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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

How much is the contribution per family for teachers' end of year gifts at your school?

169 replies

AlternativelyWired · 25/07/2022 16:20

I haven't really thought about this before in any depth. Sometimes the organiser has said £5, this year it was £10. The gifts are usually vouchers for John Lewis plus extra items like candles, beauty items, chocolates. This year £340 was collected for dividing between 2 teachers and 3 TAs on a pro rata type basis. Some families do their own thing and give money to the collection. There's usually a collection at Christmas too. Does every school do these collections twice a year? It's voluntary but then there's a list of those who have donated so anyone who can't afford it or doesn't want to join in is highlighted by their absence.

OP posts:
CaptainMyCaptain · 25/07/2022 16:23

I'm a retired teacher and have a lot of teacher friends and I don't know of any schools in my area that do this. .

Louise0701 · 25/07/2022 16:24

My childrens school does this. £10 every Christmas & end of school year. Usually all get our own little gifts too; a bottle of whatever they like to drink or nice chocolates for the non-drinkers.

anonymoooose · 25/07/2022 16:25

My sons school doesn't do this. My older son went to the same school and I never bought them anything at the end of term. I just couldn't stretch to it. But my 10 year olds year 5 teacher has been absolutely amazing with him and she's leaving the profession so I got her a £15 gift card to show my appreciation. It did break me because I only had £3 left but she was worth it

Fairislefandango · 25/07/2022 16:25

No, not all schools do this. I never paid towards a collective gift to any of my dc's teachers in 3 different schools. In two of them there were no collective gifts. In the other I chose not to.

I have occasionally chosen to buy a special teacher a gift, but I think routine present-buying for teachers is OTT and totally unnecessary. I'm a teacher myself btw.

stupidly · 25/07/2022 16:25

I do £10 at xmas and £10 end of the year.

I think that's on the low side, many in our class do £20 both times around.

Not everyone joins in. I have seen some giving their own gifts.

coodawoodashooda · 25/07/2022 16:28

CaptainMyCaptain · 25/07/2022 16:23

I'm a retired teacher and have a lot of teacher friends and I don't know of any schools in my area that do this. .

I'm a teacher and my school does this. It's some of the parents that organise it and has nothing to do with the teachers. I think it is crazy.

HappyHappyHermit · 25/07/2022 16:28

That sounds a lot, I think £3-5 would be a better amount to ensure most people can join in.

luggageandbags · 25/07/2022 16:29

Lists of donations is pretty brutal and crass imo.
We had donations in my DC classes, I have no idea how much others contributed, I sent £10 for each collection and I think we had between £200 and £250 for each to spend on teachers and TAs so many probably contributed less and some didn’t at all. The card and presents were signed from the whole class not individual families.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 25/07/2022 16:29

We do this and I love it - there is no suggested amount but I normally put in £20 (there is a teacher and a TA). This time the total was £370, we got them vouchers, and the card just said "From class X" rather than names.

By the time I bought a card and a gift bag and a gift it would come to more than £10 anyway, and they would have 30 bags to cart home...this seems more efficient. DS made a horribly misspelled thank you card with a picture of a bullet ant too.

coodawoodashooda · 25/07/2022 16:29

stupidly · 25/07/2022 16:25

I do £10 at xmas and £10 end of the year.

I think that's on the low side, many in our class do £20 both times around.

Not everyone joins in. I have seen some giving their own gifts.

£20! That is absolutely ridiculous.

UndertheCedartree · 25/07/2022 16:30

At my DD's school people choose if they want to give a gift. We just did a little box with stationery linked to the class name.

FASDE1517 · 25/07/2022 16:30

This year we did £5 for DS1's class and £20 for DS2's (that got split between 4 adults though). We managed a really decent gift, including restaurant vouchers, afternoon tea, small Fortnum and Mason hampers and "bits" (wine, biscuits, etc) across both classes.
I'm a teacher and my class doesn't do this- 29/30 just bought me a gift and I'd love them to have clubbed together but there's no way to get that suggestion out there without being rude and presumptuous!!

Xiaoxiong · 25/07/2022 16:35

Mine are at a prep school, our class reps do a single collection for the whole year - this covers a present and card at Christmas, present and card at the end of the year, and a bunch of flowers on the teacher's birthday. I think it was suggested £20 this year per kid but it's completely voluntary, some parents gave more, some less, some never contribute - we don't chase for payment, just see what comes in and cut our cloth accordingly. The majority of the parents do contribute so we don't do a list of who has donated because we have a huge spread of financial circumstances at the school and it's pretty crass to highlight people who haven't managed to contribute for whatever reason. The cards are signed by the kids to thank their teacher so we just get all the kids to sign regardless of whether their parents have contributed, and the class reps usually make one big card with pictures/drawings of the kids and then each kid can sign/draw/do something on there. So the teacher doesn't end up with a pile of cards that get binned and 30 candles/mugs.

We rotate class rep every year or so to spread the load and each one has maintained this system, and DS2's class does the same now - it seems to work ok and nobody has complained!!

redhearts · 25/07/2022 16:36

We do this. £20 at the start of the year and the class rep buys Christmas, birthday and end of year and maybe something at Easter. Then the kids make a homemade card.

They usually get vouchers along with wine / chocolates to spend on something they do actually want and think the vouchers are substantial

Teachers and TA are treated the same

horseymum · 25/07/2022 16:41

That's loads, really hard for some families. We do homemade card and some biscuits/ truffles. I Know they like them as previous teachers asked for some even when my kids had moved on from their class! Just a very small token that won't take up space. Teachers are paid way more than me!

DogsAndGin · 25/07/2022 16:41

Not all schools do this, but it is a great idea. A £100 JL voucher is much more appreciated than 30 boxes of Milk Tray.

cloverleafy · 25/07/2022 16:43

Class collection is optional and amount is discretionary. Typically when I've organised them, donations vary from £10-£20 for end of year. That has to cover teacher plus 1 or 2 TAs.

ShrillSiren22 · 25/07/2022 16:45

I would absolutely be kicking up a fuss if some parents thought it acceptable to publish a list of parents who have and haven’t donated to a teacher’s end of year present. Does the school know that parents are doing this because I can’t imagine they’d be too impressed either, vile behaviour.

At my dc’s school parents just organise their own end of year cards/ gifts or not as the case may be. There’s always the odd child whose parent makes them carry in the most enormous bunch of flowers, balloons and chocolates so that everyone knows they’ve bought a present but luckily most parents are slightly less crass.

CuriousCatfish · 25/07/2022 16:47

Thank god we never had class reps and organised collections when mine were at school.

DistrictCommissioner · 25/07/2022 16:47

we do an informal collection through the class WhatsApp groups (which aren’t run by school or anything). This year we said contribution of whatever you could afford, all the kids names go on the card regardless.

TokyoSushi · 25/07/2022 16:48

£5 but very much an informal thing organised by the parents.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 25/07/2022 16:52

A £100 JL voucher is much more appreciated than 30 boxes of Milk Tray.

I honestly think our teachers would appreciate them equally - it's just that no-one needs 30 boxes of Milk Tray, and also when we know they cycle home...a voucher makes sense.

FourTeaFallOut · 25/07/2022 17:01

Our class has this and, like yours, it's £10 at Christmas and the end of year. It suits me because between a couple of teachers and then teaching assistants it makes more sense to club together and distribute than everyone go to the effort of looking for and wrapping several fairly lacklustre gifts, with the bonus that there's then only one card heading to bin at the end of the week.

easyday · 25/07/2022 17:02

Private school and in the junior school only there would be an annual class collection for the main class teacher and TA (about £5-10 each child). At Christmas you did your own thing - we generally made batches of fudge to give to all the teachers. Bottle for the head.
Senior school it just wasn't done, partly because they'd have a different teacher for each subject and their form teacher might not teach all of the kids.

bellsbuss · 25/07/2022 17:03

Ours is £10 as well.