to object to £50 school trip

[puffyisgood]

Outer London state primary [lots of affluent parents but also plenty who aren't], yr 3 kids. Matinee of a [fairly popular, fairly new, child friendly] West End muscal. The trip costs parents £50 per child. The school coffers may even be topping up these contributions a little bit [e.g. to pay for transport & for helpers]. As I understand it the tickets were block booked in advance [of the trip being announced] for the entire class. As with all these things parents can announce that they're not paying, but with prebought tickets the money will have to come from somewhere. All the kids want to go of course. As it happens we can afford it easily enough but I know that plenty of other families can't.

I'm mulling over a stern letter to the head. Reasonable or not?

Wow Craft1905 you are just not getting it. How do you know most people can afford £50, do you have the figures to show this! If people have to cut back something to afford the trip, they cannot afford it! This is a lot of money for one trip for one child, and for those who £50 is fine, will pay. But there are those who cannot afford it, or quite rightly, think it is too expensive. This is not a school in a leafy London suburb, but somewhere where there are plenty of families who cannot afford this.

Are you seriously suggesting that more than half the families in the UK do not have £50 to spare. I don't believe that. How do you know most people cannot afford £50?

And you are confusing 2 things. You reference those who think £50 is too much, which might include wealthy people. That's fine. If you think it's too expensive, don't do it. But those people can afford £50, but they choose note to spend it on this.

@Ringdonna
Surely most people can afford £50?

Don't know what world you live in, but a hell of a lot of the population most certainly couldn't.

More than half???

@FEF1102 "This will become the norm from April when the massive budget cuts will impact on all school coffers...."

The norm will be that trips just don't go ahead, they'll be to expensive.

@Craft1905 'most' implies nearly all not just over half.

£50 for a school day trip is a lot. I have twins so that would be £100 for us. We would be able to afford it but I know a lot of people in their class wouldn't. That's not because they aren't willing to or just need to learn to manage money better. It's because they are on a very low income and the leeway in their budget does not extend to £50 school trips!

I think a lot of people could afford it, technically, but for me, for example, it wouldn't represent the sort of value for money I'd expect to get from £50.

@Ringdonna what a lovely world you must live in!

@craft1905 Perhaps google the % of households with more than £10k credit card debt.
And then the % single parent households in London boroughs.
And those receiving universal credit.....

And that doesn’t even touch the “just about managings”.

I could push to £50 - for a worthwhile trip. But £50 to take primary school kids to a west end show? No thanks. it won't serve any more purpose than me taking my kids to the local theatre for £10-20

I'd send my DS to the globe to see a play he was studying at A-Level for £50. But not send DS to go and see 'Oliver!' because they were reading that in Year 5. (or whatever play)

Craft1005 we are not talking about half of the families in the UK, but from that demographic where the op comes from. If they have to cut back on something to afford the trip, they cannot. What Ringdonna said Craft, was not what you are saying, they are saying that most people can afford £50 which is more than half of the population, no they cannot. From op school, half would not be able to afford the trip probably because they do not have the income to.

Craft1005 we are not talking about half of the families in the UK, but from that demographic where the op comes from.

OP says it's a London primary with lots of affluent families, but some who aren't.

From op school, half would not be able to afford the trip probably because they do not have the income to.

OP says no such thing.

I can afford £50 right now but back when my dc were at school it would have been out of reach especially right after Christmas with one dc having a January birthday.

Craft1905 way to miss the point, ringdonna isn’t getting flamed for stating the probability that over 50% have £50, it’s the ‘i’m alright Jack so what’s the problem?’ attitude. 50% or more having the money is no consolation to the people who don’t and who then have to explain why their kids can’t go when others can.

What the op said Outer London state primary [lots of affluent parents but also plenty who aren't

What she said that there are plenty of families who are not affluent, so therefore, I see these including those who could not afford £50 or for which £50 is a lot in their budget as they do not have the income.

So a £50 theatre trip where in the school there are plenty who are not affluent, and might possibly not be able to afford it, is a bad idea and excludes those families.

Ringdonna does not have a clue about people's individual finances, she has just made a sweeping statement. Really in a state of Austerity and with the Brexit issue looming, £50 to many families, even those who are middle income, is a lot.

For a day trip to the theatre, when it can be used to save, or to help pay the car insurance to get a parent to work, or pay a gas bill that has just come in January after Christmas, when many people are feeling the pinch. Really, I think some people are just devoid of reality, because they can afford it, surely everybody else can!

It was very ambitious for the school to block book expensive theatre tickets without sounding it out first, and where plenty of families are not affluent.

Is the outcome you want for there to be no trips in case some can’t afford it? Seems a shame for the group who couldn’t afford for everyone to go but could stretch to one child going.

Well in dd school, the class went to the local theatre to see a Pantomime, and it cost £10, which is more reasonable.

Ringdonna does not have a clue about people's individual finances, she has just made a sweeping statement. Really in a state of Austerity and with the Brexit issue looming, £50 to many families, even those who are middle income, is a lot.

You keep on with the same mantra whilst ignoring the facts. £50 may be a lot, but ringdonna said most people could come up with it. And she is right, most people can. Most families that are not affluent can still get £50 together. Whether they should, or is it good value etc. etc, is not in dispute.

Craft1905 way to miss the point, ringdonna isn’t getting flamed for stating the probability that over 50% have £50, it’s the ‘i’m alright Jack so what’s the problem?’ attitude. 50% or more having the money is no consolation to the people who don’t and who then have to explain why their kids can’t go when others can.

Nope not missing the point. I said in my first post that most people being able to afford £50 was no consolation for those that can't. Check out my first post.

Ringdonna just said most people can afford £50. And she was told she was wrong, an idiot, etc. But she is right.

Tbh I’m quite fed up of listening to people complain about paying for school trips on MN!

Granted £50 is a lot and (especially if you have more than one child going) it could make things tight- if it’s compulsory!

However, last week I read a huge thread about a £15 compulsory trip with comments ranging from £5-£25 trips- 🤔 I’m sorry but if you can’t afford a one off £15 school trip for your child who desperately wants to go- maybe parents should reevaluate their ability to provide - rather than blaming schools for you know...trying to organise fun educational stuff 😡

The price doesn’t sound unreasonable for what it is, but it does sound unreasonable for a primary school theatre trip.

Dds school had a workshop visit her school last term to do with one of their topics and we had to pay £30 each for the pleasure and provide a blinking ancient Egyptian costume for them to wear for the day. We took dd to see horrible histories ancient Egyptian special at a local theatre a few weeks previously and tickets were practically half the cost of the school based workshop (which dd said was a bit boring).

Damn. They’re all out today aren’t they?

You keep on with the same mantra whilst ignoring the facts. £50 may be a lot, but ringdonna said most people could come up with it. And she is right, most people can. Most families that are not affluent can still get £50 together. Whether they should, or is it good value etc. etc, is not in dispute
What ringdonna said is that most people could afford £50,which is a whole different thing to being able to 'get it together.'