Parents may be forced to pay extra to allow their children to take sandwiches into school, after Caerphilly County Borough Council proposed plans to introduce a “sandwich tax”.
In documents obtained by Plaid Cymru, proposals suggest charging each primary school in the borough approximately £2,200 to cover the cost of catering staff clearing up after pupils who take sandwiches.
An impact assessment report prepared by council officers says the charge covers the setting out and clearing away of places for pupils eating their own sandwiches, and “disposing of any subsequent waste”.
The charges will be based on actual sandwich take-up of pupils per school, but could amount to as much as £174,000 across the borough.
South Wales East AM Lindsay Whittle, who is a a councillor and a former council leader, said: “School budgets are already under pressure, so it seems likely that this charge will be passed on to parents by many schools or pupils even banned from bringing lunches in.
“Many children take sandwiches because they prefer them. While some parents, although working, do not qualify for free school meals for their children, they give them sandwiches because they can’t afford to pay for meals.
“Schools and parents should not be penalised. This is a daft idea and should be abandoned now. We’ve had the Tories’ bedroom tax and pasty tax, now the Labour-run council wants to impose the sandwich tax. It’s not on.”
Caerphilly Council say they do not intend the charge to be passed onto parents.
However, schools are warned that they will have to make alternative arrangements if they choose not to pay the new charges.
Officers write in the report: “Schools may choose to make their own arrangements for setting out and clearing away sandwich places, in which case the Catering Service will be able to reduce staffing hours and still realise the saving identified.”
The council’s catering service currently provides a free school meals service in 75 primary schools across Caerphilly County Borough.
The report also notes that the introduction of a “sandwich tax” could force more pupils to have school lunches: “This proposal could lead to pupils losing the option of bringing sandwiches meals to school and have the potential to increase school lunch take up.”
A council spokesperson said: “This is one of a number of proposals put forward for consideration as the council looks to make in excess of £9 million savings for 2016/17.
“It is important to emphasise that in setting the budget for 2016/17, the council has made a commitment to meeting the schools pledge, which will in fact see an additional cash growth of £1.9m for county borough schools.
“Indeed, throughout the council’s budget setting process, schools continue to be the most protected service area financially.
“Extensive consultation on this proposal has been conducted with head teachers and there is certainly no intention that any financial impact would be passed onto parents, or that the service would cease to be provided by schools.”
The Labour group on Caerphilly County Borough Council has since denied the claims.
I really cannot understand the premise that this proposal is based upon. How does it cost anything for children to eat sandwiches? What on earth is “setting out a sandwich place”? I have a feeling that the reality is that schools have lost control over pupil behaviour and that litter has become a problem in schools. I base this on conversations with those at the sharp end – the much put upon school caretakers. I have known caretakers who have been berated by head teachers for insisting that sandwiches are consumed in the canteen areas, rather than elsewhere in the school. The resultant litter is a cost, both in collection and disposal.
This sounds like another policy that is being pushed by council officers and nobody else. Harking back to my own schooldays I sometimes had dinner in the canteen, sometimes walked home and did occasionally took sandwiches. My food was in a plastic sandwich box and once eaten this box went home with me, complete with apple core and sweet wrapper. There was no waste for the school to deal with, no “setting out of a sandwich place” or anything else that cost money.
Is it 1st April already?
This proposal is absolutely bonkers. Charging schools where children have a packed lunch will place more strain on education budgets (same Labour government calling for more to be invested in education), and if the schools do not pay, parents will (the same parents the Labour government says are struggling with finance).
Where is the logic?
If anyone can continue voting Labour after this they must be out of their mind. Talk about lost the plot! This is the council that thought it was morally right to give 20% pay rises to senior offices and get parents to pay by taxing those who let their kids being sandwiches!!
Caerphilly labour group – hand your heads in shame. You are a disgrace
Ultimately all the cuts come from the pro-austerity government in Westminster. They’re the ones tightening the thumbscrews whilst letting big business get away with cushy tax deals in return for kickbacks.
Yes, I get that argument but still struggle to see the connection with children eating sandwiches. Whether the child eats a sandwich or has a canteen meal is surely cost neutral?
As far as I understand it from my school, the dinner pupils sit in one place and packed lunch in another. Therefore there is a budget to clean the packed lunch area. Like I said above there needs to be more detail. Perhaps there should be no separate areas and children can sit where they like?
Or perhaps reintroduce a self clean area? In the grammar school canteen all pupils were expected to take their plates and cutlery back to the canteen hatch. If there was any waste food they had to first empty this in the slop bin. The contents of this were later fed to pigs.
Any litter such are sandwich wrappers were put in the separate litter bin by the pupils. Canteen ladies patrolled to wipe tables and kept an eye out for anyone trying to sneak off without clearing their own place. I was following this system, reasonably competently, when I was 11 years of age. This stood me in good stead when I entered the world of work at 16 years old. Cleaning my own area of work was by then second nature to me.
I will put your comments forward.
As I understand it, Lindsay Whittle Is WRONG, and there are no such plans or proposals (except those concocted by the Welsh Nationalist Group on Caerphilly Council) to make any charge whatever on Children or Parents of Children eating sandwiches in schools, this is correct, is it not?
I wouldn’t be surprised if what Lyndsay is saying is going to be suggested at scrutiny. The spin and sensation in the article is that it almost suggests that it’s a done deal. That’s no surprise though is it ? We’re all guilty of that from whatever political party a politician is in.
Say`s the Labour Party Leader and leader of the Council Kieth Reynolds “The Labour group on Caerphilly County Borough Council has said parents WILL NOT be charged for their children to take sandwiches into schools.
Misinformation and misrepresentation should have no place in politics, everyone can agree that bobbing and weaving, side stepping and dodging are what makes for interesting political debate, but scarmongering and complete misrepresentation is not accepteble.PARTICULARLY in a time of a very important, and what everyone agrees could be a very close fight for Assembly Seats.
The Nationalist are very adept at misrepresenting the situation and manipulating what is the actual situation. Thankfully, now the leader has spoken on behalf of the Council administration and the Labour party we know the truth.
Change the record will you – Welsh Labour have been rolling out this tired excuse for the last 16 years, about time the wasters were booted out, Tax Payer is right, anybody who continues to vote for Labour after what has gone on in Caerphilly recently must be out of their minds, this ludicrous sandwich tax idea proves beyond any reasonable doubt that they’re not fit to govern.
Actually, it is politicians from the Tory Party, and their few and far between Supporters in Wales, who really should Change the record. blaming the last Labour Government for what is proving to be their total inability to protect the interest of the citizens of this Country by following a one trick pony failed fiscal route, we ain’t seen nothing yet, the worm is turning in respect to financial markets and currency issues, the EU falling into further recession, and world trading markets suffering severe constrictions, whilst Cameron swans around The EU in his failed attempts to pull and push levers in our favour, what a total bunch of chinless wonder failures, building our children’s futures on illusion and dishonesty, it is ALL about to collapse around their `sticky out` ears.
Labour had 13 years in Westminster, and every year in Cardiff Bay to put policies in place to boost the socio-economic status of all in Caerphilly, but Labour has failed people.
On Labour’s watch, the education of children has gotten worse compared to other developed countries (it has even got worse during times when budgets were being increased), the NHS Wales’ inferiority compared to NHS England has been highlighted (lack of cancer drugs fund, higher waiting times, lower life expectancy, and longer ambulance response times in Wales prove this), the global status of Wales has diminished (the first £1m [equivalent to £109m in today’s money] cheque was signed in Cardiff but today Wales has nothing world class), and people in Wales have fewer ambitions than previously (David Lloyd-George must be turning in his grave).
The truth is, Labour has failed on all measures. That is, unless you look at the measure of reckless spending where Labour beats everyone.
Truthfully, when do you think the UK was last in recession?
Answer: the last UK recession ended in June 2009, a month after the Tories won the general election. Far from causing an election, the Tories have prevented many. But of course, the statistics do not support your dogma so you ignore them.
Is this a joke???
What planet are these people on?
We don’t want our green spaces lost either:
http://www.caerphilly.gov.uk/Business/Planning-and-building-control-for-business/Local-Development-Plan/1st-review-of-the-LDP/Deposit-Replacement-Plan-consultation
I’ll have to check the minutes, I just looked in the last set and it’s not in there. I didn’t see it in the agenda either.
I sit on the scrutiny committee that considered this, I’m also a school governor. However it’s only a proposal at the moment and believe me there were a lot of dubious comments from Labour and Plaid about it and Councillors wanting to know how it will impact schools. I assume this report is to be considered in an upcoming scrutiny and charging schools to pay for he cleaning up of packed lunch is not what I’ll be recommending to full council.
Someone must think it is a good idea to even include it in any report, or even mention it. The policy at best is the council handing the school money in an increase in funding, but the school paying the money back through this charge. At worst, the council hands the school nothing but the school pays the council this money.
As you know, politicains have been doing this for ever, and selling it to the public, it is an ellusion
Like the Labour councillors who criticised the LDP but voted in favour of it?
I agree.
This is clearly an `officer inspired` move. If it is true at all?.
My son has sandwiches because a working hard nurse like me can’t afford to pay for dinners!
This is just pure greed.
I know I’ve got two who have school dinners and its pricey, I think we voted against an increase in school dinners. Charging for packed lunch will defeat the object of having them! (Well at least one sone kids just don’t like / want school dinners).
The easiest solution is to not vote Labour. A vote for Labour is a vote to cut a hole in your pocket to allow money to flow out.
It ain`t gona happen, worry not, only in the mind of Welsh Nationalists.
As I understand this is only a proposal?
In the real world, this kind of thing has no legs. Try getting the money off the parents. If they had more money they might be buying school meals. Just suck up the cost. This cost is justifiable in my opinion unlike several other questionable activities, like the fact that a feasibility study such as this was even considered!
It is NOT EVEN a proposal, simply scrarmongeing by desperate Welsh Nationalist local politicians who are going to lose seats in the Assembly Election in May. Any port in a storm I suppose.