On Monday morning the dinner money is collected - five shillings from each boy - and placed in its individual safe (the OXO tin!). On Monday morning and every other morning of the week, the dinner register is called so that absentees do not pay for dinner they don't eat. Should a boy be absent on a Tuesday having paid five shillings on the Monday, the shilling he has to his credit is put on to the next week's accounts, so that he pays four shillings the next Monday.

Dinner commences at 12.40 p.m. each day. As we enter the dining hall each table is set out with the dinner ready for serving. After grace has been said, one of the eight on each table dishes out the meat, etc., the vegetables we help ourselves to. When dinner is over another member of each table fetches the sweet, and another serves it out. Meanwhile the dinner plates have been cleared (or should be!) and we continue the meal in peace. Having finished the sweet the tables are completely cleared, each set of eight then making its way out after saying grace.

On the whole our dinners are extremely good. Of course, it is impossible to have a meal which suit's everybody but most of us enjoy the meals. The only fault I can find with them is that there is not enough for each, unless you are fortunate enough to get some “second helpings” which is often the case.

If the meals continue to be of the same standard as those of the last nine weeks we will have little to complain about.