Refund of money from school

[honeybeeridiculous]

Can't decide if IABU or not as I'm in a bad mood today and everything is pissing me off probably lack of sleep due to rubbish shift patterns, days and nights all in one week,
Anyway, I digress. DS is in year 11 and will shortly leave school, in April I paid £35 for his prom ticket and £25 for a year book no idea what is in this year book but he wanted one as a keepsake so paid up.
Yesterday we got a letter saying as there wasn't enough interest in the year book the school cannot get them as they needed 100 orders and got only half this.
They will refund the money by the end of term via a cheque for £25
Now I paid in cash in April so why should I wait until July for a damn cheque? I hate cheques!
AIBU or should I just get some sleep?

Yanbu What a bummer. That's quite annoying.

You could ask nicely if they can get the cheque to you sooner I suppose.

It's not that I'm desperate for the money but why can't they just give the cash back to the child or ask us to go fetch it?? They must have the money in the safe surely? Why a cheque???

Annoying as it it I think YABU to want cash now.

If you were due a refund on say your insurance you have to wait until they issue you with a cheque, you wouldn't demand cash there and then would you.

It's down to admin, far easier to do one massive cheque run than give people their money back in dribs and drabs.

Yabu as Betty pointed out. If you don't need the money right now I think you are just looking for a reason to be difficult.

Maybe they paid the money into the bank.

My DD is leaving school this term and her yearbook is £5! For £25 it's perhaps not surprising that there wasn't sufficient interest to make it worthwhile...

They won't give cash as there will be the potential for people to claim they haven't received it.

I suspect the reason for doing cheque rather than bank transfer back via parentpay (or whatever) is because a few parents won't remember to put the cheque in/lose the cheque so they gain a little. Also saves hassle of parents claiming it hasn't gone in etc.

I don't get why dd1's school refunds the locker key money like that. Late August we get a cheque for 25, signed individually by the headmaster (large comprehensive, over 1000 lockers I believe). Then if they want a locker key the next year we have to pay by parentpay early September. Could save a lot of time and effort with a simple "Do you want a locker next year: yes or no"?" letter.

Prom? Year book? Pre school? What the absolute hell is going on in the UK these days? Why on earth have we suddenly decided that our kids live in Beverly Hills instead of Dorking or Birmingham??

uncleT

Ok IABU I will await my cheque with a patient smile on my face

Serious question though. I'm shocked at this sudden and sweeping obsession with the superficial Americanisation of education. What on earth is behind it?

I've no idea what's behind it Uncle, but it's been going on for years, my eldest is 26 and she had a prom. Nowadays tho even the primary schools have proms which I do think is ridiculous
At least this time round DS doesn't require an expensive gown, makeover, shoes etc. he's happy with a suit and his school shoes
And as for a yearbook, I've still no idea what that even is, and now I will never find out!

I doubt that they have £1250 in the safe to pay everyone in cash.
But they are being ridiculously slow dealing with it all.

Prom's and year books have been around for years in the UK. It's a nice way to end senior school before going on to 6th form. It's okay to import new traditions.

There was nothing wrong with play school and a school disco.

UncleT I am definitely not an advocate of accepting any Americanism willy-nilly, but if it is a nice idea that people will genuinely enjoy then I think to avoid it just because it originated in America would be cutting off your noise to spite your face.

Most kids I know love the prom (though I agree with honey it is a bit much for primary schools) and I suppose the year book is a nice memento. Round here the big thing is leaver's hoodies printed with the school's name, your name and then the year you left made up of the names of everyone else in the year.

But it's clearly not just the prom, is it?

Cash? Safe? We're lucky to scrape up more than about fifty in change from the petty cash tin. Any cash we receive gets banked the same day, it's not kept on site. At our school unless you threw a real tanty that money would be credited to your account, not paid back via cheque.

The school will deal in cheques because that way they can keep a record of them; handing out multiple amounts of £25 from the school office is not practical, and the cash can easily 'disappear'.Waiting until July is a bit unreasonable though.

I left school in 1989. We had a year book and a May Ball which is just another name for a prom. They were both only for sixth form though so if you left after year 11 there was nothing.

I still have my year book. I love looking at it especially as a couple of people have now passed away.
FTR though we didn't all have expensive hair and nails etc for the ball, or spray tans or limos! I had a £25 vintage dress and arrived in a taxi with my boyfriend. Did hair and make-up myself. It all seems very different these days. DSD wanted £200 from us as a "contribution" to the cost of her prom. She didn't get it!

YABU.

Well, it won't be in the safe, it will have been paid into the bank already. They'll likely get all the admin done in one go and the cheques sent out.

But if you want or need it before July, then ask them for it. I bet they wouldn't have any problem at all sending you a cheque earlier.

You don't seriously believe schools just keep the cash in the safe long term! it will be paid in at least weekly and then any reimbursements will be by cheque - however as Hecate says if you ask they will prob give you your cheque sooner

Just a quick update (name change, I'm OP)
In the post today, I received a cheque for £25 from the school, the school that DS left in June, and the £25 I had paid in April
TBH I had forgotten all about it so was a nice surprise but blimey,nearly 6 months??!!

What a lovely surprise

sounds like they forgot all about it and someone else has reminded them/complained!