To ask why you don’t volunteer for school / PTA / Parent Council Events?

[whyismykid]

Is it because you are too busy? Don’t think it’s important? The people who organise these type of events are irritating? Think the school have all the funds they need so it’s not worth the bother?

What would enable you (or persuade you) to help out?

200 people attended the event I planned today and had a good time but only 8 people volunteered to help. I understand that the planning and preparing for events is time consuming (it totally is!) so I’d only expect a small number of people to be able to take that on, but it should be different for on the day help I would think? I made sure each volunteer slot was only 45 mins long, so that people could also take part with their families, and made it clear what each volunteer job involved. Online sign up
so super easy.

What else can I do? it’s a school of 750 pupils and I have a summer fair to attract volunteers for next, any ideas?

Because the core members have been there for so long they refuse to change anything about what they do as it’s the way they’ve always done it.

Because I’m chronically ill and disabled. Today I just about managed to I stack the dishwasher and reheat lunch - I made a batch on Friday when I felt a little better.

Your post assumes everyone is in good health.

That’s a Strange attitude Dedoodooda. I’m a school governor. They take the piss quite a lot but I manage it. I don’t fancy the PTA much though, why is it not ok for me to make that decision? Why does it mean I don’t care because I don’t want to do EVERYTHING?!

I think being asked personally makes a big difference, so class reps really help. Our PTA also put requests and reminders on class Facebook groups. Sometimes it is just inertia. Oh i'm not sure if granny's coming that weekend... And then by the time you find out she isn't, you've forgotten about it. So keep reminding.

We usually do but sometimes haven't. I don't mind doing food stalls, I hate doing games stalls unless the rules are very very clear cut and preferably everyone gets a prize.

I did for a while, but I gave up after being put in charge of a stall at a xmas bazaar that was just pure chaos and I had no idea how to manage it. I think some people are better at crowd control than me, but I cried afterwards and never offered to help again.

Also another time I helped out at a school event, and my children just would not allow me to get on with helping to clear up afterwards , it just seemedlike everyone else knew what they were doing and were all capable and I just felt completely overwhelmed. Did what I could, but I think id rather donate money than attempt any kind of practical help again

I don't because I have 4 dc to watch so it's tricky being in a public place and trying to do anything but watch them is dangerous for them.
I'm also a part time uni student and am about to become the treasurer for the dc's scouts group. I don't have time to add anything else in and actually sleep.

Staples - so relatable!

I have never encountered politics so messy as DDs primary school PTA and I work in Central Government these days!

May I just check something please?

The posters who say they would rather give £X per month than volunteer for the PTA. Do you actually do this? (In my 7 years on the PTA at primary we never had anyone asking to do a regular donation, or even doing a 'one off').

@greenlanes

Oh sod off with your boasting and virtuousness - people like you turn many off things like PTA.

I work full time, and I volunteer, so I can't think that that's an excuse.

I have however learnt some tricks over the years, like never volunteering for the early slots because there's an excellent chance that I'll get stuck when the person who is supposed to take over from me doesn't turn up. And volunteering for the cake stall is a good number, because they sell out quickly and you can then pack up and go.

But it’s never just 45 minutes a term is it. It’s all the stuff inbetween. It’s the meetings, the emails, the going round all local businesses at Christmas and summer. It’s the attention needed to the whatsapp group. It’s trying to constantly think of fund raising ideas.

And hahaha , how many of you who say if rather give cash each year rather than help, have done just that. Let me guess . No I do not believe you. You cannot be bothered to even do that,but will give 5 minutes of your time to post and read and justify why on this thread.

By the way not PTA here, but experience with other voluntary roles.

btw, burnt out previous volunteers are exempt from my rant!

Because I don't want to.

It doesn't interest me.

I generally feel uncomfortable around people.

I'd rather give money than attend one of those fairs.

No excuses just preferences. I bake for the fairs. That's enough for me.

Some people enjoy this sort of thing, I bloody hate it. Plus DH is working overseas at the moment, so I have zero childcare. When he is in the UK, I work full time. It is incredibly tough juggling full-time work, a long commute, childcare arrangements, problems when kids are sick, and finding the time to do all the normal household stuff that needs doing. There is no chance I would add PTA duties to that.

Because people like to take and not give because people think that someone else will do it
Actually, it's worse. People like to complain, then expect 'someone else' to deal with it for them. It happens in every single volunteering situation I've been in. I have no more free time than anyone else, but somehow people think their free time is more valuable than mine.

I've helped a bit with the PTA. I work part time but can only do so much because of my OH's awkward working hours, and he needs to be home to have the kids while I go to meetings etc. All of the other committee members work, most of them full time, so it's not just for SAHM's. They're generally a welcoming bunch, grateful for any help offered and don't put pressure on those who can't help. The school really do benefit too- in the last few years we've raised enough for a class set of iPads, a set of forest school resources, we pay hundreds towards school trips every year so that parents don't have to pay so much .... Not just the odd pack of books here and there and things the school would never have been able to afford otherwise. I don't think parents realise what we do, they think everything the school has came from school funds. Maybe they think we run all these events for fun.

I have a lot of friends whose schools send out a letter at the beginning of the year that says would you like to volunteer for the PTA or make a regular donation - and many of them do, every year, on the understanding they then won’t be expected to be involved.

Because the PTA was sold as an alcohol fuelled drink fest that everyone takes turns to cater for in their own home and I am tea total and my house was a wreck.

Because I'm a single parent to 3 children, who is also an NHS student working 40 hour placement weeks (Not mon-fri) with assignments and exam prep on top.

I also volunteer for SANDS. I only have so much to give. My kids deserve a piece of me too.

It's nice that there are PDA organised events but they aren't essential. I can't male a lot of them due to my current commitments.

Because some only meet during the day and never in the evenings.

Because I volunteered once and heard “oh, we actually don’t need the volunteers” when I turned up. Thanks, felt really appreciated.

Because the PTA in our school is really clique-ish.

Because I currently help with the Year 6 leavers committee, supposedly parent led only but the school wants certain things done in a certain way, some parents sent verbally abusing emails and complain about the plans but do not offer suggestions or help despite us asking and being flexible about meetings. We are down from 10 to 4 people.

DD attends lots of PTA events and I always pay on time and happy to plonk change into their kitty when ai pay for ice cream or cupcakes.

*PTA

Thankfully as DS is at a private school, I feel there's no compelling reason for me to be on the PTA. I do however volunteer on the scout exec committee and will help out at one off fairs and things like that for PTA if free. I also work 0.8 and have elderly parents.

It does sound though OP as if you deliberately made it easy for parents to volunteer so to get such a low turn out still would be disappointing. It's maybe time to run the fair in a different way - I know for the school fair next week the P7s have been drafted to run a few stalls on the promise of free goes at the games - and at ours they make quite a lot by selling stalls to the dreaded Arbonne & Forever Living type stuff, who may well be interested due to the high foot fall.

Also sometimes its quite nice just to go along as a participant. I deliberately didn't volunteer for this weekends scout fair - my DM has been going through radiotherapy so I wanted to keep things relatively free in case she needed lots of support, thankfully she has been doing really well on it. It was a lot of fun just to turn up and spend my pennies without having to be there for hours on end. It was particularly nice not to be involved in the organisation of the bottle stall ( pot luck may win water or wine) which I seem to be now permanently linked to !

Btw no-one asked for a donation. Although I mentioned that preference to the head teacher.

How many knew it was an option? If it's an option I'll take it rather than burning money on gas and ingredients.

I'm a do-er but don't have the headspace for the PTA on top of the other voluntary things I do (as well as working).

I've had to pick the things I can support on a practical level, the things I can support on a financial level, then will do whatever else I can if I can fit it in.

I'm not prepared to reach burn-out trying to appease everyone- my mental health is more important than that.