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Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

Primary education

only 2 nativity tickets at a time, how is it done at your dcs school???

52 replies

BackUpYourPhotosNow · 01/12/2009 22:40

At my dd's school this year in order to ensure fair allocation of tickets to the nativity, the school have decided to run 4 "box offices" on 4 separate afternoons after school. Tickets are 1 pound each. You can only get tickets from the boxoffice. You can only get 2 tickets from any 1 box office, you can only collect them for other parents if you have a written request from the said parent and then the name will be written on the back to ensure that you don't try to use them for yourself .

It is preferred that children under the age of 5 only attend the dress rehearsal.

The front seats at the performances are reserved for "special guests" - govenors or ex head teachers who are given tickets free of charge, do not have to que and whose tickets are reserved for them before the tickets go on sale.

My dds grandparents wanted to go and so I qued for the 1st box office for about 20 odd mins with 5 children ( aged 5 and under) and bought the tickets for them.

I then asked a friend ( and duly provided full written request ) to get 2 for me and dp for the only performance he could go too, as she would be queing and I was collecting dd an hour later that day.

I then went to the 3rd box office to get the final ticket that I needed for my dd2 to attend with us. I had no way of knowing if I would get my last ticket and without it one of us would need to stay at home with dd2

Several parents have expressed their annoyance at how the school has managed the allocation of tickets.

So can you tell me how your school managed this feat of fairness?

Were you happy with the way they organised it?

How would you feel about this schools method?

TIA

OP posts:

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BackUpYourPhotosNow · 01/12/2009 22:42

This thread is duplicated -tech can you delete this one please???

OP posts:

pookabelle · 01/12/2009 22:42

Sounds complicated.

At my dc's school, no tickets and each family can request up to three seats for one of the two performances although there is always standing room on each day for extra guests.

BackUpYourPhotosNow · 01/12/2009 22:44

sorry pookabelle, xd post

no standing room allowed, do you have to pay to go along then?

OP posts:

pookabelle · 01/12/2009 22:45

No we don't have to pay and the school also provide most of the costumes, we are just asked to send in the odd thing or two.

JingleAllTheWay · 01/12/2009 22:52

We were allowed to apply for up to 3 tickets for only one performance. But This has beensomewhat forced upon the school because it allgot out of hand. Some families were bringing hundreds of relatives to all performances whilst other mums and dads couldn't get in. Audience members had been known to faint with heatsroke as everyone was crammed so tightly in. It was awful.

I once taught in a school where at the fhirstmas fair, the raffle prizes were front row seats forthe christmas production! They sold lots of tickets!!

BackUpYourPhotosNow · 01/12/2009 22:52

hmm had a feeling that it would be different in other schools...

thankyou -

OP posts:

JingleAllTheWay · 01/12/2009 22:54

Obviously that meant to say Christmas!

kormaAAAARRRRGGHHchameleon · 01/12/2009 22:56

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

lucykate · 01/12/2009 22:59

there are 2 performances, one during the day, and one early evening, we are allowed 2 tickets max for each. i usually go on my own during the day, dh goes to the evening one. dd isn't allowed to go (school's request) as all the kids get to see the play anyway when they do the dress rehearsal. although, there are quite often people who have obviously got 3 tickets, as there's one parent and two grandparents , really annoying when the tickets are so limited and some parents don't even get to go.

TeamEdward · 01/12/2009 23:01

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

bruffin · 02/12/2009 07:56

We had 2 performances and allowed two tickets per performance. No children allowed to the evening one. If there are any tickets left after a certain date then you could apply for them.

FourArms · 02/12/2009 08:04

Our school does different shows on different dates for each year group, so foundation, 1/2, 3/4 and 5/6.

Each show is run twice, at 2pm and 6pm. Anyone can come to the 2pm show, but you need tickets for the 6pm show. You could apply for two tickets (free), and also put in a request for any spare tickets on a first come first served basis.

Raffle sounds like a great idea!

hippipotamiHasLost77lbs · 02/12/2009 08:05

Well... this is a bit of a sore point at our school at teh moment...

Normally they allocate tickets on a per request basis, giving everyone 2 initially but then allocating the rest giving priority to Y6 parents (as it is teh Y6 Play, the other year groups are choir etc)
But this year the Health and Safety Elfs have been at work and decided our hall can only hold a max of 100 seats. That means only 2 tickets per family for Y6 and I think even less for the other years. Cue lots of unhappy parents and disappointed children.

For us it means that at least Dh and I can go but dd (7) cannot. Shame because DS is in Y6 and has one of the main parts. (the artful dodger )

We don't have a box office - you send your payment and request slip into the office by a certain date adn then the office staff allocate tickets and send them home via the children.

hippipotamiHasLost77lbs · 02/12/2009 08:06

Just read the other comments about younger yeargroups going to the dress rehearsal. Our dress rehearsal is also the grand parent's performance. Normally the lower school would go along to that but this year, because of the limit on the hall's seating, only grandparents get to go. The lower school have been uninvited.

Northernlurker · 02/12/2009 08:10

It's a limited resource in high demand - they have to ration it somehow and tbh op I think you taking up 5 tickets is a bit rich. Maybe some of the parents who are annoyed are annoyed because they can't get any tickets now - on account of how you and your mates have bagged them!

hippipotamiHasLost77lbs · 02/12/2009 08:16

I agree with northern. At least our way it is in the office staffs hands - who fairly allocate each family their initial two tickets and only issue further tickets (if there are any) if they believe it is fair to do so.

Queing at school box offices sounds a bit like a rugby scrum. Am glad we don't have that system.

MissAnneElk · 02/12/2009 08:20

Two tickets per family here too and no under 5s. Tickets msut be bought by a set date and if there any left over then you can buy spares.

Not many schools have a hall big enough for 5 members of each family to attend an event.

DropKop · 02/12/2009 09:32

3 tickets per family and no siblings, creche is provided for the little ones. And after allocation the spare tickets get divided between families who requested extra ones.

tickets are free though.

redskyatnight · 02/12/2009 10:13

2 tickets per family to be used at either afternoon performance (under 5s allowed on knees) or evening performance (no under 5s).

We can also take DD (who is at the school nursery) to the dress rehearsal (children who are at nursery when the dress rehearsal is on are taken by the nursery staff to see it).

AtheneNoctua · 02/12/2009 10:44

We had two tickets sent home for each child. Each child is in one performance. You can request additional tickets but they are unlikely to be given.

I think the practice of reserving the front row for governors and not parents of children in the performace is very poor. I would complain about that.

And, as a working parent, I would be rather unhappy about the box office madhouse at the school gate.

AtheneNoctua · 02/12/2009 10:45

Oh, and under 5s go off to the creche (operated by parent volunteers -- presumably of children in other performances)

EldonAve · 02/12/2009 10:48

2 tickets per child at ours
you can then go on a waitlist for returns if you need more

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Katz · 02/12/2009 10:49

ours has 2 performances, one evening one afternoon, 2 tickets per family. Full stop.

ISawTortoiseFuckingSantaClaus · 02/12/2009 10:50

2 tickets per family, tickets collected from teacher. Tickets are free. Any spare tickets are given to people who need them.
There are 2 performances, one afternoon, one evening.

Don't think there are any rules about under 5's attending.

I will need at least 3 tickets so that DS1 and DS2 can come.(age 10 and 12) Possibly one for my brother if he wants to come.

piprabbit · 02/12/2009 10:54

We have 4 performances (although the first is a 'dress rehearsal' and the only one that young siblings can attend).

Each family is allocated 2 tickets - and the family gets to choose which show(s) they go to.

Spare tickets are then sold on a first come first served basis at a sort of box office at the school.

It's reasonably fair - but I might be less impressed if I wasn't a SAHM and had to miss work to queue for extra tickets.

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