ANGRY parents have denied intimidating a cook as part of a row over meals at a York school.

Parent Jim Wallis, whose ten-year-old twins, Tom and Charlotte, go to Derwent Junior School, in Tang Hall, is one of about 30 parents who have put their names to a petition calling for better school meals.

He claims parents do not want to drive the school cook from her job and only want better school food.

His comments follow a report in The Press yesterday that school cook Theresa Topping claimed she was the victim of a campaign of intimidation.

Mr Wallis said: "There's absolutely no way parents are intimidating her. We don't want to intimidate her, we just want decent school meals for our kids which, at the moment, we just don't feel we're getting.

"One example was fish fingers with bones in them and pitta breads and a choc-ice for dessert - you can't tell me that's a decent meal?"

Mrs Topping has been the school cook at Derwent Infant and Junior School for four years and claims over the past months a rogue group of parents have set out to drive her from her job.

Mrs Topping said she has received abusive phone calls at work, which has meant the school kitchens have had to go ex-directory.

Instead of walking to work, Mrs Topping, 50, now has to get a taxi because of parents waiting to confront her at the school gates.

She says her working life is being made "a nightmare" and her health is suffering as a result.

She has also suffered a number of stress-related seizures and is now considering resigning from her post.

"Myself and my team cook over 100 meals every day and the children are really, really happy with what they get to eat. It's always freshly prepared using fresh, healthy ingredients," she said.

There are about 200 pupils at Derwent Infants and Juniors and about half of them eat school meals.

Both Mr Wallis's children have school meals and he thinks it is a good idea for parents to go for a taste test.

After the half-term break, the school is looking to hold a school meals taster session so that parents can try out the meals for themselves.

But he said: "I would back a meeting with the school and the catering company to try and sort this out, because this cannot go on."

Head teacher Carole Torode said Mrs Topping had her full support and she did not understand why parents were dissatisfied with the meals the cook provided.

Rob Marshall, York area catering manager for North Yorkshire County Caters, said: "The meal Mr Wallis describes bares no resemblance to our menu and I would welcome a meeting with parents on this matter."