This £8,000-a-term Hammersmith girls' school has been slammed for serving 'austerity day' lunches

A posh west London girls' school has been slammed on social media for serving "austerity day" meals to students.

The £8,000-a-term St Paul's Girls' School in Hammersmith has been blasted for showing "utter contempt" by altering its lavish menu on "austerity days."

The school's 700 pupils are used to having the likes of seared cod, slow-cooked Moroccan lamb and duck leg confit for lunch.

But on "austerity days" students at the top private school were served jacket potatoes with beans and coleslaw with the money saved going to charity.

Former St Paul's pupils took to social media to criticise the move, saying it showed "utter contempt" for describing jacket potatoes with beans and coleslaw as an "austerity" meal, The Mirror reports.

In a tweet which appears to have been deleted, the school said: "Today was the final Austerity Day of the year. Students and staff had baked potatoes, with beans and coleslaw, for lunch, with fruit for dessert.

"The money saved will be donated to the school's charities."

But Henna Shah, 24, a former St Paul's student, said: "I am incredibly grateful to have gone to a school that has given me opportunities someone like me would never have had otherwise.

"Yet I recognise that few people like me get the chance to have an education like this on a bursary scheme like I did.

"I am highlighting this now because this is not about pulling the ladder up behind me — I joined the Labour party and work in politics now precisely because everyone deserves the best quality education."

Henna, of Hounslow, west London, added: "It is upsetting to see that on a day that is meant to be about compassion, the way it was presented showed utter contempt.

"Austerity is not about eating jacket potatoes once a term, it is about not being able to afford anything else."

And a Twitter account called @everydayhunger wrote: "Can they really be unaware that for families living in poverty today, this 'austerity' meal is completely out of reach?

"Maybe they should visit their local food bank to see what genuine poverty rations look like."

Twitter user Georgia O'Brien wrote: "One of the country's leading independent schools holding an 'Austerity Day' where students eat what is basically amounts to a standard state school dinner."

Pupils at the school usually tuck into delights such as Malaysian snapper Curry with okra and tomato and warm chicken and asparagus Caesar Salad.

According to the school's website, the fee per term for the academic year 2017-2018 is £7,978, and for new entrants to the senior school (Year 12) the fee per term is £8,577.

The school fee includes lunch, the website said.

A food section on the website says: "Everyone knows teenage girls can be picky eaters, so we try to give them lots of choice.

"We regard the enjoyment of good and healthy food as a priority and lunch at St Paul's is a real highlight of the day."

In a statement, the school said: "For many years, along with many schools and places of worship in the country, St Paul's has arranged regular lunches when simple food is served and the money saved given to local charities.

"The aim is also to raise the awareness of our students to those less fortunate than themselves.

"We take our commitment to the wider community very seriously.

"The choice of the word 'austerity' is to draw attention to the fact that others around them are facing significant economic difficulties."

Famous alumni of the distinguished school include Harriet Harman, Susanna Reid and Margaret Thatcher's daughter Carol.