to detest my kids' primary school's latest money making venture - selling us christmas cards made by our kids?

[jasper]

Fundraising ( for school funds - don't start me on that one) thing going on at our school just now.

Each child draws a Christmas card design.
School gets them printed up professionally , in packs of 8 cards with envelope.

Your child brings two of these packs home (with their own design) to sell at £5.50 per pack.

AIBU to think this scheme stinks?

Tell him that he can help you on the PC, and that if he gets the cards from school another rainforest tree will be cut down and a baby squirrel will lose its home. Or something like that.

Seriously though, the school have put parents in a bit of a difficult position.

Well done Teeny, brilliant idea, he fell for the "Polar bears die every time you leave a light switch on" thing.

We are doing this this year. The company sends a proof of each card so everyone gets one of the card their child makes. Then if people want to order more they can. And if they don't want to, they don't have to. Why on earth would anybody object to that?

As I find myself saying on threads like this, do the people who object to fundraising make sure their children don't go on the trips, read the books, use the play equipment, eat the picnics, watch the films, sit on the rugs, swing on the swings, swim in the pool or accept the prizes that the funds raised pay for?

Lol, your house will be dark for a few days then with over zealous environmental ds in action then!

Teeny, you are more right than you know. It is bloody dark half the time around here, as dh has put awful low energy bulbs everywhere that take ages to light up properly.

Seeker, interestingly at our school there is a little clique of people raising funds for things that appear to improve the educational and social experiences of their types of children, yet the money doesn't really seem to spread very far across to the rest of the school, and the rest of us all seem to have our hands in our pockets permanently as a consequence.

When some of us cottoned onto this recently and tried to muscle in on the various committees and the governing body to make it fairer, we were effectively excluded by cunning cliquey practices and not allowed on.

I nearly made a fuss big time, but then just decided to stop donating so much and baking so much and start being a bit more selfish instead.

Blimey, carp, carp, carp! Don't like it, don't buy it. MY poor ds is totally dyspraxic so I didn't buy his 'cards' (paper with scribble on) and he didn't care.

looked into card thing for school PTA - 12 cards for £6.00 is a bit steep but well it's funds for school books etc. But... turns out the school only gets about 6-10% (ie 60p or less) of that profit - most goes to the glossy card making company. Looked into doing it ourselves, but it would have been a lot of effort. PTA decided against them, so we're going to be doing the potato print cards again!

I think that as money-making schemes go that is quite good. But they are quite pricey. Presumably you'll be buying cards anyway?

what sort of children do "they" have, Boffinmum?!

The dc's school does this. Last year I didn;t buy them as they were too expensive and the cards themselves are very small. Dd has never forgiven me especially as her classmate bought packs and packs of them and sent one to everyone in her class.

At dd's school one design is chosen and used as the "school Christmas card" for the school to send.

Users of the (rationed) part time on site playgroup, users of the (rationed) after school club, church-related activities for the more religious parents.

'Seeker, interestingly at our school there is a little clique of people raising funds for things that appear to improve the educational and social experiences of their types of children, yet '

A few thoughts

A. what is my type of child (am PA sec). FWIW I am the only one on the PA with a quite definitely disabled child, lastbyear had one SN and one NT in this school. there is another parent with a child with mild SN and several thriving kids as well.

B. The school bought th item they wanted (Staging) then asked us to cover it, last year a broken piano and safety matting.

Pray, why would only certain children benefit?

DS3 isnt even able to do the cards but I enjoyd buying them from the other 2 when in Infants (they do them in Juniors also) and will no doubt with ds4. I hope so anyway.

Hmmm - I wouldn't go for that - is there anything you can do to stop them? We tend to focus fundraising on things which are a benefit either to everyone, or to "challenging" groups. We provided equipment for the "chill out zone" for example - a place where children who find the playground too difficult or stressful can spend playtimes.

the first year our school did these I didn't buy a pack (money was tight and his picture was a scribbled reindeer), DC got to keep his sample card so he was happy. 2nd year his drawing was fantastic (a never ending xmas tree becuase he couldn't make the top bit join! LOL) I bought a pack that year as it made me laugh so much and money wasnt so tight.

I'd just like it to be a little more democratic, that's all. I'm not sure it's healthy, some of what's going on.

join the pa then?

i have a tea towel from when dd-11 was in first school. they all drew themselves and had it made into a tea towel... i really didnt want to buy it at the time as i was so poor, but i am so glad i did,, as we love to look at it, --- never used it for its purpose though

That's the point, Peachy, we can't penetrate the higher echelons! But anyway they are annoying me a lot at the moment and I don't want to talk about them here any more, if that's OK.

Each year we send out the bulk buy cards to friends and buy individual cards for our parents, siblings, nieces/nephews, grandparents, godparents, close friends...

We spend a couple of quid on each of those cards (compared to £1 for 50 to everyone else) so if this comes up when my children are at school we will be sending the school cards to people we normally buy cards for and bulk cards to people we normally give bulk cards to. It's easy and actually a lot cheaper!

why are you on a fundraising thread then?

seriously, go to the head if its that bad, kick off a bit.

Head's a bit dodgy - other shit going down at school as well, which I won't go in to.

However, moving on, I was a bit fed up of marketing materials and demands for cash in the book bag on a daily basis, and the associated pressure that was upsetting my ds when I didn't give in. I wanted to know what other people's experiences were, and whether they minded of whether it was just me being over sensitive.

I'm co-chair of our PTA and we're about to do this. It goes against my instincts tbh - like you I think that we're putting a bit too much pressure on parents, esp. those with limited disposable cash - but I was roundly overruled.

I think i'd far rather have this than much of the others. I skip raffles etc (i am on carers allowance so mone is tght, dh works but it never stretches) but save u for the cards, I do love them

at your ex-Chair being threatened in the playground, Peachy!

policywonk, come to our school, you sound so sensible.