School's half-baked birthday cake ban

Birthday girl Olivia Morris excitedly set off for school with a tasty chocolate cake, topped with nine pink candles, to share with her classmates.

But her pals never got to taste so much as a crumb after school staff told heartbroken Olivia, aged nine, to take her cake home again–because it fell foul of healthy eating rules.

The closest her school pals got to a slice of the mouth-watering treat was to see it displayed at a morning assembly while they sang Happy Birthday to Olivia.

This week her great grandma, keen cook Eileen Morris (pictured with Olivia) who has been baking birthday cakes for her family to take to school for more than 40 years, found the new rules hard to swallow.

“I have baked and lovingly sent countless cakes to school over the years when my family have celebrated a birthday, and now to be told my cakes must be discouraged because they are not healthy eating has left me stunned,” said Eileen, (79) from Kimberworth Park.

“It is absolute nonsense. I understand the need to teach children healthy eating but surely a birthday cake is a special treat.

“Sharing a cake with your friends on your birthday is a lovely old tradition and for children to be told it falls foul of healthy eating rules is beyond belief.”

Eileen began baking birthday cakes when her own children Mark, now 48, and 52-year-old daughter Jane, first started at the then new Rockingham Infants and Junior School on Roughwood Road.

And when her five grand children and five great grandchildren joined the school, she continued the cake baking tradition.

But all that came to an end this week when Olivia arrived at school with her cake on her ninth birthday, with her mum, Rebecca.

“It was a lovely cake decorated with Maltesers and Jellytots, with chocolate icing and nine pink candles,” said Eileen. “Just to see the happy faces of the children in my family going off to school with their cakes is enough for me.

“But the head teacher, told Rebecca ‘I don’t know how to tell you this but we cannot accept the cake.’

“As this was happening another mum was coming down the corridor with another cake with ten candles on it for another girl who was celebrating her birthday that day.

“The head teacher said they had been informed they could not accept cakes for the children in future because it did not comply with healthy eating rules. You couldn’t make it up.

“I was furious. This is just a silly application of rules and political correctness.

“The school, the head teacher and staff are all wonderful and you could not wish to send your children to a better school.

“But the authorities in their wisdom have decided to bar birthday cakes at school. It’s just crazy.”

Headteacher at Rockingham Junior and Infant School, Heather Green, said: "We love enjoying the birthdays of our pupils and we celebrate them both in class and in assemblies.

"At the same time, however, we are working really hard to promote healthy eating and lifestyles among our pupils through Healthy Schools and other projects.

"It is a tricky balance not to give a mixed message to pupils if we say to them ‘be healthy and eat healthily at school’ but at the same time we say ‘bring in your cakes and buns to celebrate all our different events.’

“We also have to take into account children who have allergies and the pressure that some parents feel they are under to provide such treats if others in the class are doing so.

"We really do appreciate the gesture from Mrs Morris and I have already spoken to Olivia's mother to explain why we prefer the cakes not to be brought in. I will also speak to Mrs Morris directly to discuss her concerns.

"We hope that parents continue to support our efforts to promote healthy eating among our children as many already have done."

But Olivia did get the chance to share her cake with her school pals after all.

As a special treat, they were all taken bowling on her birthday night and the cake was shared out.