To ask if your child’s school sends a bill for voluntary donations?

[BlueSatsuma]

I pay a lot of money for after school care and for nursery fees for my son who is not yet school age.

Naively, I thought once my daughter got to school there would be a little easing of financial pressure! I willingly send in the for trips, dress up days, charity collections, school fundraiser etc. HOWEVER I just didn’t just didnt expect to be billed for school fees and to be sent constant reminders that I have havent paid yet. It’s £50 each term. It’s a lot for me, after everything else is paid. 😳

How much are your voluntary school fees?

No requests for donations/fees here. I don't know of any local schools that do this either.

We voluntarily paid £25/month to our daughter's school's social fund and didn't begrudge it, she left in 1997 but I was very unhappy that at no point did we receive a thank you acknowledgement, even at the end of 7 years!

The only thing ours asks for is £15 per year for Home Economics to cover ingredients/ container for foods.

Just respond and say you were under the impression that the fees were voluntary and you are not in a position to contribute please take your name off the mailing list as it is causing stress. That should do it.

The only thing ours asks for is £15 per year for Home Economics to cover ingredients/ container for foods.

We get billed for that too, in addition to the fees and ’voluntary fees’.

Dementedpixie I would very willingly pay that as hated to buy a jar of something I don't use just for a teaspoon ful amount. Thank goodness DD didn't choose Home Economics for GCSE and we could drop it after 2 years.

Our school sends a letter home in September (new term year) asking for a voluntary amount. We've given every September DD has been at that school. No one chases you and we were the only family to do so this year in her class as we got a thank you note from head (Which we get every year) and I only know as DD is class monitor so gives out the thank you letters.

You should not be obligated to give when it states voluntary so lead with that if they persist.