Do you participate in your childrens PTA and how do you find it?

[fufflebum]

As a newbie to PTAs I am wondering whether you participate in your schools PTA. I was amazed at how few people attend the meetings at our school. I went along to see what it was all about and have got involved in more things than I had anticipated because of lack of numbers.

It appears that some of the personalities on the committee are not very popular within the wider school but I am keen to not get involved in this political side of things and try and raise some funds for the school. Am I naive?

How have others found their schools PTAs?

I am the secretary of our PTA, and we have the same problem with attendance at meetings etc.

There does seem to be a perception that it is a certain clique who take part, and so people are put off joining. I know I felt like that when my eldest started school. But it isn't actually like that.

We are trying to encourage new members by producing a leaflet explaining what the PTA does for new parents, also we have changed the constitution so that every parent is a PTA member by default, rather than having to turn up to the AGM in order to become a member. We find that parents don't turn up to the AGM as they don't want to be roped into doing a "job", but this way they can turn up to any meeting during the course of the year and we sneakily get them involved that way

I don't get involved in the PTA as they are generally horrid and bitchy about the other parents and the more bitchy you get the less people want to help.

I give my financial support through them, in spite of their shit attitude rather than because of the effort they put in.

I'd happily go for a monthly Direct Debit if it wasn't for the pressure put on the kids to pull in funds.