to be uncomfortable about fundraising in state schools?

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My DSs are in a very ordinary primary school and I rarely get asked for money. A plate of cakes twice a year and a raffle at Christmas and that's about it. They are very happy there and we are pleased with their progress.

One of the top state secondaries in the county is also in about the most expensive housing area (surprise surprise). That school is currently fund raising for a new sixth form building and their web site actually states "we are asking donors to consider a 5 year pledge period...for the price of a tank of petrol, a £50 monthly donations will accrue nearly £4000 over 5 years..."

Many of the parents have set up standing orders.

It just seems so wrong to me that children who already have so many advantages also get to have state of the art school facilities that schools in other areas can't afford.

Also, that even if I (or people like me) could get our child a place at the school, it's effectively run as a public school with expensive uniform, sports and trips which would prohibit them going.

I feel your pain. I've just gone round the secondaries in our area and the difference in facilities between the best and the worst is shocking .

Surely if they are asking for parents to pay they can't afford it either. The cost of houses in the area doesn't affect the amount of funding the school gets and if they can fund raise for a new building and parents are willing to pay good for them. The school I work in is in a deprived area and we are fundraising for PE equiptment. Should we not bother because the school down the road don't have any?

Why do children from that catchment area not deserve good facilities?

I think it's a good idea for them to raise more revenue however they can. So YABU.

What's really a shame is that the catchement areas aren't more cross-sectional of society so that you end up with schools that would struggle to raise funds in that way, and those schools are left at a disadvantage.

The uniforms can be subsidised...or bought second hand. Sports do not cost anything and all state schools do expensive trips.

Why should the school not take advantage of parental contribuion? That's life...it's like moaning that Mrs Jones up the road has a better car because she has a better job...well that's how it works!

I agree with textpest.

It´s not that they don´t deserve good facilities, testpest, it´s that they will be getting good facilities only because their catchment area includes a high proportion of wealthy parents who can contribute, while other schools in more disadvantaged areas, with children with far fewer oportunities, and poorer parents, will just have to carry on with bad facilities. And the gap between the haves and have nots will keep on getting bigger.

Building work won't start until the money is raised. DDs school is currently being rebuilt (by the state). Should have been finished about two years ago! So parents of children currently at the school who are paying the donation are unlikely to see their child benefitting and I'm guessing most people wouldn't consider starting to donate until they knew for certain that their child had a place. So I'd say it would take a hell of a long time to raise enough.
Re the uniform. In most cases second hand uniform can be bought. Often it's only the blazer and tie which have to be bought specially and the rest can be bought from asda etc.
All schools offer expensive trips - they are not compulsory.

YABU if the parents want to spend money giving a particular school money to improve the facilities of the school then they should be allowed to. The new sixth form will be there for others to use once the children of the people who have contributed to it have left.

YANBU. Education should be free for all. Apart from the odd charity collection, everything in school should be paid for by the state, not the parents. Obviously not everyone agrees with the principle of free education, but that's the system we have in this country.

That's some serious giving.

I think your thought of we can't, so why should they, is unreasonable, but I'm shocked at those high requests.

On the other hand there wll definitely be children from less privileged backgrounds who benefit from these donations. Also sixth forms are much more open and to a wider catchment aren't they?

Many people don't appreciate their free education. People who can contribute jolly well ought to. They're already paying in taxes but it's great that they feel they can contribute more.

Sorry but this is like a school my children went to, where parents weren't allowed to go in to listen to the children read (this is pre-CRB olden days) because some parents couldn't because of language problems so they might get upset about it.

bizarre -- the other parents would have helped all the children and raised reading across the board

just bizarre

Don't assume that too many parents have set up standing orders. Schools have done this kind of strong-arm Bob Geldof stuff for years and, just because the school is in an affluent area, it doesn't mean that parents automatically have loads of spare cash to flash around. I'd be one of those parents. :)

'Should we not bother because the school down the road don't have any? '

Quite. Fifty pounds a month is not that huge an amount for many middle-class parents, even today. In comparison with fifty pounds a DAY for private schooling (three thousand, five hundred pounds plus for a twelve-week term), that's nothing,

Why shouldn't they be asked to pay and help everyone at the school?

Why should I be allowed to buy luxury houmus from Waitrose when someone else can only afford the basic houmus from Tesco?

I'm not sure what I think. A different level I know but I have just moved areas, in my old area we applied for and got a £500 grant for our playgroup and were so pleased to be able to replace some of the knackered equipment. In the new area they raise almost that every year with a summer fund raising event which means all their stuff is lovely (and we charged £1 and they charge £2.50 a week).

I was surprised at the inequity even at that young age.

I think what people should see as more worrying is if schools don't bother to fund-raise because they think that the locals are too poor to spare a dime. That would be a patronising & also incorrect assumption. I used to be involved with a youth club in a particularly rough part of Manchester. We wouldn't have got anywhere asking for people to set up a DD contribution but we used to hold jumble-sales every few months and the money raised was substantial.

I really don't see why people have a problem with this this. Due to the deficit schools are going to see their budgets vastly reduced. If they can make up for this shortfall in funds by raising money from the parents which in turn allows them to build new facilities then I think they should be congratulated for being innovative.

I guess hospitals should ask patients to make donations too.

I guess hospitals should ask patients to make donations too.

Hospitals do that already. And when you consider the killing they make from their car-parks....

And the Friends of the Hospital groups :)

And all the equipment in hospitals that have little plaques on them saying donated by ....

And the huge appeals for hospitals like GOS

Our local hospital was appealing for money for a scanner of some sort. Huge signs on the main road asking people to make donations by text

Reading the OP, I think communism has had its day.

All schools can never be the same.

The pupils are different. Some pupils and some parents make life and learning at school harder for other pupils.

Some parents are being asked to make it easier. That's the way it is.