Parents provide all the food their child needs for the day. 

We are happy to reheat food for lunch, but please ensure food is cooked before bringing it in – for example, noodles or instant pasta dishes. The hot food needs to be put in a separate container and labelled. We provide cups, cutlery, dishes, facecloths (and bibs where necessary). Children will be served a drink at morning tea, lunch, and afternoon tea times, with water available whenever requested throughout the day. Please provide a drink bottle for your child.

We promote healthy eating so please supply your child with enough food to satisfy them throughout the day. Children are encouraged to eat ‘growing food’ and make healthy choices, giving them longer lasting energy and a healthy start in life.

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On 25^th January 2021 the Ministry of Education released new regulations known as ‘Reducing food related choking for babies and young children at early learning services.’ Please read these carefully and ensure that the food you provide for your child is appropriate and excludes high risk foods for choking. Below is a list of high-risk foods to exclude. 

• Whole or pieces of nuts (we are a nut-free centre).
• Hard or chewy sweets or lollies.
• Popcorn (not permitted in Nursery, ok for Preschool).
• Marshmallows.

If your child has any food allergies or intolerances or is unable to eat certain things for cultural reasons it is vital that we are fully informed. The children have many opportunities to bake and cook at LUECC and we need to take all these factors into consideration. We also bake egg free/dairy free/gluten free cupcakes or pieces of cake which are stored in our freezer. This is for your child to have when we celebrate birthday parties, ensuring that they can still take part. If you do not wish for your child to take part in these celebrations, please let us know.

Please keep these as treats for at home only:

• Nuts in any form, please note this includes baking, muesli bars, peanut butter, and Nutella.
• LUECC is a strictly nut free zone due to allergies.
• Sweets, lollies, chocolate bars etc.
• Fizzy drinks and juice.
• Marshmallows.

Finally, please name all food containers and bottles. We have a philosophy of sustainability and caring for our environment and encourage a wrap free environment. We recommend the use of plastic containers to reduce packaging. Cling film/glad wrap is a choking hazard, so we do not recommend wrapping children’s food.