Spending PTA funds

[ToryLovell]

I was of the understanding that they were for nice to haves / extras for the children - subsidising trips / extra books / play equipment etc.

Our PTA has around £5k stashed with no specific projects in mind, and has missed out on the big fundraiser as the school hall was unusable, as the roof was unsafe.

The head has asked for the funds to be put to the repair of the roof, which has been very costly.

However, as an Academy, aren't they supposed to budget for stuff like this out of their money from the LA?

I'm a fence sitter who has been trying to referee the two sides of the argument at a PTA meeting...

I think the money should go on the roof to enable the children the use of the hall

I wouldn't be happy about PTA raised money being used to fund building repairs. I agree the money should be for extras that enhance school life for the kids, not to plug holes in the school's budgets.

have you a mission statement/constitution to call on?

tricky one

Dear God... No. The PTA can and should actually specify what they want to spend funds on. This is a capital repair and there should be contingency funds set aside in the budget to take care of such emergencies.

At one of the Primary schools where I was Chair they were used to buy video cameras for the children to use along with editing software, also used for the Yr 6 Dictionaries when they went up to secondary school. At another school, they help to fund the week long trip so that all the children can go (takes a lot off pressure off the main school budget). There is no harm in asking what the school needs but repairing the roof should not be on the list.

Finally, you do not have to hand money over until you are satisfied as to how it will be spent.

The LA don't provide funding for Academies that funding comes directly from the government. Academies also receive a larger sum than other schools.

The PTA should not be funding repairs. The Academy will just have to learn how to properly budget...

I have mixed views on this after more years on PTAs than I care to remember. I agree that PTA funding should be for the extras & nice to haves, not essentials. HOwever, we discovered that the reason the year 6s all took cushions into school wasn't some weird yr 6 tradition, rather that the chairs were to small for most of them without cushions. Given all the other things the school budget had to cover, the chairs were always at the bottom of the list. So we funded. But the roof? Surely that should be high up on their list? I'd be asking a parent governor to ask questions about why the school budget won't cover. It might be that there have been other major expenditures that you're not aware of?

Thanks all - I'm still undecided - if the hall is out of use then it means no hot lunches, no assemblies, no after school clubs and no indoor PE. The money is just sitting there and has been for a while.

But it is not in the spirit of DCs bringing in their old toys and spending their pocket money to be used to repair the roof

Will the roof be repaired without the PTA funds?

If it is, what will the school have to cut from the budget to pay for it?

Will the PTA subsequently be asked to fund whatever was cut from the budget?

How old is the roof - is it a surprise that it is suddenly unsafe or has it been deteriorating for millennia?

Whilst I do agree that the PTA shouldn't normally fund expenditure like this, I do wonder if it is a case of cutting of your nose to spite your face. At the end of the day, the children benefit from having a useable hall.

£5k won't go far in mending a roof. It will go a lot further on extras and niceties and that's what it should be spent on.

As a budget administrator I always had to provide a breakdown of the budget at every PTA meeting. Do these get done for yours? If so is there any way of re-jigging the budget to ensure it gets paid out of the correct pot?

As far as I am aware our PTA funding should not be used for staffing or maintenance costs. Can't remember where this rule came from - maybe the LEA, but as an Academy I don't know what rules, if any, apply. If you are set up as a charity, then there should be a clear mission statement setting out what you are allowed to spend money on.

Ours spends money on things such as Interactive Whiteboard, projector for the hall, subsidising trips and playground equipment.

I can imagine that in your situation, it must be frustrating to have this money sitting there. Following on from what SoupDragon said - if the school could mend the roof and this meant spending less on resources, then the PTA could fund those resources instead perhaps?

Reading the OP again, has the roof already been mended or is it in the process of being mended?

At our school the teacher or HT has to fill out a requisition form for funds, together with invoices, estimates, and this goes to committee for approval (or not, ha ha!).

Sounds as if the HT is being a bit cheeky in asking for this money or as if the money has already been spent and he/she wants to boost the bank balance.

After a lot of hard work raising funds, it is much more motivating to have those funds spent on specific projects or items that enhance children's learning.

At our PTA meetings, the Head has a list of things to school "needs" and the things that are "nice to haves". Generally speaking, there is insufficient funding for all the "needs" nevermind the "nice to haves". The PTA and the Head (who consults with the governors) agree at the start of the year what the PTA will pay / help to pay for.

I don't think there should be any set rule - if there is no funding (whether that be from the government or the LA) for the roof, surely its a question of determining whether the PTA want to cover it? In the circumstances you describe (i.e. children going without hot meals, ability to do PE inside) then yes, I'd want the roof fixed and would want the PTA money to go towards it.

As far as I'm aware PTA funding is for extra and connot be spent on school equipment.

5K will be no where near enough to repair the roof. The school I'm a govornor at is having just a part of the school roof (and some doors & windows) replaced this summer is going to cost in the region of £150k. And we have only gor funding for this as the roof leeks.

My primary school's budget is so tight it can't afford Pritt sticks for the classrooms. In that case, the school should work in such a way that it doesn't need Pritt sticks, rather than ask the PTA to pay for them.

The PTA should have the final say on how its money is spent, not the Head. The Head can have an input, but not the final say.