Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To wonder if after-school clubs with a cost to attend are fair?

56 replies

FourArms · 03/12/2009 18:19

I'm genuinely not sure what to think about this. Probably should have posted in Primary Education, but knew I'd get more responses here!

I attended an advertising assembly today for an after-school club run by an organisation from outside of the school.

For a 6 week course, it would be £42, so £7 per session. This is for 1 hour per week, straight after school.

The school is in a more deprived area of the city. Not all of the children are going to be able to afford the club fees. Is it wrong for the school to send home newsletters advertising the club? Bearing in mind the kids have just seen an assembly to show how fantastic it will be, and will probably want to come along. A member of staff at the assembly commented that to allow the club to go ahead, with a cost to the parents, would make it elitist.

At my DS1's school they have free after school clubs (as this school does too), and paid for clubs (I think at present this school doesn't have any paid for clubs). However, the one my DS1 goes to is £12 for 6 weeks (I think!) and is a multiskills club run by GOALS. Not nearly as expensive, and within the reaches of most household budgets (of DS1's school). I have no idea if PTA or other funding is available for children who cannot access paid for after school clubs at DS1's school, perhaps it is?

Anyway - fair, or elitist.. what do you think? How does it work at your DC's school?

OP posts:
alwayslookingforanswers · 04/12/2009 11:05

agree with MillyR and Cat64 (although I couldn't afford £7 a week and am on benefits).

florenceuk · 04/12/2009 11:15

I pay £6 p/h for DS's art club.There is also a football training squad, Playball, and in the summer an athletics club - not sure what the prices are. I don't think this is out of line with an out of school activity - things lik drama, ballet, swimming, football are actually more expensive. for an afterschool club, someone will have to pay (either teachers giving up their time or bringing outsiders in). While some teachers may care, it's unreasonable to expect them to run a club for free, just because they happen to be working in a more deprived area. So I think, maybe the assembly was tactless, but as a parent I'd rather have the choice of having some paid activities rather than no activities.

florenceuk · 04/12/2009 11:18

Actually FourArms, I'd love it if our school ran a science based club! what company was it?

CristinaTheAstonishing · 04/12/2009 11:32

Agree with others on here, £7 an hour is a bit steep (although I appreciate there are additional material costs in a science club), but good it's on offer. Most people send their children to schools close to home, so not having to negotiate transport to and from elsewhere is a bonus. No need to change, have a quick sandwich etc etc. Very convenient. Because it's at the end of the day the children will probably not talk too much about it the next day, so no-one should feel too left out.

SnotBaby · 04/12/2009 11:41

we had a flyer about a space study club recently, same price as OP

All looked very professional and promised lots of old tut special materials.

I decided to stick with the PTA run after school club @ £2.50.

BoysAreLikeDogs · 04/12/2009 11:45

FourARms my children have just done Mad Science - they thoroughly enjoyed it

at £42 per child it was v expensive but we scraped up the moolah

Afterwards the company rang me for feedback and I raised the issue of inclusivity

Goblinchild · 04/12/2009 12:38

'In the private sector it is expected the staff will run after school clubs, and saturday sport clubs often with no charge.

How is it that they find the time, offer to do it and not all state school teachers do? Are the state school teachers paid significantly less?'

I'm a state school teacher with friends who teach in the Private sector.
So, plus side of private...
Much smaller classes, sometimes half the size of mine.
Fewer government hoops and paperwork to plough through.
Fewer SEN and unmotivated EAL issues.
Fewer behavioural and social need issues to deal with.
Pay seems to be around the same or less though.

Original poster
FourArms · 04/12/2009 14:07

Florenceuk - It is the same one BoysAreLikeDogs's children attended - Mad Science.

OP posts:
Original poster
FourArms · 04/12/2009 14:10

BoysAreLikeDogs - Did you feel it was good value for money overall? Did your children enjoy it?

I attended a club earlier this week. It was well thought out and well run. The kids had a great time, and did learn about the planets.

OP posts:
2babyblues · 04/12/2009 14:13

All the after school clubs at my son's school have a fee. I know that anyone who qualifies for free school dinners gets a certain amount of money to spend on out of school activities for their children. I'm not sure this is the case everywhere.

BoysAreLikeDogs · 04/12/2009 14:19

It was FAB

they came home buzzing with ideas

I cannot replicate that kind of learning experience at home, nor can school

well recommended even if mega £££

HTH

choccyp1g · 04/12/2009 14:41

Another issue that I feel strongly about is that many children with Special Needs are excluded from after-school clubs. One boy at our school has been kicked out asked not to continue with every club he has tried. Inevitable really, since he needs (and gets) one-to-one assistance in the classroom. But it still doesn't seem fair. I feel that the SLA's should get funded overtime to attend one or two clubs with "their" child.

2rebecca · 04/12/2009 15:44

If the parents don't pay then who does? Unless the service can be paid for it won't happen.
I agree that plugging it hard in assembly if it has to be paid for seems unreasonable, mentioning it in assembly so the kids are aware of it isn't though.

shopalot · 04/12/2009 15:51

Haven't read all the thread. I don't think charging for the club is unfair. It will be making the school a lot of money as the people who run the club will either give a percentage or a hire charge to the school. However I do think it is unfair to advertise in asembly. I teach ballet and so really wish I could advertise in assembly........but wouldn't obviously!!!!

OrmIrian · 04/12/2009 16:02

It's not unfair to charge but it does seem quite steep. What is it for?

Original poster
FourArms · 04/12/2009 21:09

It's a science club OrmIrian, I linked to their website above.

OP posts:
bruffin · 04/12/2009 21:30

We had MadScience in when DD was yr5 (now yr7) and it was only £30 for 8 weeks. It was going to be more but they had such a big interest, that it bought the price down.

Original poster
FourArms · 04/12/2009 22:38

I've heard of that happening on the website I think. They need 14 to make it viable, but can take up to 20, so I suppose they can offer a discount then.

OP posts:
MissAnneElk · 04/12/2009 22:59

Surely there will always be things offered by school which may be out of financial reach of some pupils and families. DD1s school offers a ski trip at a cost of £750. Although this might be impossible for some families the number of pupils who can attend is something like 35 out of 1600. Provided the school don't expect a majority attendance then I do think they should continue to offer these opportunities. The ski trip (and other trips) are talked about a lot at assemblies open days etc

violethill · 05/12/2009 11:15

Who do you think should pay the costs of running it then?

ABetaDad · 05/12/2009 12:00

I think £7/hour is very steep. Also why only 1 hour per week? Surely every night for 2 hours from which parents can pick and choose would be more useful?

We use school holiday clubs and they are not that expensive.

nannynick · 05/12/2009 12:39

I feel it is reasonable for an outside-school club to charge. The club is optional, children don't have to attend.
School's are used by various groups from time to time as a venue, the school will often make a charge for hire of facilities. So the club would be paying hire costs, staffing costs, materials costs etc.

What I feel is wrong though is the advertising at an assembly. I would take that up with the head teacher (if unreceptive then to the board of governors) - is assembly time a suitable time for promotions from outside companies? A leaflet in the school bag is one thing, promotion at an assembly is quite another. May have been better if there was say a leaflet in the bag, which said about the club and which offered a taster session say after-school one day so that those children (parents and carers) interested could CHOOSE to go along to the presentation to see what it's like. By having the presentation at Assembly time, the children had NO CHOICE in seeing the presentation, parents had NO CHOICE in letting their child see the presentation.

While there may not be a different outcome - children not attending the presentation/trial session may well still through peer pressure encourage other children to ask parents if they can go to the club - the difference I do see is that of Parental Choice. The school did not give parents the choice to opt-out of having their child be told (seen a science experiement, or whatever they did in Assembly) about the club in a way which went beyond a leaflet in the school bag.

ABetaDad · 05/12/2009 13:47

I agree about the peer pressure thing. I complained at our DSs previous school about big national charities coming in and doing a profesisonal pitch at assembley then handing out donation envelopes. The presenters get paid a commission and they only do them at private schools.

This presentation of an after school club looks a bit of a calculated commercial venture to me. Schools need to wise up to things like this.

Original poster
FourArms · 05/12/2009 18:59

There is no mention of this being a revenue stream for the school on the company's website. I haven't heard any mention of this.

The assembly was 30 minutes long, of which, literally two minutes was - if you want to do more of this then ask your parents to sign you up for our afterschool club - the leaflet will be in your school bag. Not massively hard sell to the kids. But.. I imagine it would create pester power as the assembly was so exciting.

Hmmm... it has really got me thinking. I do like the feedback from people whose kids have attended the clubs that they felt it was worthwhile.

Fingers crossed the company gets approved to access to funding to allow kids getting free school meals to attend for free/at a reduced price.

OP posts:
nannynick · 05/12/2009 19:11

So was the other 28 minutes of the assembly about other things... or was it showing the sort of thing done at the club?

Swipe left for the next trending thread