Is this a normal amount of requests from the school - its non stop!

[SchoolRequests]

Dc started reception just over 5 weeks ago and already had

• An ongoing weekly donation request
• Request to buy waterproofs (with 5 days notice of when needed)
• Non uniform day plus donation
• Harvest festival donation
• School photos
• Request to go through books with no words on a night and write in communication dairy on a daily / weekly basic
• Harvest bag to fill with leaves and pinecones
• Panto trip in december to pay for

I'm dreading opening his school bag to find more letters requesting things. It is just constant requests for time and money. Is this a normal amount? Do schools think parents have lots of free time and money to get stuff with little notice constantly and don't have work or other children to look after?

What is it like at your kids school?

This year they have given some key dates in advance. HALLELUJAH. Maybe they listened.

But yes, it's pretty normal. Get a £20 note changed into £1 coins, so you have a stash of them when needed. It does feel like another job having to sort school admin.

Then you get the 'your child is recieving an award at 2pm tomorrow please come' message, forcing you to either disappoint your child or furiously try to rearrange work!

It's very frustrating.

Apart from the weekly donation request that all sounds normal to me. It can be quite a task keeping up with it all. I remember being surprised when my first started school at the amount of admin and involvement that was required, you get used to it. Also I found it’s not constant, it tends to come in waves.

Similar. We get emails pretty much every day, it is difficult to keep up when both parents are working full time! It has to be crazy for people with more than one kid! It is a full time job 😂

Just you wait until World Book Day and you are expected to conjure up a costume of a character from a particular book. Often with only 3 days notice of which book. I would rather make one larger donation per term as I don't have lots of £1 coins for this and that.

Pretty normal apart from the weekly donation. Dd’s former primary would have asked once a term but wouldn’t have been giving out extra snacks. I’m wondering if extra snacks is code for money for children, who are extra hungry and possibly aren’t being fed before school, perhaps even the night before.

A box in kitchen/hall with pen, £1, envelopes is handy.
Keep Shoeboxes, cardboard, old shirt, skirt, dress up outfit or two.
Present drawer with tape, wrapping, cheap cards and little gifts (craft kits, books etc) is handy to avoid the rush before a party.

It is a lot but what annoys me the most is all the different ways they communicate with us, parentpay, the school website, email, text, google classroom, 2 different portals, I mean COME ON pick a lane 🤯

An ongoing weekly donation request as in each week they just ask you to send in money for nothing or as in lots of things like cake days etc?

Request to buy waterproofs (with 5 days notice of when needed), tbf suitable clothing for school isn't a huge ask. Most kids will own a puddle suit or similar at this age, or you can pick one up cheaply secondhand

Non uniform day plus donation we have one a month. Either 50p or last one was a bottle for the bottle tombola and next is choc for choc stall. All for Xmas fair.

Harvest festival donation standard but no one will know if your kid doesn't do it

School photos standard twice a year but no one cares if you get them

Request to go through books with no words on a night and write in communication dairy on a daily / weekly basic yes reading with your child is standard request

Harvest bag to fill with leaves and pinecones can you do it on your way to school one day or whilst you're generally out of a weekend?

Panto trip in december to pay for well get asked for this next month

So other than the weekly donation yes that sounds normal. We'll have panto to pay for next term. Already had a £15 trip to the seaside.

It's the wellies and waterproofs to keep in school that fucks me off. I'm not buying a set for home and a set for school, and I told them that. Happy to send them in as and when needed, sometimes DD wears them to go in if the weather is bad, but I'm not buying double for them to be worn occasionally at school.

I think they presume there's a SAHP, the other parent is back at 4.30pm and there's no other children at home.

Yes.

Ours is good in that there is homework every Thurs, due every Tues, always in their homework books, so you get into a routine with it or do it quickly with them at the weekend. We've had two PTA charity initiatives and frankly I treat those as things that we do if we can, but aren't mandatory. But I dread to think how I'll manage when the younger two start school.

Between the requests and the birthday parties for Reception I feel like school is a seven day a week operation.

5 days isn’t enough time to get waterproofs second hand though I think that’s op’s complaint.
If they need them put them on the uniform kit list. There’s no chance of op buying one second hand on eBay and it coming in post.
Chances of one being on buy & sell locally tonight are slim whereas keeping an eye out there might have been or charity shop.
If dc has one already presumably they wear it and can’t leave at school. I remember a thread on here about a mum asking to get wellies back and bring made to feel awkward as she couldn’t afford 2 pairs (one home and school)
At short notice you end up paying full price amazon or supermarket.

My DC started school this year and I've been surprised by the number of emails/correspondence we get - sometimes 2 emails a day. I think it's normal, plus there's usually a lot of reminder emails or accident reports (DC can be a bit clumsy)

We've had school photos, heigh/weight/eye check, flu nasal spray, Harvest donation, request for payment for an event, non-uniform day, 2 requests for them to bring in autumn themed things, reminders about books/book bags/PE kit, and a suggestion to purchase waterproofs and hiking boots suitable for forest school.

Apart from weekly donation yes to the requests and YES to the short notice!!

Reminds me though, what is an appropriate 'harvest festival donation'???

I think they presume there's a SAHP, the other parent is back at 4.30pm and there's no other children at home.

My pet peeve is that schools send home emails and DON'T TELL YOU WHICH CHILD/YEAR GROUP IT REFERS TO. Yes, I am shouting out of frustration. Yes, it's lovely that your child's class will be creating a nature display - could you please tell me which child? And when you ring up and leave a message that "parents' evening will be reorganised due to the teacher being ill" perhaps it might be worth clarifying that this is only for XXX class, and any other children's parents' meetings will still go on as normal?

I'd rather have more communication than less. I like knowing what's going on at school. Everything goes in my diary straight away, no stress

Most fairly normal for this time of year. Next year it'll be similar so you can plan.

I've only had one school ask for weekly donations, no pressure to do though.

The waterproofs, wellies and hiking boots! Is so wasteful though. If they asked for outgrown ones to be donated then the school would have their own supply. You could send wellies and boots in September them use once or twice and by January be outgrown.

@woothatsalotofstairs for the Harvest Festival is usually food donations. These days the donations probably get sent to a food bank. So whatever your would put in a food bank donation really.

We pay our snack donation half termly rather than weekly but otherwise similar level of requests as you. We were asked for wellies and waterproof in July though, so had some notice thankfully! The emails are relentless!

Fair point @Dixiechickonhols

Re only using them once of twice, ours used them once a week every week. Because its woodland, even on a sunny day they'd put the kids in them.

OP to add if you can't afford school trips, talk to the school. They'll have money set aside. If you need him to come home in his wellies etc, then tell them that's what is happening. You can pack them daily if necessary but they come home with him or at least every Friday. Again, if you can't afford the waterproofs etc just talk to school. None of this should be compulsory.

Hiking boots for a 4 yo is ridiculous for a bit of forest school.

That's pretty minimal, we have a constant stream of texts, emails and messages on an app, I was also phoned today too. I think I must have at least 6 messages/requests a day it's constant. Then there's the class whatsapp too, where the messages from school are discussed/questioned. We pretty much work just to give the school money (this isn't a private school, just a normal school but very few PPE kids, so I guess they don't mind asking us for all our money).

Harvest - all long life stuff as its food Bank here so no fresh veg etc. I loved Harvest Festivals of yore when the stage was filled with bright vegetables and veg amongst the dented cans of beans from the back of a cupboard.

What about???? We have a weekly newsletter for most of it, a text the night before to remind you, obv permission letters as needed. That's it.

Apart from the weekly donation which should be voluntary that's standard. With the COL a lot of families won't be able to provide everything after the expense of uniforms.

I will never forget when I was in first year seniors we were going on a school trip to Beamish. We had to pay £5 each to go. This was back in 1990 before minimum wage. We never had much but my mum could afford the £5.

A lad in my class kept saying he couldn't go because his mum couldn't afford it and it was an educational trip so shouldn't have to pay. But our form tutor kept asking him for the money in registration and she told him everyone was going. He did get to go in the end school paid and provided a pack up for him. He was a lovely lad we got some great class photos and every single one he was in he was smiling.

I used to alternate with:

"Read to Page X. DC showed good understanding of the text".
" Read to Page X. Discussed the plot/characters/whatever."

Most of the time I just put, "Read to Page X." Teachers are far too busy to peruse reading records in depth.