what has your PTA wasted lots of money on?

[zanzibarmum]

PTAs do a great job raising money but IME they can also waste a lot of money on ill-conceived, poorly executed and under used projects.Who's got the most outrageous story of waste?

[ChunkyKitKat]

I've come to this post a little late!

Is there any way zanzibarmum that you could go along to a PTA meeting? They would probably welcome suggestions of what's needed.

Those of us who get involved in committees do so because nobody else wants to do it and with no experience or training do the best job we can. I am still trying to leave my dd's pre-school committee because very few parents will get involved. Yes, I am a softie

[LadyGlencoraPalliser]

DMNC a most noble post - I salute you!

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Dismounting from my high horse I can just about manage, turning back the tide may be a bit beyond me though!

[seeker]

Glad that it's sorted - what a brave and gracious post!

Now let's get on with our campaign to rehabilitate PTAs on mumsnet!

[MillyMollyMoo]

The best one was at a school we attended who paid £6,000 for a slide and a hopstotch thing to be painted in the playground.
Had it been a decent play structure I was happy to donate a £1,000 to it when when I saw what they'd ordered I'm afraid I refused.

[piscesmoon]

It is very easily done on the internet-I get into all sorts of arguments that I never get into in RL!

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Funny how a person can get so wrapped up in themselves and their own sense of self importance that normal rules of decency go out of the window. This is not something I would normally have expected to find myself doing. I cannot re-iterate enough, I am sorry seeker.

[piscesmoon]

Nice to have a pleasant ending.

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Please see my last post Seeker, you are right, I have been crap, I am sorry. Very.

[seeker]

Last try. I misquoted you - I said "all" when you said "most". I didn't check back until I was writing my post of 20.55, which is when I realized I had misquoted you and apologized immediately.

[piscesmoon]

If I was on the PTA I think that I would be a bit upset to be told that although I gave up my spare time to for the benefit of all, I was actually an obnoxious busybody!
It is hardly a compliment if you give with one hand and take away with the other!
I never know why PTAs get such a bashing -whoever they are, it must be better than apathy.

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Lol, no, fair enough perhaps you are right. You certainly seem to think so as does seeker. I am quite sure that personal attacks are not right - and will be the first to tell people that usually so I do repeat my earlier appology, that was incorrect and unfair and I am sorry for it.

Right, what I wanted from you seeker was this, "Sorry I did take those words because they are words I have heard about PTA before but I realise you were actually trying to be supportive of your PTA" That was it, just a small acknowledgement that I was actually trying to say something good.

However I am not at all sure what made me think that I had a right to that - or why I did not just ask for it if it was that important to me.

I agree that was very odd behaviour for me and, I hope, not usual. Seeker, I was/am cross that you cherry picked the only tiny negative, I do think it was unfair but I also acknolwedge that, pretty much, everything I have posted since then was shitty at best. Sorry.

[LadyGlencoraPalliser]

There are none so blind as those that will not see. Seeker apologised graciously and you just won't have it, will you?

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Actually mable I have apolgised for personal attacks already. I cannot see any in my last post though.

[mablemurple]

Bloody hell DMNC, you need to go back and re-read your posts, a lot of the content of which is needlessly aggressive, patronising and very personal. Many people would not have apologised at all faced with such an unpleasant attack, which you continue in your latest post .

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Seeker, you did not appologise for ALL until you had said it again in another post after this one and I had got very cross about it. Your explanation is not really an explanation of why you decided to paint my positive post in a negative light - which is what I would have liked to have known about.

Anyway, I am bored now tbh, you clearly have no idea how to garner or keep support for your particular hobby horse. You had support in me but clearly that is worth little or nothing to you. Shame really as it is something I feel quite strongly about too which is the reason why I got so cross to be made out as being against not for the PTA work done.

[seeker]

" Sorry, DailyMail - I did 'cherry pick" your comment. But only because it's one I've heard so often used about the people who do the work in the PTA - not because I didn't take on boeard the rest of your message. I just think it's extraordinary that ALL the active PTA people at your school are obnoxious busybodies - you must be very unlucky. I am feathering nothing!"

Here is the post where I apologized and explained. In a subsequent post I apologized again for saying 'all' instead of "most".

[DailyMailNameChanger]

But you didn't explain Seeker, you continued to misquote and abuse my post without acknowledging that it was in any way positive, like I said an apology like that is not actually an apology at all. Why should I take that lying down?

As for making an issue, why on earth couldn't you pick words from some of the negative posts here? There are plenty of them to choose from. Your comments so close to mine leave it perfectly clear who you were quoting.

I am sorry for the personal comments, they were not required at all.

[seeker]

No, you were lest to look mean thanks to you. I extracted two words from your post - without mentioning your name. I chose them because they are words very often applied by others to active PTA members, and put them in a post about a particular hobby horse of mine - that people are disparaging of the PTA, but still allow their children to have the benefit of their work.

You decided to make an issue out of it, and make personal attacks on me, even after I explained and apologized. I see no reason why I should take that lying down!

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Seeker, I did not until this actually, not at all.

Twisting somones positive post to make them out to be being horrid to a much maligned group is a pretty awful thing to do. I posted something very positive despite my personal feelings towards certain individuals and yet was left looking like I had been quite mean thanks to you.

You may not think it is disgusting behaviour but I do - being on the receiving end of it is a very different viewpoint I can assure you.

You can agree to whatever you like I am sure, I will certainly agree to avoid this thread from now on.

[seeker]

Apologies - you said "most are obnoxious busybodies" not "all are obnoxious busybodies". A misquotation - I'm sorry. However, I wouldn't personally consider it "disgusting behaviour"!

DailyMailNameChange - you seem to have a problem with me personally. I can't for the life imagine why. Shall we agree to not waste any more time on this?

[Chandon]

Bit put out out by this OP.

I am on the PTA for our small village primary. I am on it as no-one else would (as are the other mums, no egos at all, we were all begged or asked and too soft to say "NO"), we put a lot into it. We get a couple of thousand a year, which we would like to spend on improving education (not allowed though, there are strict rules on how it can be spent)or the school building by hiring a caretaker (also not allowed) or even to fix the heating (school often closes for a day in winter as heating breaks down)...again, not allowed.

So we spend on:
1.)funding school trips, so everyone can afford them (ie next trip only asks for contribution of 2 pounds per family, rest is funded by PTA).
2.) School grounds: we have given each class a raised bed for growing fruit and veg as well as plants and seeds. Kids love it and learn from it too.
3.)benches for children and parents to sit on

It makes me sad to think someone would assume we are a bunch of egos or spending it stupidly...

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Hah - guess we are similar in that then seeker!

Seeker, I did not sour the praise, I gave my personal view of some of the members - as people not as PTA helpers. If you had read it properly or tried to understand then you could quite easily have used my point to fully support your argument but, instead, you used it to turn my support into something very negative. As I said I will think twice before posting in support of you again. It was totally uncalled for and has left me pretty stunned to be honest. Yes, I am angry at being used in the way you have. You did not explain that it was not aimed at me at all and actually used your explanation to further misquote me - pretty disgusting behaviour really, especially as you CONTINUE to do it in your last post too. Please show me where I ever said that ALL involved were anything?

[seeker]

I am a bit surprised by all this! I did notice your support for your PTA, dmnc- but why did you have sour the praise by saying that all the people involved were obnoxious busybodies? My post wasn't, as I explained, aimed at you. I just used your phrase as an example of the sort of criticism that's often thrown at active PTA people. I was certainly not being passive aggressive or any of the other things you said I was. I feel very strongly about this subject- if I was going to be aggressive it wouldn't be passively!

[DailyMailNameChanger]

Ladyglenora, obviously I was talking about the first one but you seem determined to be taken in by people who are good at subtle undermining. Have fun with that, I am sure it will get you a long way. You may have noticed that I have no intention of appologising for getting cross about something as rude and ridiculous as Seekers using my support as a stick to beat me with. Trust me I will think twice before supporting someone like seeker again.