Teachers' gifts.. yawn… our class reps have just asked for £14 each. It is for T and three TAs but still

[mrsjavierbardem]

Anyway it is hard to say no without standing out and I do think the staff are wonderful and deserving too.

Just say 'No thanks, we've arranged something already' then

I agree, say you've already organised something wine.

It sounds like they've already thought of particular gifts.

That is quite a lot. The standard at our school is £5, split pro-rata across the job share. And we are quite an affluent area.

£3.50 per teacher from 30 kids. That's a big present.

Teachers do get paid.

I'm a teacher and think that is ridiculous! Surely a group present should bring the cost down!?

THREE TAs???!!!!

Where IS this school?

What are these reps like? Can't everyone just donate what they think is an appropriate amount and presents can be organised when they know how much is in the kitty?

We used to do individual gifts. Mine varied enormously from teacher to teacher.

That's too much. We budget for around £5

When my son was in reception we had a mum who took it upon herself to organise all the collections for teachers, including 'unofficial' ones for flowers if a TA was ill etc. The amounts kept going up and in the end I had to say, politely but firmly 'Sorry, I can't possibly afford that.' Then a whole lot of other parents started saying 'Yes, actually that is a bit much, I can't really afford it either' and the madness ended! So (wo)man up and start the revolution!

The 'request' that finished me off was for £15 per child for end of term gifts... and this was 14 years ago, half my food budget back then!

Ours was £20 per child, so I gave £40. No one minded if you said you were doing your own thing though.

For one child it was £10 for the teacher and £5 for each assistant. I think the othe class has worked out £8 for the teacher and £4 for each assistant.

Both classes of 30.

Speaking as a teacher that is insane I would be very embarrassed

I have no doubt that my children's teachers do a fantastic job. I was happy to contribute when it was £5 per child which was then split between the teacher and the TA. Personally I think that £100 to spend (realistically about 20 normally contribute) is enough. The class reps now want £10 per child which I think is too much so I will do my own thing - home made cards (do these anyway) and some home made chocs or similar put in cellophane bags and tied with a ribbon. I do think that many parents feel pressurized into giving and to be fair to the class reps (who also do a fantastic job) unless people are prepared to say its too much they will not know how people feel.

just been asked for £3 here but I have already sorted something out from us which is small but meaningful and I am aware that the staff are supposed to declare any single gifts over a certain value so I will probably just say we have it in hand thank you.

I'm amazed. Is this a new thing? When I taught the children used to give individual gifts, many of which I still treasure. Is this an affluent area phenomenon?

I'm a teacher and think this is far too much. It's our job to teach your children. We get paid! A thank you card and small gift is much appreciated but certainly not expected and I would hate to think that any family felt under pressure to buy anything, much less contribute this much! I do buy my DC's staff a token gift, this year some fancy biscuits because I want to show appreciation, but I also declined the invitation to contribute to a class present (£15 at our school, teacher and 4 TA's

We seem to get asked for "a couple of quid" or £5 each to buy for one teacher and one or two TAs, all of it out of that, 30 children in the class.

Some give more, most give £5. £14 is bloody cheeky!

I've been doing the collection for one class this year. I just emailed out I was doing it and left it up to parents if they wanted to contribute and how much. I wouldn't dream of approaching people. One mum gave me £20 and my response was to ask how much change she wanted (she wanted to give the whole amount).

Another teacher here who is horrified - as I think all my colleagues over a very long time of teaching would be.
I used to like getting cards or letters - yes, OK, the odd (small) gift was nice, but that would just be embarrassing.

Thanks for feedback, I think everyone feels a desire to thank this very special team ( 3 TAs overlap/share, only one there at a time) but I feel around £5 is an egalitarian figure and adds up to a perfectly respectable £150.
I think the ideal way is to suggest that families might make a contribution & then take it from there.

We did a class collection one year as had an outstanding teacher and TA and wanted to do something nice. Many of our parents are on low incomes so could only spare maybe a couple of pounds. This way by putting it in one pot it meant we could get something really nice. Some parents gave more, some nothing at all. The presents were presented as from the whole class regardless.

Another teacher here- this would actually make me feel very uncomfortable and embarrassed. I'm so glad it doesn't happen at my school.

If a teacher has been really good, a card with a personal note is the best gift. If your DC loves being in their class, or has made huge steps in maths or has started reading more widely due to their influence- tell them that and it will be appreciated much more than gifts or vouchers.

Are teachers even allowed to accept such large gifts?

Where I work we can take edible/drinkable gifts up to £20 but everything else has to be declared and a decision obtained from above as to whether we can accept.

last year I was persuaded to organise a collection and having had a teacher for a mother I had better ideas about what sort of gifts to buy plus it meant they didn't end up with 30 of the same thing. SO I did a collection, no minimum, some parents gave 50p between the 3 staff, some parents gave £5 for each member of the teaching team. I then bought a mix of things depending on the teacher's interests/likes and so on. All were small gifts and each child was given a small gift to give to a member of staff. no declarations needed because each gift was only a small monetary value, all children got to hand something over, staff seemed very very happy with what they got.

however I found it all very stressful and I won't be doing it again. from now on gifts from us will be personal ones from my children.

This is standard at our school. This year it is £10 for teacher and TA. I always pay up. In the end, I wouldn't spend less myself on the two them combined and this way they get some High Street vouchers in a big enough chunk to be useful.

All that said, when I was growing up this would have been considered bribery and very embarrassing for all concerned. The world has changed. I worry that it is almost like "tipping" the teacher and therefore de-professionalising.

We bought gifts for the teachers in primary school.

I'm happy doing the collection. The teachers are going to get something decent instead of lots of crappy wee presents, wine, chocs etc. Parents happy / teachers happy - what's not to like!