Paying for school trips.

arlybarly

woodbine wrote: »

I`m starting to get annoyed with this thread but i`ll bite my tounge and say only this,I thought this board was here to help and advise people on benefits and NOT to lecture them on how to spend whatever they receive.
It really is threads like this and the condescending replies they attract that put people off seeking help on here.

Why dont you then ??????

Oldernotwiser

woodbine wrote: »

I`m starting to get annoyed with this thread but i`ll bite my tounge and say only this,I thought this board was here to help and advise people on benefits and NOT to lecture them on how to spend whatever they receive.
It really is threads like this and the condescending replies they attract that put people off seeking help on here.

I always assume that if a thread breaks the rules it'll be moved.

[Deleted User]

GinnyT wrote: »

"If you're on benefits you'll get quite a substantial amount of child tax credit which is intended to cover things like this."

Who says this is what Child Tax credit is for? The Child Tax credit replaced the married mans tax allowance.....THAT was not intended for use on school trips, you didn't even have to have kids to get it.....

I have to say that I completely agree with you on that one. Segregating the child tax credit out from other income to spend only on the child is a bit like the government using National Insurance solely for healthcare or Road Tax solely for roads. It doesn't work in real life. If you are struggling on a low wage then the tax credits will end up funding better food, clothing and housing and hopefully you might have enough money to fund a modest week away somewhere for the whole family. Certainly, in my experience school trips were judged on their merit. If they were essential then they would go regardless but if frivolous and expensive then they didn't. Things like the skiing trips were dismissed out of hand.

alwaysonthego_2

My dh works full time and is on a low wage and I am a full time student. One week's CB per month goes straight to both of my dd's savings child trust fund. The rest I save to buy them things that they may need and this includes school trips etc. The CTC goes towards clothes and their share of the utility bills, shopping, nappies and anything left over is saved. We recieve £120 per week for the children and this is an ample amount to keep them. When we went on holiday, if the girls wanted something they had to use their own spending money, from birthdays and christmas. I can see how people on benefits struggle, but we get no help with CT apart from my sttudent reduction and pay our mortgage and do not get free school dinners, I think it is the matter of budgeting well and prioritising.

Oldernotwiser

CR10 wrote: »

I have to say that I completely agree with you on that one. Segregating the child tax credit out from other income to spend only on the child is a bit like the government using National Insurance solely for healthcare or Road Tax solely for roads. It doesn't work in real life. If you are struggling on a low wage then the tax credits will end up funding better food, clothing and housing and hopefully you might have enough money to fund a modest week away somewhere for the whole family. .

So would you say the same thing about HB/LHA? Why should someone on a low income actually spend this on rent when they might prefer to spend it on better food etc?

I would also question the morality of parents spending this money on a holiday for themselves (albeit with the children) in preference to spending it on educational visits.

OrkneyStar

CR10 wrote: »

I have to say that I completely agree with you on that one. Segregating the child tax credit out from other income to spend only on the child is a bit like the government using National Insurance solely for healthcare or Road Tax solely for roads. It doesn't work in real life. If you are struggling on a low wage then the tax credits will end up funding better food, clothing and housing and hopefully you might have enough money to fund a modest week away somewhere for the whole family. Certainly, in my experience school trips were judged on their merit. If they were essential then they would go regardless but if frivolous and expensive then they didn't. Things like the skiing trips were dismissed out of hand.

I don't think the CTC should be 'segregated'- my point is that with the payment of tax credits on top of the other benefits there should be enough to put something away for trips ? (Here I am referring to the Tax credit given to the OP as I realise some parents get very little in the way of CTC). As I said all our incomes go 'into the pot' but I make sure that one of my outgoings is DS related (and before anyone starts a rant, we are not well off, it is just that I believe this to be important), some of the CTC will also go on household bills etc just as some of the household income other than CTC will go on DS!
Of course sometimes things don't go to plan as OP has told us already.

bestpud

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

So would you say the same thing about HB/LHA? Why should someone on a low income actually spend this on rent when they might prefer to spend it on better food etc?

I would also question the morality of parents spending this money on a holiday for themselves (albeit with the children) in preference to spending it on educational visits.

I though the idea was you spend HB on what you like and then ask the state for more, or ask your LL to ask the state for more... :rolleyes:

It seems a lot of parents don't value school trips.

I wonder how people would feel if there were none at all? I know I'd hate to see that happen.

OrkneyStar wrote: »

I don't think the CTC should be 'segregated'- my point is that with the payment of tax credits on top of the other benefits there should be enough to put something away for trips ? (Here I am referring to the Tax credit given to the OP as I realise some parents get very little in the way of CTC). As I said all our incomes go 'into the pot' but I make sure that one of my outgoings is DS related (and before anyone starts a rant, we are not well off, it is just that I believe this to be important), some of the CTC will also go on household bills etc just as some of the household income other than CTC will go on DS!
Of course sometimes things don't go to plan as OP has told us already.

Quite!

I wouldn't be able to segregate all the ctc I receive but I segregate dd's child maintenance as far as is possible.

Tbh, things are so tight here at the moment that I woudn't sleep if I didn't have some sort of pot of money available for her - I have nightmares about her school shoes falling apart and me not being able to replace them. :eek: (She has a big hole in the seam of the one but I'm praying they will hold out until the end of term.)

It's when things all come at once and that source dries up that it gets awkward for me. But that's life I guess - as you say, we all have unexpected expenses that temporarily bleed us dry, working or not.

Vicky123

I would be delighted if there were no school trips because out of the many organized maybe one or two truly are educational.
My son had a day at the beach two weeks ago, not being funny but school is for learning home is for day trips and entertainment, so I object paying for them on that basis with anyone's money.
Vicky

alwaysonthego_2

Vicky123 wrote: »

I would be delighted if there were no school trips because out of the many organized maybe one or two truly are educational.
My son had a day at the beach two weeks ago, not being funny but school is for learning home is for day trips and entertainment, so I object paying for them on that basis with anyone's money.
Vicky

I think that a day at the beach is educational as children will learn about how to stay safe and look at the mini beasts in the rock pools and learn about the tide and what sand is made out of. Learning at school should not just be sat at a desk reciting times tables, but should be more diverse like exploring the natural environment. Children learn far more through play and exploration rather than being constrained in a classroom. I would gladly pay for and even offer to volunteer to accompany my dd's class to the beach.

Vicky123

I'm perfectly capable of doing that myself though.
I take on board that not all parents are proactive about their childrens education and may allow too much time on computers and PS3's but for those of us who do talk to our children and teach them it would be good to see more desk time as at the moment the time spent out of school is excessive.
As I said one or two may be educational but I have seen far too many that are nothing more than a jolly day out.
The other thing that is relevent to the OP is cost which is far more today than it was in my parents generation, children are allowed to come into school with variations on uniform, mobile phones, brand name P.E. Kits and many more things, this is a burden on all parents not just those on benefits and if school could revert back to how it used to be it then the competition between the children to have the best of everything would not exist and less school trips would mean more people could afford them when they do come up.
Vicky