Anyone else NOT TOLD about school photos?

[Reetpetite17]

DS came home from school with an order form and proof card sleeve in his bag. We weren't told that the kids would be having school photos taken, no letters were sent home. When he was at nursery they notified you. Parents permission was not sought, or even an opportunity to decline.

DP has now said they are holding the kids photos at ransom when you didn't even ask for it or know some stranger was getting paid by the school to take pictures of your kids without your knowledge. And you're then guilt tripped into buying it! They're not cheap either. I worked with a photography company so could have easily done it myself.

I don't know if I should buy it, so DS doesn't feel left out if the photos are handed out in class, or to just keep the proof photo and not buy any based on the fact we were not told about it? Surely I can't be the only one who thinks that's wrong. They have these kids pictures on their computers etc. with copyright, so they OWN it, and charging you to have a cute picture of your kid. I've not had any letters to sign about consent regarding hat is and isn't allowed to happen with DS when we got them all the time from his nursery. WWYD?

Re. the lack of newsletters - how does the school usually inform parents about stuff?

Nursery relied on paper letters in bags, plus reminders on the nursery FB page.

School do e-mail, plus they put stuff like school photo day on the calendar on school website and on easily missed noticeboards near the school doors.

Another local school does all parent communications via twitter.

Are you sure that you're not missing out on communications about photos etc because you're looking in bags for newsletters, but they're doing something online instead?

If he had been told, would he have been happy with your DS having his photo taken? There are probably many things that take time out of the classroom that you don't find out about tbh.

It has taken time out of his school day... . Did you imagine that if you'd opted out they would have drafted in another teacher just for him while the other kids were having their photos taken??
Just don't buy the bloody thing!!

Goodness grief he is 4, your dp does know that it's another 12 years before anything happens in school (GCSEs) that he could quite genuinely be upset about a photo disrupting doesn't he? Chances are your dc was charging around like a loon, digging in the sand pit or gluing pasta onto card prior to the photo hardly anything life changing or particularly damaging to interrupt.It's going to be a long fourteen years for you all and the poor teachers if he's going to get so worked up over something so unimportant tbh.

Also, the photo proof we got after DS1's school photo had an option to pay online and have the photos posted directly to our house.

I imagine a fair number of parents buying photos will take up that option, so if you decide not to buy the photo, I wouldn't worry too much about your DC feeling left out because they're the only child not handed a photo in class or suchlike.

You will have signed something about photos when you originally took up the school place, I'd be amazed if you hadn't.

Is there an email newsletter? Are you signed up to it? Or a diary on the school website?

Afraid your DH is going to find school pretty annoying. LOADS of time gets "taken out" for stuff that isn't learning.

There definitely will have been something when joining the school. This stuff can be really important. There are all manner of reasons that parents say no to photos (safeguarding) and schools need to know this info.

When they did your data collection at the very start you would have given permission- it may have been as far back as in the summer term before he started.

Queuing up for school photos is surely all part of the school experience? School isn't all for education- there should be fun stuff too. Having crappy photos taken is a good life lesson

Our primary school's photo consent form is on one of the pages of the enrollment/registration form that every parent fills in before their child starts at the school.

We always get a letter each year about the photographer coming in though. It's an opt-out event, where it's assumed that you agree to it unless you tell the school otherwise.

As has already been mentioned, it's worth asking the school how they usually give out their information. Some only send e-mails and texts, some only send paper letters, and others have a mixture of the two. If yours uses e-mails and texts, you may need to check that your details have been added to the system.

DP has now said they are holding the kids photos at ransom when you didn't even ask for it or know some stranger was getting paid by the school to take pictures of your kids without your knowledge.

What an extraordinary overreaction to something completely normal. What possible dubious motive could the photographer have?! They're not left alone with the children, and aren't told their names. It's a complete production line.

The school photos are added to sims (thank goodness-I teach every child in the whole school and it's a logistical nightmare!) the photos are not used for anything sinister and at our school a note is in the newsletter to let us know. No one cares who orders the photos or not and I can't imagine the kids pay any attention.

Our primary school tells you the date of the individual photos in a newsletter and asks you to opt out in writing by the day before if you don't want your child photographed. There is no obligation to buy the photos, and usually we don't. I'd be surprised if it hadn't been mentioned somewhere - have you asked any other parents?

"I think it's something to do with time being taken out of the kids education to take pictures without the parents knowing. He doesn't like interruptions to important things for something pointless."

Oh dear. He's going to really struggle with primary school! It's an ongoing round of bake sales/mufti days/school plays/assemblies/trips etc. In reception, it's learning through play anyway.

Hah he isn't completely alien to school. He did attend when he was the same age. It's just a bit odd to not tell parents, never in my years at school has my mum not known about school picture day, and NO I haven't missed any newsletters (how many times do I have to say it?) and they don't have my email. The school website has a calendar but it has nothing on it, not even when they break up. It has the older kids trip dates. There is a notice board but it has the one and only message on it still from over a month ago.

And he means that ALL the kids had time taken out of their day to stand around waiting for the whole class to have a picture taken. Not just my DS. I know it's hardly making a dent in their education but it's pointless. I know teachers and they share the same opinion as it was discussed yesterday. They did say that the school photos are used for the school system to recognise the kids by name. But it would have just been nice to know they were doing it as I had a form about if my DS could taste ingredients when they cook but not about photos! DS was late registering at the school as we had accepted a place from a different school before everything cleared before we moved. It would have been nice to know, that's all.

Ours is in a letter with the term dates. I sometimes buy and sometimes not. They take pictures for school records too.

Not something I'd get worked up about tbh

I would check with the school office (calmly and not your dh!) that you haven't been missed off an email circular of a newsletter or haven't signed a consent form. There is normally a blanket consent for photos to be used on websites/ in the paper etc but if you registered late maybe have missed it
Your DH will have a shock after half term there will be no end of random christmas stuff happening that takes away from 'learning'
And just don't buy the photo - i only have ds reception one - he looked terrible in the others!! He wasn't upset in the slightest by who did and didn't have photos to take home!

Don't know. Maybe I've had consent issues all my life. Just a bit weird to send them to school one day and they come back with a photo thrown in parents faces. Thought it was the sort of thing they'd tell you about. No? Okay then.

I think your DH is making a big issue out of nothing! I can't see the problem even if they didn't tell you. School have told us they're the first day back after half term, nursery never told us.

Sounds like your school is particularly shit at communication though.

There is no obligation to buy the photo and I'd check with the office whether there are newsletters and forms that you haven't been given.

Your dh must have had photos done when he was at school. Im old ,was at primary school in the 60s and we had our photos done even then. Remember one of our secondary teachers going through a very long roll of photographs in one of our lessons once.

Might be worth checking with the school office whether they send out notices etc via e-mail, just in case that's why you missed being told.

If the calendar on the school website has nothing on it, which I have to say is very unusual unless the website is being revamped, just pop into the school office and tell them. We like positive feedback from parents when it's done in a constructive and friendly way.

And just remember this is going to happen every year generally around the same time

The office staff are unlikely to know whether you personally have been given a letter or a form. In our school they just send a pile of letters to the class depending on how many are in the class and they're given out to each child. You also might want to go in to his class and check his tray to see if he's left the letter in there.