Is it legal?

[swedishmum]

Ds starts swimming on Friday - apparently a statutory part of NC. If that's so, surely school should not be charging £2.50 per week for the travel to the pool?

I resent him going anyway - needs lessons not swimming - could happily go on adult snorkel trips a mile off shore at 7. Because of distance to pool from here it takes up 1/10 or the weekly curriculum time.

Seriously, anyone know about the legal part of charging?

I agree with S'mum's point of principle that if it is a required part of the curriculum, then provision withing the school's central budget should be made - and contributions levied for things that are optional.

but the school's budget is finite. if the school pays for the swimming bus, then there will be fewer books. I really don't see the problem.

also it's not entirely about learning to swim, but about fitness and stuff. swimming was the only part of pe I liked at school. think it's really important.

I'm in Kent and I've just had to pay £35 for 10 lessons. Where do you live? Our school has to travel about 4 miles to the swimming pool in Maidstone.

Rickman, we're between Ashford and Folkestone. Ds did go swimming and said it was "OK" - never my real gripe, but spent 25 mins only in the pool. The boys also have to change by the side of the pool by the window. This 25 mins needed a 40 min journey each way.

swimming is a statutory requirement of the national curriculum. Our school does not charge but it does take up all of Thursdya afternoon.

You need to see a copy of the schools charging policy as regards the charges.

As for other trips, schools are not allowed to demand payment but understanable if not enough parents make a voluntary contribution then the trip will have to be cancelled. Coaches are extremely expensive to hire and if there are two classes they will need 2 coaches. Most of the payment goes for the cost of the coaches, usually the entrance fee is quite a small part of the overall costs. By the way scholasr also not allowed to make a profit so there would be no overcharing. In my experience most school subsidise the cost of trips.

Rickamn, as you know im in kent and it was 17.50 a terms worth and they are walking to the pool.
Have letters sittng here for your kids and have had done for months

Hmm yes CC, dd keeps saying it is your turn to write. :o

I think the kids did them...oh...it was months ago...sorry...will make huge effort to get them together...sigh ..lol

swedishmum, if you think the charging is only levied on rural communities because of the need for a coach, then from what I can see, there are only one or two schools in my area for which walking to the pool is a realistic possibility - and I live fairly centrally in London.

If you feel strongly that coaching should be free since swimming is compulsory curriculum, you could boycott and hope that enough number of parents decline resulting in the swimming trips being cancelled. But to me, that would spoil it for the other students who aren't as fortunate as your ds to be able to learn swimming elsewhere.

It is your prerogative to challenge the charges on principle, you do have a point. But unless you or other parents are genuinely in a hardship situation, £2.50 is small beer in the bigger scheme of things. I am so grateful for free schooling, NHS etc where the service the satisfactory (even though dh and I are already great big taxpayers), I am happy to help out financially anyway I can, esp if the amount called upon is so little.