Healthy lunches made easier
Need new, creative packed lunch ideas?
If your child doesn't have school dinners, chances are that you're making packed lunches. Often a last-minute rush where it's easiest to use whatever's closest to hand, packed lunches can often be a standard fare.
To make life easier for you, and to help manage your child's blood sugar, we've stepped in with some alternative balanced lunch ideas.
Healthy lunchboxes for children
We've created a selection of five different lunchboxes, full of healthy foods for your child.
Each offers a balanced range of food and drink to ensure that they get all the goodness they need for a busy day at school.
Feel free to mix and match items across the boxes, or follow the Monday-Friday schedule, tailoring the lunch box to your child's own favourites and preferences.
Kids' weekly healthy lunch planner
Please note that portion sizes may need to be adjusted depending on your child's age and energy requirements. We're also aware that children have wide-ranging tastes and preferences surrounding food so these lunch options are just a guide.
Monday
- Cheese wholemeal bread sandwich / Egg mayo wholemeal bread sandwich
- Savoury popcorn
- Apple
- Small no-added sugar fruit smoothie (150ml)
Tip: Your child will love helping to make this delicious healthy popcorn recipe.
Tuesday
- Salad with sliced turkey
- Breadsticks with cream cheese dip
- Banana
- Water
Tip: Also, check out our chicken caesar salad or simply swap the salad ingredients for whatever your child prefers.
Wednesday
- Tomato pasta salad
- Carrot and cucumber sticks with hummus
- Low-sugar fruit or plain yogurt
- Water
Tip: Instead of shop-bought dips, make our healthy hummus or tzatziki recipes.
Thursday
- Chicken tortilla wholemeal wrap
- A portion of cheese
- Sliced Melon
- No-added-sugar squash
Tip: Our tortillas are filled with goodness and can easily be adapted into a vegetarian snack.
Friday
- Tuna and sweetcorn wholemeal pitta
- Vegetable crisps
- Satsuma
- Carton of semi-skimmed milk
Tip: Our homemade vegetable crisps are low in salt and fat.
Make light work of lunchtimes - for yourself, too:
Take time to prepare snacks and lunches before you leave the house in the morning - the likelihood that you reach for less healthy foods outside the home will be minimised.
- Lunches needn’t be complicated - leftovers from a healthy dinner often make great lunches for the following day, and wastage is reduced, too.
- Stay motivated: Instead of grabbing a bite on-the-go, packing your own lunch allows you to know what you’re eating in line with your healthy diet.
- Have some staples on standby at home – with salad ingredients and cheese, mackerel fillets or cans of lentils in the cupboard, you will always find that a last-minute lunch can be made.
- Make sure there is somewhere appropriate to store your lunch and snacks at work.
- You could try pairing up with someone else who is eating healthily and share lunches for the week, with you making them half the week, and your friend the rest.
- If short on time, pop a tin of tuna or packet of sliced chicken breast into your bag, take to work, and make a tasty salad after simply buying a small salad from the shop. You can easily find smaller boxed salads which you can then make into a more substantial and balanced meal should you wish.
