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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Do ALL primary schools have a Governors' Fund?

26 replies

answermethis · 08/05/2010 23:17

Or is it just VA primary schools?

Quite cross about this. Our school has just sent out a letter asking for contributions (a suggestion of £25 a month no less) to the governors' fund needed to meet 10% of capital projects undertaken by the school.
The explanatory note that accompanies the request states that ALL primary schools have such a fund but it was my understanding that it was only VA primary schools that had such a fund, which supposedly came from church coffers to meet the 10% shortfall in funding from the LA in return for which the school gets to set its own admissions etc.

I have a good mind to make the school clarify the advice it has sent out to make it clear that this 10% funding is only required because it is a VA school (but I need to check I am right first ), the implication in their current letter being that it would be unreasonable for any parent not to pay because the situation is the same in all local schools.

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scurryfunge · 08/05/2010 23:20

State schools cannot demand this and I would be surprised if a VA school can get away with it either.....the church provides some funding surely

Feenie · 08/05/2010 23:21

I am a teacher governor on the Resources (Finance) Committee - it definitely doesn't happen in our school, if that helps. We are not a VA school.

NoahAndTheWhale · 08/05/2010 23:21

I've never heard of a Governors' fund for DS and DD's school (a VC one). Do remember School Fund when I was at school - was about £10 a year I think.

belledechocolatefluffybunny · 08/05/2010 23:23

I used to be a school governor in a normal state school, I've never heard of this to be honest. Any projects (such as building/refitting) go through the LEA. They can ask for contributions if the monies allocated don't match what they need. You may need to look into this some more.

Original poster

answermethis · 08/05/2010 23:28

It is a state VA CofE primary - they have not "demanded" in that there is no sanction for those that do not sign a dd mandate however the letter is very strongly worded in a way that suggests it is entirely usual practice that goes on at all schools.

I just find it extremely irritating and patronising to be fed what I think is an purposefully inaccurate summary of the position in order to be emotionally blackmailed into paying.

Most parents at our school already pay a direct debit to the church anyway because it's all seen as good evidence of the "faith" requirement at admissions so in effect they are paying twice.
I think most people would be less inclined to pay up if they knew that this was the portion of funding VOLUNTARILY ASSUMED by the church in return for, in effect, being able to turn away local children.

OP posts:

Madsometimes · 09/05/2010 12:29

No, our children go to a catholic school, and we have never been asked for school fund money.

At our school, our only source of fund raising is through school fetes and book fairs.

TheFirstLady · 09/05/2010 12:32

No such fund at our (non-VA) state school. I don't know much about VA schools but it is NOT the norm at ordinary maintained schools.

coppertop · 09/05/2010 12:34

Nothing like this at our state primary (not VA).

BigTillyMint · 09/05/2010 12:38

We are asked to pay a sum every year to DC's VA CofE school. I'm not sure what the terminology of what fund it is for is, but it is for capital projects-type things, I think.

I'm pretty sure it is a voluntary contribution.

SpottySlippers · 09/05/2010 12:42

I am a Clerk to Governors and work with two VA primary schools and one VA secondary school (plus two VC and two community schools) - this is NOT common practice for a VA school. I would suggest this is a choice the Governors/Head have made. Of course it has to be voluntary otherwise it would be illegal.

mrz · 09/05/2010 13:10

I've never heard of it in any VA school in my area. Occasional request for a one off contribution but that's it.

admission · 09/05/2010 17:15

The funding that all schools receive in a Local Authority for the running of a school is based on the same funding criteria. What is different for VA schools and Catholic schools is that they have to pay 10% of any major capital funding costs rather than the LA paying for it in all in community schools. So you are correct it is only relevant to VA and catholic schools.

Many diocese work a system such that every VA school in the diocese contributes a sum per pupil per year to a central pot. That Central pot is then used to fund the 10% of capital funds necessary for a specific project.

I would ask firstly whether this is for a diocese scheme and more importantly how much per year per pupil this is. I have seen a couple of examples where the actual figure required per pupil is X and the amount requested by the school is 5X!

It is a voluntary contribution but when it is on a Direct debit mandate, I do question how voluntary it really is. The true test is whether they start chasing up parents who do not contribute, now that is not voluntary then

saggarmakersbottomknocker · 09/05/2010 17:21

We don't have such a fund. (Not VA)

DecorHate · 09/05/2010 17:26

All the faith schools around here do have a Governors Fund but they ask for around £5 per child per month.

I know a very well-considered selective Grammar school in London asked the parents for several hundred pounds each a while back for some project - don't know if they are VA too...

1Littleboy1Bigboy · 09/05/2010 18:40

my son goes to a CoE VA and we have never been asked for money for such a fund - and my hubby is a governor there

Original poster

answermethis · 09/05/2010 20:39

Thanks for all your responses, as I suspected this is only relevant because it is a VA school (although I see from the responses that not all VA schools ask for it).

There is absolutely no way that I am paying as I actually disagree with the faith school funding model.

It just sticks in my craw that they have the cheek to send out literature containing inaccurate and dishonest statements as a means of extracting money.

Admissions - that is interesting about the diocesan pot, the school has not mentioned that this is the case here but given the level of obfuscation already evidenced who knows? I may ask the school to clarify further.

I agree, if they actually start chasing parents for the money then it's not really voluntary at all but I would surprised if they did that. IME these schools are very good at sailing very close to the wind but stop just short of acting illegally.
If they do chase me then they are really going to wish they hadn't .

OP posts:

annh · 09/05/2010 21:34

My dc go to a VA school and I am a Governor there. We do have a Governors' Fund (suggested contribution is £80 per family per year) but some families don't contribute at all, doesn't make any difference to their children's education. The fund is not used to pay the 10% which the church needs to contribute to school funding, that comes from the parish/diocese but it is used to pay for the million and one things needed to keep the school running and up-to-date which there is no money for otherwise.

admission · 09/05/2010 22:26

annh,
there is no problem with there being a governor's fund that is solely there to pay for "extras" for the education of the pupils, provding that it is voluntary and providing that parents are told exactly what it is to be used for. It just needs to be properly documented in your charging policy of the school.

strawberrycake · 10/05/2010 11:17

Our Gov fund is £20 a year, from experience around that amount is normal.

throckenholt · 10/05/2010 11:39

ours is a VA school, and I am a governor, and I have never heard of a governors fund !

We do get capital money from the diocese, which comes from government and is distributed via the diocese to church schools.

We have a school fund into which fund raising money goes - but we have no formal regular parental contributions as suggested in your letter.

JoeJoe1977 · 10/05/2010 11:50

We are asked to make a 20p per week voluntary contribution to a fund to pay for consumable items within the school e.g. seeds for school garden, ingredients for cookery class. No reminders if you decide not to contribute. I send in £5 per term to cover this.

nickschick · 10/05/2010 11:56

When my dc were at primary we were asked to pay voluntarily £15 a term - I refused to pay on the ground that I attended church each week sometimes 3-4 masses and my contributions went in the church collections.

puch · 10/05/2010 17:52

we are a catholic school and we get asked for a voluntary donation of about 65.0O per year. We are a catholic school as well. Some parents give more some give less. I suppose every school is different - a local one pays similar to us but it is used for school trips. Our money is used for different things - in the past it helped built a new building for extra classroom etc.

hackneyLass · 11/05/2010 10:30

gosh I have no experience of religious schools but they do seem to be on the take all the time! I guess that's part of the deal is it?

RiverOfSleep · 11/05/2010 13:30

I'm a parent governor and there is no governor's fund at our state school.

There are numerous PTA things though and you do seem to be excommunicated from the clique if you don't join in. (Or could it be that I never joined the clique....)

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