School Voluntary Contributions

Milko

I'll go one better ...


My eldest DD is off to the Share Centre at Lisnaskea with school for 3 nights. Price £250 - they've to travel from Bangor & not in Wales either.


A rep was in with me a few weeks ago & was telling me her DD was currently in Italy for a week with her school & it was £280


It's ok though. the £250 for Share Centre covers all their activities lol

2gorgeousgirls

I do pay the voluntary contributions. Have 2 girls at grammar and it is only £20 each. I do hear from friends who live in other parts of NI that their fees are much higher.

My youngest is in first year and they had a "getting to know you day" for the kids at a local activity centre. The fee payers paid £3 for the bus while non fee payers paid £10. So really they get it out of you one way or another!

Thankfully the oldest (4th year) has not asked to go on any school holidays so far. Last year the ski trip was 5 days in USA and cost £1200 :eek:

kyral

you are lucky lol, £65 for one and I'm not even sure what it is for two at my kids school. When my kids started they had an overnight stay at Ganaway activity centre. £60 for that! Also £5 each for 100 printer credits, £5 for locker, £5 for Home Economics and £5 for technology!!

My eldest is now in lower 6th and had to pay £30 deposit for her next two years which I doubt I'll ever see again.
She went to Italy for 6 nights last October, it cost £650. To be fair I thought this was reasonable taking into consideration flights, HB accommodation and the amount of tours they had.

My son hasn't asked me about any school trips yet and if he does he will have to choose between that and the amount of football trips he has lol.
.

warmhands.coldheart

2gorgeousgirls wrote: »

.......My youngest is in first year and they had a "getting to know you day" for the kids at a local activity centre. The fee payers paid £3 for the bus while non fee payers paid £10. So really they get it out of you one way or another...

Well I'd have been having a bl00dy good go at the Head master if this was the case as described above. The Voluntary fee is exactly that VOLUNTARY !! It is not a Bus or Transport Subsidy or a Teachers Pay Subsidy or whatever else.... if the bus cost £10 or £3 , ALL Children should have paid that....... God help the Head who would ever cross me with this sort of !!!!.....

warmhands.coldheart

kyral wrote: »

........... Also £5 each for 100 printer credits, £5 for locker, £5 for Home Economics and £5 for technology!!

My eldest is now in lower 6th and had to pay £30 deposit for her next two years which I doubt I'll ever see again.
.

What the H3LL are Printer Credits and what does 1 Credit cover ?????????
£5 for Locker???? Again WHY???? I can understand them charging for a lost or broken key or damaged locker but WHY £5 up front?

£5 for Home Economics - What For
£5 for technology - What For
Are we Talking Materials, Insurance....... What exactly??

Again £30 deposit for what exactly in Lower Sixth? The privilege of being allowed in??

warmhands.coldheart

2gorgeousgirls wrote: »

....Thankfully the oldest (4th year) has not asked to go on any school holidays so far. Last year the ski trip was 5 days in USA and cost £1200 :eek:

I think a wee trip to the Dry Ski Sslope in Craigavon would be a better option in this case !!

Cotta

warmhands.coldheart wrote: »

What the H3LL are Printer Credits and what does 1 Credit cover ?????????
£5 for Locker???? Again WHY???? I can understand them charging for a lost or broken key or damaged locker but WHY £5 up front?

£5 for Home Economics - What For
£5 for technology - What For
Are we Talking Materials, Insurance....... What exactly??

Again £30 deposit for what exactly in Lower Sixth? The privilege of being allowed in??

Gosh, you're in a mood this morning, the Presbyterian is coming out in you.

warmhands.coldheart

Cotta wrote: »

Gosh, you're in a mood this morning, the Presbyterian is coming out in you.

..... I have a headache, !!!!!!! kettle was broke in work this morning so didn't get my first coffee till 15 mins ago...

anyway, as I said, I don't mind paying for Extra Items at school or providing materials where necessary but there would need to be a good explanation for handing over money in the first place rather than some wishy washy request because "we need extra Funds"!!

2gorgeousgirls

We have printer credits too and home economics costs.

Home economics is £1 each time they cook to cover ingredients. I'm all for that as when I was at school we had to supply our own ingredients and having to cart that lot to school was a pain. Not to mention sometimes we cooked things that my family wouldn't eat (all spud eaters and in those days rice really was "foreign") so mum had to buy a big bag of rice for one wee scoop. Much better that school supplies it.

My two usually print at home but will buy a few credits when we run out of ink or if they have forgotten to print out but its only 10p sheet which is comparable with costs at library or print shop.

kyral

warmhands.coldheart wrote: »

What the H3LL are Printer Credits and what does 1 Credit cover ?????????
£5 for Locker???? Again WHY???? I can understand them charging for a lost or broken key or damaged locker but WHY £5 up front?

£5 for Home Economics - What For
£5 for technology - What For
Are we Talking Materials, Insurance....... What exactly??

Again £30 deposit for what exactly in Lower Sixth? The privilege of being allowed in??

£5 locker deposit for a key, refundable if you return the key at the end of 5th yr (only we found out that its not, cue my daughter refusing to pay another deposit on returning for 6th yr. She got her locker lol)

£5 HE to cover things like an egg or a pinch of herbs etc, all other ingredients are brought in by the pupil. Good thing to start really as my daughter never got an egg there in one piece so what chance has the boy child?

£5 Technology covers the basics for the couple of things they make in a year, piece of wood etc but they still have to bring in batteries if required.

Printer credits are a bit of a mystery to me, £5 seems to cover the year unless you do GCSE Art in which case you will run out by halloween!
The amount of ink and paper we went through printing out past papers etc during 4/5th year was a joke.

Now, what exactly is the voluntary fee for???????:T