Voluntary contribution of £120 for school

[Voiceofreason92]

My son’s school have always asked for a voluntary contribution of £35 per year per child. This year they have decided to up it to £60 per child. I have two children. In the past it’s never been clear what that £35 is going on so have always reluctantly contributed. This year they have asked for money for revamping the year 1 toilets, building a ‘summer house’ style cabin as an intervention room and to support their staffing structure.

since September, it’s been in the newsletter every week saying they still don’t have 100% of families contributing and they would really like it. (Only 50% have) This week a letter came home in my kid’s book bag from the head teacher saying that they noticed I havent paid my £120 contribution and they really think it’s time I contributed for my boys.
AIBU unreasonable for not contributing out of principle that I feel hounded and it’s meant to be voluntary.
(this is a state primary school not a private one)

Voiceofreason92
Excuse me whilst I go outside and just shake my money tree!
Seriously?
Who has this sort of cash just floating about,
And it's supposed to be voluntary right?

I would tell them that am worried about their level of teaching considering they don't understand the meaning of voluntary.

£120, ouch! I get schools are skint but so are parents and it's really poor taste to keep hounding.

Primary parents are already pressured with the endless non uniform days, bake sales etc
Working parents generally have to cover childcare too.
Voluntary should be voluntary.

It’s not exactly voluntary if they are hassling you to pay it….. if they used the actual wording
“really think it’s time I contributed”
then I would be approaching the head and asking what on earth they were thinking and depending on their answer I would possibly escalate it to the governors.
In my sons school they always give the options of over paying for trips to help fund them for parents that may not be able to pay, the ptfa are always fundraising and are well supported by parents and the school have now included stationary, glue sticks etc on an equipment list for years 4,5 and 6 students to have so the school don’t have to fund those for the children, I wouldn’t be happy being chased for extra money if I had multiple children in the school.
I have previously paid a donation on behalf of both of my primary age children jointly, so half the suggested an amount for something specifically for forest school, which I guess is another option of you want to give something.

I suspect OP wasn’t singled out but sent the communication along with other families who hadn’t paid.

Asking you to enrich a school and their education!!?? And the PTA who give their own time??

Im so sorry. Sending virtual hugs 🤣I’d be so proud to be part of this school. Don’t pay. But don’t bloody moan about it. Some of us would be happy to throw money at a school!

It's a state primary school that requires full-time guards that parents must contribute 1600 per child towards?

That sounds like a high risk school to send your kids to. Is there no alternative school? I'm not questionning the amount they are asking for, so much as the wisdom in sending your DCs to a school where this level of full-time guards is needed.

Are you able to look at their accounts? To see if you genuinely believe that its needed, there was a thread earlier today on jobs that pay 200k and one of them was a director at a MAT. Our school doesn't ask for donations but there are PTA fundraising efforts regularly to pay for improvements.

This has triggered a memory that my mum used to have to pay £5 per a year ‘school fund’ when I was at primary in the 80s.

Both of my kids have been through 2 primary schools and I’ve never been asked for it.

my kids primary has a lot of PTA fundraising and then the usual bake sales, children in need type charity fund raisers. We try to support as much as we can. One way we have supported more is in practical ways. There was something the school needed replacing, that every child would benefit from so a relative was able to make this for them at no cost to them ( we paid materials),

would I give a cash donation for school structure? No.

at secondary school we pay for all art materials, all materials in technology etc. includes art paper/books/Creative resources/wood, plastic used for projects that come home, obviously provide the food for baking etc. All benefits my child so happily pay.

Schools are on their arse. There is no money and they have been underfunded for years. It’s depressing but true. Without additional funds things you want and expect for your children just won’t be there; clean decent toilets, enrichment activities, classroom resources, books.

For those saying school budgets are dire so you should pay if you can...no. Parents shouldn't plug this gap. The gap needs to be visible so people get angry, put pressure on their local MPs and demand the government properly fund schools. Or insist the wastage in multi academy trusts is put to an end. So many needless roles in management when there are no staff on the ground (namely TAs) is a travesty.

I also think the head is out of order to pressure parents.

That’s really lovely of you but no, nobody has to donate. Plenty of schools don’t ask for this and cut their cloth accordingly.

Well you may not like it but it’s because the school has no money.
teachers have been paying for classroom supplies out of their own money for years in lots of schools. cleaning staff slashed etc.
I guess the school has taken the view that yes they’re going to piss lots of parents off but if they get some money it’s worth it.

Is it part of a federation?
if it’s a stand alone primary school it’ll be really struggling. It’s probably not wanting to be swallowed up by the local trust. (Though maybe that won’t be a bad thing if that happens.)

What's happened to the 20% VAT on school fees money - is that not in state schools budgets yet?

£25 each is a lot of pencils.

No parents shouldn’t plug the gap. But the massive underfunding of education has been going on since 2012. The looking down on teachers, criticising them, not respecting them, but expecting them to do stuff like potty train their child, moan at schools about screen time when actually as soon as the kid gets home they’re straight on the tablet so the parent doesn’t have to actually, you know, parent.

it’s a travesty. But maybe parents should be supporting the school rather than slagging them off on a mumsnet thread.

But not for glue sticks, paper, exercise books, card, scissors, pens, sellotape, art supplies, wall displayed etc.

Hahahahahahaha

I'm a teacher..I can see the funding issues first hand. This isn't the solution.

She is not slagging the school off on MN.

Based on my personal experience, sending my Jewish kids to a non-Jewish school would come with its own risks. Unless they hide their religion and ethnicity at all times, of course. But that's not really a viable option.

Plus, it's a really good school and walking distance from our house. The only local school that's possibly better is a Catholic one which is pretty much impossible to get in to unless you're an incredibly devout Catholic.

This means, sadly and annoyingly, that the ones that keep paying it will continually be asked for it, and the ones that don't just get left alone. It doesn't seem fair or right.

Then what - in the svencr of the government actually doing anything - is the solution?
I’m not saying it’s great. I don’t think it SHOULD be the solution. But what is the school meant to do? Lay off another TA? All the whole more students with severe SEN are put into mainstream education because specialised school places are rarer than hens teeth?
I can understand the OP’s irritation. However I also feel sorry for the school. I doubt nagging parents was what the head went into education for.

You can read the DfE guidance, Charging for School Activities which lays out expectations very clearly. Do you know about the context of the school, the percentage of FSM / PP pupils? Have you read the report on how the school spends the Pupil Premium funding. You can also find out more about its financial situation by looking at the Financial Benchmarking and Insight Tool.