PAYD - HQ Land your views please

[UKLF_Kat]

HI guys with PAYD nearly upon us and no real feed back from you guys can I have your input.

NO names no pack drill.

Incoming..........

 

[Cider_Glider]

Who let you out the Kitchen Kat!?!?!?

 

[UKLF_Kat]

Cider you are SO funny not !!!

 

[elovabloke]

Funny old world. From 71-93 the only thing in the old cookhouse comments book was - why can’t we just pay for what we eat. Now nobody seem to keen. I would have much rather kept my cash and eaten down the sallybash, ydub, tocH and the pub.

 

[dingerr]

The general concensus is that the majority of soldiers will not eat under the PAYD system.

There seem to be two main concerns that are doing the rounds:

1. The food that a soldier is allowed to take from the hot-plate is insufficient to feed a soldier if it is to stay within the basic price.

2. Soldiers will no longer have their own cookhouse, they will go and eat at a place that is now open to civilians, senior and officers if they desire to eat there.

There are also worries about soldiers having insufficient funds to feed themselves towards the end of the month and also the health of soldiers, who if not eating in an Army cookhouse would be prone to poor eating.

It would be benificial if soldiers were taught more on healthy eating etc. Possibly as MATT. There does not seem to be too much focus on this within the Army other than in rehabilitation centres.

 

[mushroom]

I only have two experiences of PAYD, miniscule portions and bad attitude. At my age and experience I can handle it but I do worry that the young soldiers who probably need good food most will be the ones to suffer most.

 

[cpunk]

I would have much rather kept my cash and eaten down the sallybash, ydub, tocH and the pub.

Except, with the exception of the pub, the rest have all gone: banished as a result of NAAFI's exclusive right to flog food to servicemen on camp.

Catering in 'peacetime locations' has got worse and worse over the twenty-odd years I've been in (operational catering remains astonishingly good). The reality is that PAYD seems to have removed the imperative to produce good food. The philosophy seems to be: we don't care, it's cheap and if you don't want it, f*ck off down to McDonalds.

 

[the_guru]

I have heard that the PAYD at Elmpt has run into a couple of problems. Something to do with Civilian Companies not recognising their responsibilities wrt JSPs.....

 

[elovabloke]

I would have much rather kept my cash and eaten down the sallybash, ydub, tocH and the pub.

Except, with the exception of the pub, the rest have all gone: banished as a result of NAAFI's exclusive right to flog food to servicemen on camp.

Life's not worth living - nobody scoffed in the NAAFI or the Cookhouse

 

[HEINZ-57]

One concern to think about is the small portions of food in the basic menu...apparently the lads who are doing sports training like rugby and boxing....the ones who need to bulk up or are training hard are spending a fortune to get the additional calories they need. Do we want our sports 'gladiator' ethos to suffer as well?

 

[Plant-Pilot]

Profits taking over from the need to provide good portions of healthy food at a reasonable daily cost.

As the numbers of diners falls, so does the money taken and then the standards fall..... meaning that less eat there, less income and lower standards...... a never ending spiral. The food's bad enough as it is, without taking away the guaranteed income to provide a basic reasonable standard.

 

[UKLF_Kat]

Also in addition to your veiws guys, does anyone have qany info on PAYD ?

 

[egg_custard]

The general concensus is that the majority of soldiers will not eat under the PAYD system.

There seem to be two main concerns that are doing the rounds:

1. The food that a soldier is allowed to take from the hot-plate is insufficient to feed a soldier if it is to stay within the basic price.

2. Soldiers will no longer have their own cookhouse, they will go and eat at a place that is now open to civilians, senior and officers if they desire to eat there.

There are also worries about soldiers having insufficient funds to feed themselves towards the end of the month and also the health of soldiers, who if not eating in an Army cookhouse would be prone to poor eating.

It would be benificial if soldiers were taught more on healthy eating etc. Possibly as MATT. There does not seem to be too much focus on this within the Army other than in rehabilitation centres.

Points noted dingerr but even under the pre-PAYD system stats showed that less than 50% of soldiers turned up for their meals.

The question of portion size goes on and on. What is provided under PAYD as a Core Meal is portion controlled in accordance with JSP 456 and is what should have been the norm under the previous system. It was only the fact that uptake was generally low that enabled portions to be larger and you could eat someone elses food.

There is a question over loss of personnal space but during Core Meal times facilities should be the soldiers own.

The starving soldier issue is one that is addressed through the chain of command. Educating soldiers how to manage funds is a wider issue.

While the health of soldiers is a concern no one checks on those who are married and what they are fed!

 

[UKLF_Kat]

Right guys
I ve listen to my boys and to your comments but i need sum specific gen on PAYD please

Ta V Much

Kat

 

[mushroom]

One specific - at Watchfield one officer asked for cream with his pudding rather than custard. The answer was that the contract stated custard and no cream would be available.

At another location one officer asked for two pieces of bacon and no sausage rather than one piece and a sausage, was told no the contract was one piece of bacon.

Both times the contract was quoted and the attitude was aggressively defensive. I have not yet heard that 'it's more than my job's worth' but I'm sure that it will come soon. Moreover if this is the attitude in the officers mess, what is it like to the boys.

 

[walt_of_the_walts]

It would be benificial if soldiers were taught more on healthy eating etc. Possibly as MATT. There does not seem to be too much focus on this within the Army other than in rehabilitation centres.

Healthy eating is a matter for SCHOOLS! Not the Army. Soldiers shouldnt need to be taught about healthy eating, they should be provided with healthy food in abundance. It should be that X factor of benefits that military service should bring.

The notion of soldiers having to pay anything at all for food whilst in service is fundamentally wrong, in or out of camp, at home or deployed.

 

[pombsen-armchair-warrior]

The notion of soldiers having to pay anything at all for food whilst in service is fundamentally wrong, in or out of camp, at home or deployed.

WotW,

Including married and living out soldiers?

Soldiers have got exactly what is they asked for and what is written on the tin. The same amount of food as they were entitled to under the old system with the option to pay for more if they so choose.

Even if PAYD were to double the rate paid under the old system it would still be a good deal - 3 meals a day for about £50 per week.

Unfortunate choice of adage maybe but you can't have your cake and eat it. Quality and choice is of course a different issue, and the contractor needs to be firmly held to account on this.

PAW

 

[msr]

One specific - at Watchfield one officer asked for cream with his pudding rather than custard. The answer was that the contract stated custard and no cream would be available.

At another location one officer asked for two pieces of bacon and no sausage rather than one piece and a sausage, was told no the contract was one piece of bacon.

Both times the contract was quoted and the attitude was aggressively defensive. I have not yet heard that 'it's more than my job's worth' but I'm sure that it will come soon. Moreover if this is the attitude in the officers mess, what is it like to the boys.

I trust his response was "Show me the contract".

msr

 

[CaptainPlume]

msr-

Don't be silly. At a place we both know in the East Midlands the contract was a more closely guarded secret than anything else in the MoD. Even the PMC could never ger a copy...

Cheers

Capt Plume

 

[Plant-Pilot]

Is it me, or is it only the people who don't have to use it or have to make it work, praising PAYD? Personally, when I notice that sort of thing alarm bells ring loud and clear.