School seem to think we have a money tree at the bottom of the garden!

Janepig

POPPYOSCAR wrote: »

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I get letters brought home, sent in the post and sent by PDF in emails - it is so confusing!! Some can only be paid by parentpay some by cheque/cash(even though school supposedly cashless now).


What with her dancing and karate emails, letters and payments, I must admit I do lose track of it all at times!!

Perhaps I am just getting old!!!!!!!!

It's so difficult isn't it, keeping track of everything, especially if they do sports or some other extra curricular stuff. This time of year it seems to really go a bit mad and there's loads on. But I must be doing okay because I seem to get loads of texts from my friends checking with me what's happening and when. I must be putting on a good front of being organised!

claire16c wrote: »

I really find the OPs post very depressing to be honest.

Im watching Sport Relief and some kids are doing back breaking work having to make bricks from mud to make money for their families. Others cant afford to go to school let alone eat.

Yet you dont agree with where your 1 quid goes??

And then with your own children - who are lucky enough to live somewhere like the UK - when you only need to pay a few small amounts to help enhance their learning experience - not provide it, or even their FOOD, you are having a rant about it?

And Im pretty sure if you decide to send your kids to an after school club, then yes YOU need to pay for it. Who exactly do you expect to pay for your childs care?

How is decorating an egg expensive? Get some felt tips out for goodness sakes.

I agree with this, we don't know how lucky we are, really we don't. Yes, schools can seem to take the mick sometimes, and some do seem to be worse than others, but much of it seems to me to be bad organisation on the part of the head as much as anything else. With better planning, communication with parents and a bit more notice maybe things could be improved. But having done (obviously) school, and various out of school activities with my two, you seemingly can't do right for doing wrong with some parents when it comes to organising activities for kids.

Jx

alex21

I pay £39.00 a month to my sons school because it is a grammar and I did so even when I was on benefit and a single mum. I have never begrudged a penny. To me education is the most important gift you can give your child and education is about much more than what you learn in the classroom. This year my son is doing A'level government and politics and I have been paying the school monthly installments for a trip to Washington costing £1300. To be there at the election results and to attend the functions they will be going to could not be bought by me and is priceless. I know my son will benefit from this once in a lifetime opportunity and greatly appreciates the sacrifices I have made to ensure he goes. I am grateful to the teachers who will ensure this is a fantastic experience and do not resent subsidising them one iota. My DS will be on the other side of the world and I will not have a moments worry. That is what I am paying for. The teachers at his school give their free time for clubs and extra currucular activities and provide wonderful role models for my 17 yr old and there are a number that I know he holds in genuine affection and we will both always be grateful to them. I know this is not the experience for all children but I am so glad my son has loved his school and is dying to get to university. I am not being self righteous but there was always a very limited budget and I chose no car or holidays for myself. I was critisized for the money I put into education by a neighbour who was always pleading poverty and had a son in the same year at the same school. She spent her divorce settlement on breast enlargements!!!!:rotfl::rotfl:

nickj_2

both my daughters have taken food tech (cooking) or whatever they call it these days , some of the recipes are beyond belief , something she made the other week came to £15 in ingredients can't remember what it was for , but it was only 1 dessert or main course , my other daughter made something which contained saffron which cost around £5 for a small jar . they need to wake up and come and live in the real world

as for school trips , i can see the educational benifit in taking kids to , like the school my daughters go to , the world war graves , but i fail to see how skiing trips etc can amount to anything else but a jolly

Blackpool_Saver

I can't be bothered reading all the posts, to be honest, stop moaning, it's just a few quid, be glad your children are getting a free education

nickj_2

Blackpool_Saver wrote: »

I can't be bothered reading all the posts, to be honest, stop moaning, it's just a few quid, be glad your children are getting a free education

really ?????

jellyhead

misfire wrote: »

What gets me is the sponsorship where 'If you raise XYZ pounds you get' my sons primary school always did these, last one was like £15 was a cap, £30 was a tshirt and £50 was a football - so all the kids wanted to raise £50 in sponsorship - my son was very upset he didn't get enough sponsorship for a branded item (yep a football from sports direct was not an acceptable alternative!). I am all for giving to charities of my choice -but this kind of bribery is wrong on so many levels.

and.... Comic relief type things where you pay £1 to have funky hair ... so comic relief gets £1 and superdrug/boots/wilco etc.. get £5 for colored hair spray!

and don't get me started on the end of year 6 trip..£349 but don't worry that included a coach that was part funded by the school. When we had to pay for this I was off work, we paid in smaller installments - and they sent me a really snotty letter saying 'everyone pay x amount but you - and you owe Y amount' this was only on my letter but it was done in a really rude way - they knew why I was behind with the payments (I had been off work and in hospital for 6 weeks - we were paying for a childminder so dh could still work) they knew when I was returning to work and that I would catch up then - but that obviously wasn't good enough, so much for compassion. So we broke the bank for this trip and my son hated every minute of it.

Have you written to the school? I would be annoyed if our schools did that sort of sponsorship too.

Schools read letters from parents and they are discussed at things like governors meetings.

Our school is very aware of the demands made on parents ... when there are non-uniform days they will say £1 each, but £1.50 for families so as not to put large families out by too much.

On red nose day it's £1 for non uniform but it's anything red, which most people can manage. Some will pay for red hair dye, but the majority will not.

Today was wear any sports kit, so mine went in wearing just his PE kit - he wasn't bothered that it wasn't an official football kit with his name on it.

Schools can add a bit of fun and novelty into events without them being expensive for parents. I wonder if some of the schools being moaned about have received complaints by letter? Perhaps they don't realise how put upon some parents are feeling? Maybe if they received a letter of complaint they'd make an effort to reduce some of the demands?

jellyhead

nickj wrote: »

both my daughters have taken food tech (cooking) or whatever they call it these days , some of the recipes are beyond belief , something she made the other week came to £15 in ingredients can't remember what it was for , but it was only 1 dessert or main course , my other daughter made something which contained saffron which cost around £5 for a small jar . they need to wake up and come and live in the real world

as for school trips , i can see the educational benifit in taking kids to , like the school my daughters go to , the world war graves , but i fail to see how skiing trips etc can amount to anything else but a jolly

Perhaps you could suggest that the school buys a jar of saffron and tells pupils they can pay for the amount they need? Or talk to other mums on facebook and agree to club together to buy it, or take it in turns to supply certain ingredients?

I don't understand skiing trips either ... I don't think any of my relatives has ever been skiing. My son has been on 2 trips to Germany, but he is taking GCSE German so I could see the value in those. There was a ski trip but he didn't give me the letter because it clashed with the German trip.

Dunroamin

When I was at secondary school, charitable donations came out of my pocket money and wasn't an extra given by my parents. Surely that is a better approach for children to understand charity than for their parents just to pay it?

alwaysbrassic

My daughter leaves childcare in September but the money I am saving I am not accounting for, as I'm sure every penny will be swallowed up when she goes to school.
Also I think the op has the right to donate money to whatever charity she sees fit. Whilst I support sports relief others may not. If we were all the same some charities simply wouldn't exist.

jellyhead

POPPYOSCAR wrote: »

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What with her dancing and karate emails, letters and payments, I must admit I do lose track of it all at times!!

Perhaps I am just getting old!!!!!!!!

I have a large calendar on the wall in the kitchen, so we all look at it when we sit at the kitchen table. It has squares large enough to write in.

If I don't write in every thing on every letter immediately I lose all the bits of paper in piles for sorting out 'tomorrow' and forget about things ... so everyone thinks I am super organised whereas I am the complete opposite