Contribution to the school fund

[lalalonglegs]

My elder daughter will start at secondary school (state) in September and the school has written to us to ask her to come in next month for an "interview". They've sent a lot of forms that we have to fill in and a checklist of the things that we must bring in on that day which also includes a £50 contribution to the school fund. There is no mention that this is a voluntary donation and I'm a bit shocked - we can afford to pay it but I think it is bloody cheeky to demand it. Am I being unreasonable?

When DD1 joined her secondary at some point we were asked for a voluntary contribution to the school fund - but a little less than £50.

My view was that over a year I probably did spend it on various dress-up days, discos, school fairs/ fetes, etc... and personally one of the joys of secondary is you can just send the money at the start of the year and you really don't have to get involved in all of that.

Our school does explain what they spend the school fund on and do try hard to demonstrate that it isn't 'core things' like books, but is things to improve school life - so equipment for a new club, repairs to things like gym/ dance floor/ tennis courts - yes improves things for school but also for kids in those activities as clubs/ teams.

My view is that the more funds a school can raise the more likely DD1 (well really all the kids) will see a benefit.

The boys grammar school near me was boasting, about 15 years ago, that parental contributions were in excess of £100,000 a year! I have heard that it is now well above that! Unbelievable. The local secondary modern probably could not raise above £5,000. I was the governor of a large primary school and we rarely raised above £2,000 pa. People just did not have the money. The children in the poorer schools had an inferior education, in terms of school trips and all the nice extras. However, Pupil Premium funding has addressed the funding anomalies to some extent. Parents should not be expected to contribute. It is voluntary and the word "interview" is wrong too in this context. It is perfectly acceptable to say there is a meeting for new parents and for pupils. Interview sounds lie a selection process!

Where I live, the grammar schools are now moaning that they are some of the worst funded schools in the country. They get some of the best results though. The funding has shifted to "narrowing the gap" and most, if not all, of the targeted children are in the secondary moderns. Previously the schools were not funded on pupil need. The funding was based on numbers in the school so the grammar schools doubled in size by taking in out of catchment children. Out of catchment children were not coming in droves to our secondary moderns! They squealing from the grammar schools now is audible on the moon.

Just done a quick ask around and lots of us don't do the voluntary payments. One school asked about £30pcm by direct debit when we first started. As I was largely a SAHM we declined. Other school asks £60 a term via ParentPay. Both schools suggested money was for school trips etc but we still get asked to pay for them!

I am afraid that the grammar schools crying about funding is not based on facts. Pupil premium funding, which is supposed to narrow the gap is over and above the standard funding there has been in place for a number of years. The funding formula is now based nationally on a small number of criteria of which by far the biggest is the funding for each individual pupil. It is not correct that somehow the grammar schools get less funding, they get funding based on exactly the same rules as every other secondary school in the same LA. Where they may get less funding is in terms of SEN pupils but by the same token within the general funding is an assumption that schools will fund the first £6000 of every pupil with special needs. If the grammar schools do not have very many special needs pupils they have to fund less £6000s than most other secondary schools.
The bottom line is that practically every school in the country has a reason why they do not have enough funding.

If I were you,when you you go to the 'interview' I would raise the request for £50 and ask what it is for and if it is voluntary. I would also point out that you would have found it useful if that information was included in the letter and that other parents like yourself mig be more willing to contribute if the purpose is fully explained.
If you prefer not to raise it in the chat, you could email a query about it,stating you understood such donations had to be voluntary but there was no mention of that. Again, say that you think new parents would find it useful to know what it is for.

Are you sure that nowhere in the letter does it mention the contribution is voluntary?

It may be that in some other documentation or an obscure corner of their website this is mentioned and it is explained what it is for, but I think schools sometimes need to be told explicitly what new parents want to know - they may well adjust next years letter in relation to it.

I like the way a previous poster said their school handled it to boost contributions - by mentioning it at the chat, explaining its use but emphasising it was voluntary.

The poor communication aside, I think that if a family can afford £50 they should give it - yes it is less than £1 per week, less than a cup of coffee. Yes we all wish schools didn't need to ask for the money and had plenty, but the reality is they are hard up and if most parents give what is a tiny sum over a whole year (no need for all in one go if that is hard, and no need at all if it isn't possible) that money can make a real difference and make the experience of school less.......austere.

I think it is disappointing when people who could easily pay less than £1 a week choose not to, either because they think they are making a moral/political point about the fact schools should have more money, or often because they simply know they can get away without paying and prefer to spend that £50 on a few coffees or other little luxuries, which ultimately they value more highly than the children getting a bit broader an education - or expect others to pay and fund that for their child.

Sorry, but off the point.

I agree the communication sounds poor and needs pointing out to the school. And I'm glad that communication aside the OP is willing to give a donation if she can afford it.