Prue Leith’s lunchbox ban reeks of classism

She claims that parents can’t say no when children ask for chocolate bars(Picture: Nordin Catic/Getty Images for The Cambridge Union) Prue Leith, the former Great British Bake Off judge, has said that school meals should be ‘compulsory’ because parents find it too challenging to send in healthy foods – declaring that lunchboxes should be banned. Astonishingly, she claims that parents can’t say no when children ask for chocolate bars in the supermarket, so they shouldn’t be allowed to send kids in with any food at all. I found this completely absurd – with schools in England about to roll out free lunches for more pupils, we need to manage our children’s health first, not start applying blame without thinking. Because if she had a look at recent studies she would see that state schools aren’t following the rules they set anyway. Three quarters of schools in England are serving up burgers and chips more often than is allowed – as well as sweets and crisps. No studies have as of yet pointed to a rise in chocolate bars being purchased by parents. For me, panic over what parents might be packing in school lunch boxes is rooted in classism. Prue has no idea what it is like for other parents (Picture: Rhiannon Picton-James) I, for one, will continue sending in packed lunches and snacks with my daughter despite her receiving free school meals. And there’s a good reason as to why. While my child has never been overweight, she has developed an obsession with asking if foods are nutritious or not before eating them since she started learning about ‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy’ foods in school. It’s really quite depressing when a five year old is asking about the perils of pasta, and whether or not a piece of toast is good for her. What she’s actually learning is to attach moral goodness to foods, and I don’t think shaming someone for their food choices has ever helped anyone become more healthy. It’s particularly frustrating when children are taught this, and then served white bread on the school’s breakfast club menu – because now they have to eat this food and also then feel bad about it. I came across Marks and Spencer’s viral sugary strawberries and cream sandwich (Picture: M&S) This isn’t a new stance for Prue, in 2018 she said that lunchboxes should be banned because parents ‘gave in to their children’ and ‘very few parents give out healthy lunchboxes’. Only, Leith has never sent her child to a state school to experience the food on offer – one being sent to Eton and the other to a public school in Oxford. Prue has no idea what it is like for other parents, who need to take everything into consideration when sending their kids to school with food. This is always the case when we talk about food and class. I felt this way when I came across Marks and Spencer’s viral sugary strawberries and cream sandwich, which didn’t pay the standard 20% food tax rate on sugary food. In Britain, the nutritional value of food seems to change depending on the class of the person consuming it (Picture: Getty Images/Image Source) Normally sandwiches are zero-rated for VAT since they are considered ‘cold take away food’, but since this sandwich has cream and strawberries, it’s argued it’s a confectionery, not a sandwich. Nonetheless, they were not charged extra. The “sandwich” was celebrated. It’s another way it feels like middle class food is different, somehow. Seemingly still inspired by Jamie Oliver, the internet remains full of sneering about ‘council estate dinners’ and beige foods – like sausage and chips, fish fingers or turkey dinosaurs. It goes to show that working class food, it’s demonised. When unhealthy foods show up on middle class menus, they are instantly elevated. In Britain, the nutritional value of food seems to change depending on the class of the person consuming it. Dame Prue Leith has gone from promoting cake on national television every week, to panicking about supermarket chocolate (Picture: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock) But it’s still surprising to see Dame Prue Leith has gone from promoting cake on national television every week, to panicking about supermarket chocolate. In Eton, a favourite on the menu is apparently sausage beans and chips – a beloved British classic. However, in state school, this staple is considered ‘ultra processed food’, and proof of bad parenting. Where I live in Wales, all children are entitled to free school meals regardless of household income but I still send my child to school with food. Should schools ban packed lunches? Yes, school meals are a healthier option.Check No, parents should have the choice to send packed lunches.Check It depends on the quality of the school meals.Check Sign up to Metro's The Slice newsletter for your guide to what's on in London, with trusted reviews, offers and giveaways. The thing is, if children are eligible for a free school meal and parents are choosing to go to the effort of remembering to buy food, make a packed lunch and send it in, there’s probably a very good reason. It has nothing to do with an inability to say no, (aka bad parenting) as Leith suggested. The easiest, laziest option for me would be to sack off the lunch and let my child have school dinners. For example, my child very often doesn’t like any of the choices at school. When we sent her to class without packed lunches, she would regularly come home without eating. This is always the case when we talk about food and class (Picture: Rhiannon Picton-James) I think it’s better she has a full tummy so she can concentrate on learning, over being issued a state approved spud. Not to mention, there are neurodivergent children who will struggle without their own safe foods. That does not mean chocolates, but typically a simple sandwich or ham roll which my school doesn’t offer. Leith operates on the assumption that school food is healthier than anything parents could select for their children to eat. It feels to me like she’s saying that working class parents can not be trusted. Unlike Leith, my child does not go to Eton with chefs and catering managers, where their food is sourced by Sodexo, a French multinational food service who also provide catering for The Royal Ascot, and The French Open. But the state shouldn’t have final say over what my child is allowed to eat – my child will suffer because of it. I don’t see why the government should decide what working class children are allowed to eat, while private school parents are trusted to make their own choices. 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