School Meals — Parent Questionnaire · Moxie89
Research · Parent Questionnaire
Research · School Community

What do school lunches
actually need to do?

This is a research questionnaire, not a complaint form. We want to understand what school lunches need to do for your child and your family — and what would make them genuinely work. Responses will be shared with the school to help shape improvements for everyone.

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01 About your family
Would you like to respond anonymously?
Your name
Email address optional — only if you would like to be contacted
How many children do you have at the school?
Which year group(s) are your children in? select all that apply
Which of the following describes your child's diet? select all that apply
Please specify
02 Current lunch arrangements
What does your child currently do for lunch?
If your child now brings a packed lunch, when did this change? optional
What was the main reason you switched to packed lunches?
We want to understand what was not working — not to judge the decision. Select all that apply.
Please specify
03 What lunch needs to do for your child
How important is each of the following to you?
Rate each: not important · quite important · very important · essential
Does your child come home hungry after school?
Do you feel the current lunch arrangements give your child enough energy to concentrate in the afternoon?
04 What gets in the way
Has your child ever been served food they did not want and could not get an alternative?
What happened?
Have you ever tried to raise a concern about school meals?
How difficult is it for your family to provide a packed lunch as an alternative?
If your child has told you they do not like something on the menu, what has the issue usually been? select all that apply
Please specify
05 Additional needs & sensory awareness
Does your child have any additional needs or a SEN identification? completely optional
Does your child have food-related challenges or extra needs?
Please describe any specific food-related needs or challenges
Were you aware that some children experience food very differently — not as fussiness, but as a genuine sensory challenge?

Eating is one of the most complex sensory tasks we do as humans. For some children, sensitivity to textures, smells, temperatures or the appearance of food can trigger real distress — not a behaviour choice, not stubbornness. This is not the same as ordinary picky eating, which most children go through as a normal developmental phase. For some children it is a deeper, consistent challenge rooted in how their nervous system processes sensory information.

Sources: NHS Children's Therapy Services — Picky Eaters and Sensory Issues  ·  Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust — Picky Eating and Sensory Challenges

06 Your ideas
What would make school meals genuinely great for your child? select all that apply
Please specify
Do you know of a school, provider or menu that you think gets this right? optional
Share a name, link or example below — or post it to your class WhatsApp group so your parent rep can pass it on for our resources page.
Anything else you would like to share that we have not covered?
07 Sharing your response
Are you happy for your response to be included in a summary shared with the school?

Thank you.

Your response has been recorded. We will compile all responses and share the findings with the school.

If you provided your email, we will be in touch.

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