To be frustrated with the school about the Easter egg situation?

[FrustratedMum2025]

So, the school sent home a note last week about the “Easter egg raffle” they’re doing, asking for donations of Easter eggs for the kids to win as prizes. Fair enough, I thought, seems like a nice thing to do.

But here’s the issue: they want each child to donate an Easter egg by tomorrow. Fine, except… my children have been having Easter eggs since early March because, well, they’re kids. The idea of giving yet another egg just seems so unnecessary to me. I’m already drowning in chocolate from my own absolutely brilliant planning of Easter, and I’m not sure I want to add to the pile just for the school raffle. Plus, when I mentioned it to a few other parents, it turns out they all feel the same!

It feels like they just don’t get it. I already pay for everything (I’m talking school trips, PTA fundraisers, fancy dress days, the whole shebang) and now it’s Easter eggs as well? I’m all for supporting the school, but they never ask for things in a way that’s actually affordable or considerate of family budgets. AIBU to feel like this is just another example of unnecessary school demands?

Also, they’ve made it clear that if you don’t donate, your child might not get to participate in the raffle. I get the whole “voluntary contribution” thing, but when it’s linked to something like this, it just feels a bit much. Honestly, I can’t be the only one who thinks this is all a bit tone-deaf.

Am I being unreasonable or is it just another case of the school not understanding how much we’re all juggling at the moment?

TL;DR: AIBU to be frustrated that the school expects us to donate an Easter egg on top of everything else, and if we don’t, our kids miss out on the raffle?

Here’s what I think is happening. The school or PTA wanted to do something fun for the kids. Also, they know that there are some poor or neglected kids whose parents can’t/won’t buy them an Easter egg. So the plan is to get as many people as possible to donate, and the PTA will make up the shortfall, so everyone an egg.

The “threat” of “no egg if no donation” is just to ensure that most people donate an egg.

It’s a bit like when there are school trips, and they ask for a voluntary donation, but make it clear that if not enough people pay, the trip won’t happen. The assumption (usually correct) is that everyone who can afford it will pay, enabling the kids who can’t afford it to go on a trip too.

OP just because your kids have been guzzling chocolate for a month, doesn’t mean other kids get the same.

Agreed! That's way more unreasonable and unusual than the school running a seasonal raffle.

Here is a plan.

stop giving your kids eggs till Easter.

get involved in the event and suggest an alternative way. I don’t know. Everyone donate one of their eggs and give them to charity. Something like that. Each raffle ticket is for a different charity or place locally and the child can take it or they can collect it

don’t make it a negative.

you must see the basics

,
my children have to much chocolate
I do not want to donate theirs
I do not want to buy more, so they get equal back.

just get involved and teach them that giving is not about receiving

YABVVVU. Just buy a simple egg for £1 and also stop buying them to eat at home before Easter! Most people I know genuinely don’t start on the proper eggs until Easter Sunday- they might have a cheeky cream egg or some mini eggs.

It’s honestly parents like you that literally moan about anything that stop schools trying to do fun stuff.

The OP is bring Very Unreasonable for giving her child Easter eggs before Easter. 'Just because they're kids' FFS.

Why have you been giving your kids Easter eggs since 6 weeks before Easter?

Most kids wait until Easter to get eggs to be fair. It isn't the school's fault that you indulge your kids with Easter eggs for weeks before Easter. I really can't see what the problem is. An EE costs about £1.50 and can be bought at any local shop. A lot of drama about nothing.

plus what “brilliant planning” of Easter is required? Buy a chocolate egg for each family member you get one for….thats it surely?

it’s just we had Easter stuff a bit early with the family, so the whole “Easter egg” tradition feels a little diluted already.

That’s not the school’s fault though! My kids haven’t been anywhere near an egg yet, along with the vast majority of other kids. Plus even if your kids have been doing Easter since Feb there will be a huge novelty in doing it at school I am sure, and getting a “surprise” egg with their ticket.

But you can obviously afford Easter eggs to send in to school if you have been buying and eating them for over a month? The school is not requesting anything that is expensive or difficult to find, so what is the problem?

It sounds like a lovely and low cost idea for children to get a surprise egg to take home to eat on Easter Day.

But the OP doesn’t want to buy one more egg?!

That means she can't be bothered to say no to her kids, lazy parenting and her kids teeth will fall out before they are ten.

I sort of get your general issue but the easter eggs is a weird hill to die on- I’d actually say of the things schools ask for this is probably one of the best ones for having thought about the cost for families. You can get an Easter Egg from b&m for £1, if you’re not fussy about a branded one then Aldi have them in for £0.85, it’s arguably the cheapest thing the school could ask for.

On the other hand our local primary is doing an “Easter day” where each child has to come in dressed in something “Easter theme” (so lots of parents buying bunny outfits/ears/egg outfits/chick outfits), they have to pay £1 for the privilege & they have different activities throughout the day including decorating an egg station which costs 50p, an Easter card decorating station which is free, a cake sale so money needed for that or no cake, and a crispy cake decorating station which costs 50p. I’m sure it’ll be a lovely day for the kids but for parents, especially if they had 2 kids at the same school, that adds up for the sake of a school day.

I'm guessing this is to raise badly needed funds for the school?
If you can afford it then please contribute. Schools are financially in dire straits.

Your children will hardly be missing out if they’ve been eating Easter eggs for a month.

Why on earth ha e you been giving your children Easter eggs in March when Easter isn't until 20th April? Why would someone do this!

Okay, I think I’ve been a bit unclear here, and I really appreciate all the responses! I wasn’t expecting anyone to solve my “problem,” just venting a bit. I know I’m probably overthinking it. The chocolate thing is totally on me, I get that, yes, my kids have been nibbling on Easter eggs since March. It’s just we’ve always done it early with family stuff, and I didn’t realize how weird that sounds until reading all your responses!

I think I’m just feeling a bit tired of these little requests that add up. I get that the PTA and school are doing their best and I’m not mad at them, I just wish there was a bit more consideration for the fact that not every family has endless supplies of eggs or extra cash lying around. And, yeah, I know it’s only £1 or £1.25, but when you’re already feeling overwhelmed with everything else, it just feels like one more thing.

But you’re all right, donating an egg from the pile at home is an easy fix, and I’ll do that. Just needed to get it off my chest, I guess! Thanks for listening.

Your children won’t be excluded from the raffle surely if they haven’t donated an egg. How would they police that? There’s just not the time for that kind of thinking in schools.

I just wish there was a bit more consideration for the fact that not every family has endless supplies of eggs or extra cash lying around. And, yeah, I know it’s only £1 or £1.25, but when you’re already feeling overwhelmed with everything else, it just feels like one more thing.

But you DO have had a seemingly endless supply of eggs!
Perhaps forgoing an egg and donating it would be a much better life lesson than gorging on eggs for the last few weeks when Easter is still weeks away.

The whole thing feels like a little more pressure than it should be, you know?

Bloody hell just take an egg in. Why the drama? Believe me, there are going to be bigger things than this to worry about before your DC fly the nest!

not every family has endless supplies of eggs

The irony!

We’ve had a few visits from family who have dropped eggs off for the kids, they’ve all gone into a cupboard until Easter. IMO it completely spoils it to start so early. We’re still in lent FFS!

"It’s just we’ve always done it early with family stuff, and I didn’t realize how weird that sounds until reading all your responses!"

A whole MONTH early? And your kids have been eating Easter eggs ever since? This is bizarre.

But you've got loads of eggs in your house, send one of them.

There's no pressure. You're making it wierd by eating eggs before easter.

The schools my grandchildren go to raise money via the PTAs and those funds are much needed, particularly as an increasing number of families genuinely cannot afford to contribute. I would suggest that, if you can afford Easter Eggs as an everyday item, rather than a luxury, you are not in that position so should either suck it up and donate an egg instead of letting your children have it early or agree they don't need any more and tell school to leave them out of it

But according to the OP if they don't donate, they don't get one