially could threaten a tactical nuclear strike on our North Sea windfarms?

I’ve never heard anything remotely like this before. Is this the new plan to improve the view at the Turnberry golf course? Do they know the oil fields are in the same area?

given the changing climatic conditions what steps could/should be taken to ensure that domestic food production is maintained?

Importation, of food or workers, is the solution, so they won’t bring attention to it.

 

[The exile]

What on earth is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom doing wasting his time on dealing with auto-renewable subscriptions when there are many, many more serious issues which should be demanding his attention?

These are the sort of issues that should concern the Prime Minister. Any perceived issue which has occurred because of automatically repeating subscriptions should have been treated at ministerial level and not get elevated to the Cabinet. By getting himself involved in trivialities Burnham is doing nobody any favours

Never confuse what is said with what is done. The vital things that you’ve listed are, once gets into the detail, way above most people’s heads (including mine, I hasten to add). We have a party that is feeding off the notion that the “establishment” isn’t interested in their problems and a lowest common denominator press that will only deal with “personalities” so isn’t interested in anything any politician except the PM says - unless it’s an example of “foot in mouth disease”. Is it surprising therefore that the PM makes a few announcements about changes that will really affect “ordinary voters’ lives” quickly, rather than what at present could be only presented as nebulous concepts?