Are you required to pay to see your childs school/class performances?

[Rivanshine]

AIBU to feel aggravated that we have to BUY tickets every blimmin' time our daughters school put on a play or dance performance?

Our girls are in years 4 & 2 and they go to a C of E voluntary-aided primary school. All the rehearsals and performances are done in school time and are orchestrated purely by the teaching staff so it's not an extra-curricular activity organised by an independent dance or theatre school for example.

In our case we have to double up on the tickets as well because they split the performances into morning & afternoon sessions and our girls are always in separate ones! Of course, we go to both. How could we not?

It's really been an eye-opener as to how much and how frequently this school asks for money nowadays. So much so that this Friday (Children in Need day) they've had to go low-key (by their own admission!) because they were getting complaints about the constant donation 'requests' for this, that & the other recently and I agree.

We're not in a middle or upper class area and the school is clearly not a private or independent one so quite why they think it's reasonable to force us parents to find all these extra sums of money to pay for whatever they want, whenever they want it is mind-boggling to me!

We're never consulted about any of the fund-raising ideas beforehand (or school trips either, and they chose really pricey ones to go to!) - we're just told what to do, how much we have to give and where the money's going to!!!!

Thing is though they've got you over a barrel because if you don't stump up the money your child is excluded from the activity and who wants to do that to their child? Exactly. Us neither! :(

Anyone else in this situation too?

Most people don't even cover their own costs through tax let alone theirs children's costs.

This is spot on. And absolutely how it should be - but true. And people so often forget/don't realise this....

PS our Chrismas play takes hours and hours of work. It is so worth it because of the positive effect it has on the children.

Op a school can not legally stop a child on a trip because they halve the paid. There must be another reason. Ie if they had been excluded.

I think if you enquired what exactly the money was being spent on, you'd probably stop complaining.

The money raised will be being used to benefit your children

OP, from the way you describe these activities, it sounds like you don't rate them anyway, so why not ease your pain and not go. Then you don't have to pay anything.

We don't pay for class learning festivals and performances but do for the Christmas show. It raises a lot of cash for school.

There has always been fundraising in schools.

No, I wasn't asleep in the Blair years.

Beware of confirmation bias.

But it does show why those who 'want to take the politics out of education' are on a road to nowhere, as even a thread on school fundraising ignores all recent practice (under Labour) in order to use exactly the same activities as criticism (of Tories).

We don't pay until secondary.

However when I was at school it was pay right the way up, and so I didn't see it as an issue. The hall could only fit so many in, so there was a maximum number of tickets you could get per night, to allow everyone yo get something, and then there was a free afternoon dress for people to bring younger siblings.
It worked well.
It also stopped people turning up with entire extended family of 12 uncles and aunts, queueing from 8am to take up the front row, for every performance.

We don't charge for the Christmas play or any small daytime concert that we put on in our tiny school hall, but we do charge for anything we do in the local theatre (which means the whole school can take part) So far there have been no complaints made to school about this (but who knows what mutterings have gone on in the playground/online). Shows do cost money...buying the book/music, licence, scenery, costumes, props for a start. In fact the last two Christmas plays we have done I have bought the script/music myself as the budget is so tight..However our last summer production, which we did charge for covered all the costs and had enough left over for school to buy this years Christmas play and to start to resource and music and drama club (up to now it has been resourced by me...)

Bloody hell how much are they charging for you to care so much?

£2? £3? Surely it must be more like £20 for all the sadness and disappointment in your schools.

What do you think schools do with the money? Pay for the staff Christmas party? It's a few pounds which goes directly to your child's education.

Perfotming Arts teacher here.

We don't charge for our compulsory Christmas and year group productions but our main (opt in by audition and rehearse at night) musical costs parents £3.50 a ticket. Even that's only to offset the cost, not cover it. Those productions cost us around £5500 to put on.

What you describe doesn't sound worth charging for though.

Sadly this kind of stuff is normal. Both schools seem to do expensive trips. But don't get me started to these History off the page days or visiting author days. £25 for one of these days. Primary doesn't charge for school performance but secondary does.

Haven't had to pay at either the primary schools my DC have been to. Think there was a charge for a concert DS did at secondary school but was nearly a year ago and have forgotten.

And also it's nonsense about poor children missing out on things. There is money specifically so this doesn't happen. It's never happened in all my years of teaching and the school has covered a hell of a lot of the costs of things. We used to set up a payment plan as low as 50p per week for the school residential.

And Tbf I am happy to pay for secondary one as it is very professional and I get it is expensive to pull off.

I don't really see the problem with paying for tickets, where do you think the money goes? Back into the school to benefit the children - all the children , be it for books, helping pay for buses to school trips (hence making them more affordable). It's not a fortune they are asking for, you get to support the school and see your child perform.

It's a few pounds which goes directly to your child's education.

Not at our primary it wasn't. The head master was squirreling all the spare cash into the choir. Lovely bloke, great with kids, but when he left the school went into special measures over finances.

3 kids @ £3 is nearly a tenner. When you've got more than one child at a school being asked for ''just a few pounds'' every friggin week for something or other it really adds up. I had 3 at primary together and what with red nose days, non uniform days, trips, tickets for plays, victorian day, book day and god knows what else it's way more than a few pounds.

£1.50 (50p concession) a ticket for the shows that involve the whole school
free show if it's just a class performance relating to the theme of the term.

They brought in a company last Christmas to stage the Christmas (show so that bumped the price up to £5 per ticket.

Goodness me.......for the record, I myself was not allowed to go on a couple of school trips at secondary school in the 90's because my parents couldn't afford the full fee so that puts that common practice to rest. It happened then and it certainly DOES happen even now and yes, even with primary school children. Trip to France for Year 6 last summer.......3 pupils couldn't pay the required fee. Those 3 stayed behind and 'helped out' in the younger classes for the week :(

I feel we've gone off on a massive tangent here but the principal remains the same.......re: our children's education. At a local level, where do our volunteered, charitable efforts as parents end and our seemingly forced, financial obligations begin? Let's not forget, many people want to help & give but are just not in a financially viable position to do so. Does that make them bad parents?

I don't mind donating, but at this time of year it feels ramped up. Between my 2 kids for various trips, visits by this person or that person, dress up days etc I've already given close to £20 this last few weeks & the Xmas things haven't even started yet.

It's a BIG school so I know costs are high, I almost think I'd prefer they just got every family to DD £5 a month to them so we can spread the costs.

I get that schools need to findraise and I'm happy for a non uniform day once a term and a few bits extra.

I get very twitchy that the school raise funds for lots of different charities though. They are always super excited to be giving £499 to children in need etc.....when all I can think it why is it not for the school?

No we don't but the PTA sells DVDs of the performance and various Christmas bits to raise funds instead.

I think it's reasonable in secondary school though when productions are a bit more 'professional' with proper arts etc.

How much are the tickets OP?