New to growing veg! What to put in raised beds?

[Lumpy]

How about coloured french beans - you can get some amazing purple or yellow ones. The kids might be surprised when the purple ones are cooked as they go green.
Quick things like radish and lettuce. Rainbow chard is colourful and grows on for ages. Red and white strawberries.
electric daisies - they can then surprise their friends.
Sugar snap peas

[Bigmallly]

Chips!! Kids need greens

I'll meet you half way Scarlet............

[marchogaeth]

If you have cats and their associated excrement you must wear gloves while gardening. There is something in their pooh that will give you some nasty flu like symptoms and it will be in the soil as well as the more well known toxoplasmosis. It is worth netting the beds while you seeds establish but, if you want tom be able to see what you are growing, you will end up taking the netting off so the cats will get in. I've got five cats and garden round them, there are plenty of cheap, effective gardening gloves with rubber fronts so your palms and fingers are completely protected, just train your children to always wear them. Enjoy your beds and cats!

Someone will be along to disagree now or berate cats!

[TheChemist]

If you have cats and their associated excrement you must wear gloves while gardening. There is something in their pooh that will give you some nasty flu like symptoms and it will be in the soil as well as the more well known toxoplasmosis. It is worth netting the beds while you seeds establish but, if you want tom be able to see what you are growing, you will end up taking the netting off so the cats will get in. I've got five cats and garden round them, there are plenty of cheap, effective gardening gloves with rubber fronts so your palms and fingers are completely protected, just train your children to always wear them. Enjoy your beds and cats!

Someone will be along to disagree now or berate cats!

This is really worth mentioning. My other half is partially sighted due to toxoplasmosis in the womb (he's quite lucky apparently - could have easily been born completely blind, and with a whole range of other ailments/disabilities!) I'll admit to occasionally rooting around in the soil with bare hands, but you've made me give myself a stern talking to - there are lots of cats in my area!