AIBU - School Fund - Standing Order Request???

[louisawhitegenius]

My dd is due to start Reception in Sept and hubby came home from intro meeting with a form requesting we donate to the school every month. They say that it provides 'extra provisions that are impossible within the limitations of their budget' Their suggested contribution is £15.00 per month PER CHILD! AIBU to say I've never heard of such a thing in my life?? Feel free to ostracise if I've been out of the loop so long that this is common practice!

If you want to contribute but feel £15 per month is too much, you could agree a smaller amount. It will be towards additional enrichment activities or equipment.

My children's secondary school, which is very well-heeled suggest £15 per year, payable in September, which is much more achievable.

The poster upthread who suggested it's because of a lack of pupil premium (FSM) money is wrong, as schools have to spend PP money solely to benefit PP pupils. Of course they could use it towards activities or equipment that can also be accessed by nonPP pupils, but the "hole" in the budget will not be caused by a lack of FSM children.

Hmmm - I'd be tempted to ask them what they plan to spend it on! My dcs' outer London grammar only ask for £20 per YEAR per child.

No, the formal approach does not replace the begging fundraising.

I don't think this is a new thing. I remember this when I was at school and my Dad was a governor. There was some sort of tax thing whereby you could give monthly and somehow either the school got more or you paid less tax.

The assumption was that only a few families would do it but it was one of many fundraising streams.

Some people prefer a monthly amount to the £x for this and £x for that though it's difficult to avoid the other fund raising efforts even if you do give regularly. £15 is a lot, it was probably dreamt up by someone without a huge amount of consultation.?

Ours has a "voluntary" contribution of €100 a year. If you don't pay it you get endless reminders of how much the school needs the "voluntary" contribution.
I don't begrudge it, it's a fantastic school, I just hate that they call it voluntary when they pressure people constantly until they pay it. Why not just say it cost €100 a year?

My son's secondary school asks for £5 per month by standing order. They have no PTA and the only other money requested is fundraising for specific charities by the students. Compared to infants and juniors which asked for £15 per term, then endless school fundraising throughout the year.

The local high school does an optional lottery. £2 pcm by direct debit. £50 main prize every month, plus 2 x £10 (I think). It's a large school, so it raises a fair bit. No one really expects to win.

TBH I wish my dc's school did this. I donate to my old university to enhance the educational experience of people I've never met, as do hundreds of thousands of us apparently, so why on earth wouldn't I? It seems obvious to me that an ordinary government budget will only ever be enough to provide a minimum basic acceptable level and to get something extraordinary you need to put in more. So our school has a never ending round of cake sales, charity events etc etc which take up a huge amount if time and generate a few hundred or occasionally a few thousand pounds. I'd love to be able to set up a direct debit and feel I was doing my bit and didn't have to make yet another bloody batch of fairy cakes.

My youngest is in foundation stage. They ask for a voluntary contribution of £1 a week to help cover the cost of baking ingredients and interesting fruits and so on. I've been on a PTA, I think if folks were happy to have a set 'fee' per year for fundraising it would be ace as its a thankless task trying to get people to come to and help at events.

I have only ever heard of this at catholic schools in my area. My step kids CofE school doesn't operate this policy.

A couple of quid a month is fine imo but 15 seems excessive. Perhaps you could talk to the head about where that figure comes from and how exactly it is being spent

DS's school doesn't ask for anything, thank goodness, although they have been fundraising money to effectively turn the perfectly ok library into a soft play room with books. Not a worthy cause IMO. Wa still giulted into buying radfle tickets and cakes from the sale..

We're not in the UK but my DC's school asks for about €60 per child per year for requisitions (photocopying, art supplies etc) plus an annual voluntary donation which I can't remember exactly but I think is about €250 for the first child and €150 for a subsequent child. The PTA also does fund-raising for some non-essential, but nice to have, capital expenditure. They do one reminder about the voluntary sub, with an invitation to speak to the head if you can't pay it, and that's it, they don't mention it again. I think pretty much everyone pays it though.

We are lucky that we live in a fairly wealthy parish (almost all primary schools are religious here) so the school is kept in great condition and the parish council will give financial help if there is a dire need and the voluntary subs don't cover it. I know that in some areas the schools are literally crumbling because the govt. pays teachers wages but give very little towards running costs and repairs.

Not for primary school, but our secondary asks for £200 a year. I'm not surprised (budget cuts) and rather saddened that schools have to rely on voluntary contributions. We can afford it because we budget for it and have contributed.

Nursery ask for 50p a week - primarily for ingredients as they cook every Friday. No charge for reception but I'd rather bung £100 to the PTA than all the endless fundraising events which I find really difficult to support as a working mum.

My mum used to run the planned giving scheme at my primary school. One intro talk as part of reception induction then no bother throughout the rest of their school life. You either can afford it or you can't. Don't sweat it.

I'd rather bung £100 to the PTA than all the endless fundraising events which I find really difficult to support as a working mum

Oh yes yes yes, this. I really do not mind contributing even though money can be tight at times but I have not got the spare time to be baking cakes and buying them back etc.

Problem is as some have said up thread, it doesn't tend to replace the usual cake stall begging etc :(

I've never heard of this being done in my area. Everything is raised by PTAs round here.

£15 a month??
Toad's is £5 a month which is split between a morning snack (fruit or breakfast bar), any small educational trips and a monthly prize draw for parents.

Special Need secondary so insurance etc may be more expensive but less children so lots of smaller trips. Toad went canal boating!

What! I've never ever heard of this in my life! Anywhere. I'm clearly in the minority though.

I wouldn't pay tbh. Spare money like that I'd rather spend on activities out of school for the DCs.

We do have a lot of £1/£2 things and because it's Catholic they tend to do fundraising and support various charities. DS always wants to take more than the required £1 for these because he likes the idea of giving to charity so he takes it out of his pocket money (and I sneak it back in). I don't mind giving for the end of term discos either as they are putting on fun things for the children and I don't mind other bits which also raises money for the school but I certainly wouldn't pay a DD.

at baking cakes then buying them back - we do that too!

I have never been asked to contribute and don't know anyone who has..? I wonder if the schools asking are academies? I would feel as though I had to pay but I'd be a bit ranty about it. I got cross when parent pay was introduced (who is making money out of it????) to be fair though, my cross threshold is very low!

Have also brought back cakes today. Just that they were squashed now.... May not bake next time. As they looked poor all shoved together and sqUshed.

DD's new school PTA have asked for a donation of £10 per child and have promised not to hold raffles, cake sales, summer fetes, etc.

Bargain.

I like summer fetes, jumble sales and the like, there has been no mention of a 'voluntary' payment here.
Can't believe it would go down well.