(Pretty) please could we have your thoughts on school fairs for the times?

[JustineMumsnet]

Angela from the Times writes:
"We have noticed that in the more prestigious schools they are becoming ludicrously competitive and pricy (£7 chutney; professional sugar-craft cakes on the cake stall etc) and aim to raise thousands of pounds - sometimes five-figure sums - rather than hundreds."

Is this your experience and if so what do you think?
Many txs in advance. MN Towers.

[TwoIfBySea]

I am indeed a Guide Dog puppy walker. Have just taken on my second dog, first one is doing really well up at the centre in Forfar. My new one still has that gorgeous puppy smell.

There is a huge shortage of puppy walkers at the moment.

[Sidge]

PMSL at Boco

[GrungeBlobPrimpants]

pmsl at 'clean up your own poo'

Well, ours is in an affluent area. It's not competetive, doesn't sell £7 jars of chutney and doesn't raise 5-fig sums. Maybe Angela is confusing it with some country-fayre shopping event at her dc's incredibly prestigious independent school, stuffed full of the spawn of Times jurnos.

Note to Angela: the Times is utter shite - piss poor reporting frankly

[procrastinatingparent]

Do independent schools have school fairs? I've only ever been to state school summer fairs. [ignorant]

I loathe them, btw. We don't have professionally decorated cakes - it's all cheap and cheerful - but I am such an anti-social cheap frugal misanthrope that I would rather just give a donation. I feel like I've been mugged every time I go.

But that is just me. I do think they are probably a Good Thing - community spirit, fun, working for a common cause, etc etc. I just don't want to organise them or go to them.

[SOLOisMeredithGrey]

Ours raised just under 6.5k a couple of weekends ago.
I only dropped in in the last hour as I couldn't risk being badgered out of money I don't have. There wasn't much left by the time I did get there, but there were computer games for sale, plant sale, crockery smashing...teddy bear sale(second hand bears), a photographer and this is just what I saw at the end...there's usually cakes for sale, smellies etc too.

[Swedes]

At my son's last school (state, primary in affluent area), raffle tickets for the Governors' Hamper (wine cheese, chutney, marmite buscuits, & olives) were £10 a go and they sold 242 tickets. £2,420 for a few groceries. Hah.

Sons are now both at Independent school and it's totally different. Pimms on Founders' day is completey free as is the picnic lunch and various socials throughout the year in the school/Abbey are catered for, free of charge. But there's no pressure to turn up. So most people don't. It's bliss. Just like the old Grammar school days. It's a shame we have to pay £15,000 per annum per boy though.

[funnypeculiar]

Well, Surrey primary school here (so reasonably affluent, I s'pose), and bugger all competitive £7 chutney extravaganzas. Booze tombola (with vital inclusion of out of date Guiness cans), sweet Tombola, cake sale, raffle, children country dancing - all the usual suspects.

Angela, my dear, change your school, don't bother with an article.

[Squidward]

6.5k?

fucking hell

[Winebeforepearls]

I knew it was time to leave our poncey corner of London when we went to the school fair and discovered that one of the raffle prizes was a course of botox ...

[SOLOisMeredithGrey]

I know Squid, and it's a state school and not a particularly affluent area ~ middle of the road I'd say.

[morningpaper]

Yes it's FAYRE surely

HOW do you raise 6.5k? You should be doing a bloody MN webchat

Ours around 1k with the standard tat - which probably cost 6k from the Tesco garage the morning before the fayre...

[Swedes]

I really think PTAs need to decide what they're for. If it's fundraising they should pay a professional. If it's about getting stressed and time-poor parents together for a bit of down time, there must be better ways?

[myredcardigan]

Sorry SEA, I wasn't ignoring you (even though I was having a dig) .

I was just remembering your 'why I hate independent schools' (or something similar) thread. It gave the impression you thought there was this group of middle class, boden wearing, 4x4 driving, independent school using, arrogant idiots and then there were normal people like yourself.

When I'm sure you know it's far more Venn diagram like than that with most people overlapping into all the different areas.

The them and us political stance is bollocks IMO. They don't exist. I'm sure you disagree but hey ho!

[SOLOisMeredithGrey]

Ds informs me it was £6,423...! I just think that the parents are givers tbh(except me of course!).
It's a Catholic school and it always seems to raise a lot.

[DebiNewberry]

just had ours, it is ever-so-slightly chi-chi, but sweet too...and the jam is delicious. The PTA raises a LOT of money. I think they got over £7k. Good on them.

[whomovedmychocolate]

Actually I generally have a problem with some aspects of school fundraising. I don't mind going to a school fete and spending £15 (although round here that wouldn't cover the entrance fee!) but I do object to the conscription element.

Recently DD was sent home with an envelope - in the envelope were a book of raffle tickets with a note inviting us to sell them on the school's behalf for prizes being drawn at the fair. The onus is on us either to remit the money for these tickets or return them and explain why. Oh and did I mention you have to be there to collect your prize so you then get tied into attending the fair and paying the entrance fees.

We have also been 'invited' to buy four tickets to a £15 two hour event (but that's okay, it includes one glass of wine ) So not only are we supposed to go but bring two friends.

[southeastastra]

have no idea what you're going on about cardigan

[squilly]

Ours is on Saturday and I can't wait for it. It's always great fun for the kids and the hard work from our HSA team means it makes serious money as well.

There are no £7 jars of chutney, just 30p fairy cakes and bacon sarnies for a pound, sweet stalls, tombolas and soak the teacher type games.

I don't know who gets the most out of ours actually...the parents or the kids.

[Katisha]

It's not the price of the chutney or quality of the stalls that depresses me about school fairs - like several others I think the Times is just trying to serve up the eternal yummy mummy bashing in another format.

Its the annual grudge-fest between those who like doing all the organising and who think everyone else should feel duty-bound to volunteer as well and those who haven't got time or the temperament but who will turn up on the day and spend the readies.

Can you guess which camp I am in?

But I do rather resent the implication that by turning up at the stalls and spending money on tat I must be having a whale of a time and that merely supporting the event is Not Good Enough.

[EachPeachPearMum]

Can I let you know Saturday evening?
I have a feeling it will be more Sugarcraft cupcakes than chocolate krispie cakes....

[GrimmaTheNome]

My DD goes to a good private school.

The fair is just the normal home-made cakes (decorated with smarties etc), tombolas, bouncy castle type affair.

Dancing display and footie tournament.

The usual mix of fun and tat.

Though apparently this year there will also be a climbing wall.

School fayres competitive? Don't be daft. Who would you compete with? No-one ever goes to any except their own kids, do they?

[MollieO]

I feel short changed. My ds is at private school and I went to his fete on Saturday. No £7 jars of chutney or sugar craft cakes. Makes me wonder what I'm paying for .

[ThingOne]

State primary in an affluent area and we focus on making it a fun day for the children but hope to raise lots of money too. Lots of traditional activities as already mentioned plus some of our own specials. I doubt there will be £7 chutney but I'm sure there will be professionally iced cakes as some of the mums do it for a living. Some of the others have got very good at groovy cupcakes too, and I'm sure these will sell well to the parents. Likewise the ones decorated by the children with too many sweets and bright coloured icing will sell very well to the children.

I've always liked events like this. I think they're great for building the community. However much or little you want or can do, you can still do your bit. Some people come with cash and rellies, some people spend months planning every bit.

[GossipMonger]

We made 4.5k a couple of weeks ago.

DH was in charge of food and we had a BBQ, pasta and tomato sauce with garlic bread and chilli and jacket potatoes.

We had

coconut shys
soak a bloke
tombolas
soft toy stall
mystery rainbow gift
ring a jar
lucky dip
lucky ducks
elephant hoopla
spin to win
penalty shoot
2 x bouncy castles
cakes and tea and coffee
ice creams
fire engine
mini train
kooza kids with go karts and space hoppers
and a LIVE band (Deputy's husband is a singer)

Twas free to get in and we made twice the amount from last year from charging £1!!

It was such a fun day and we all got involved together as a family and made money for the school.

[geordieminx]

Went to our local school fair last week(reasonably affluent area) - ds is only 2 so its a while before we have to go, but it was a nice day and all that..

So there is a book stall - 4 books for £1. Great I think, I'll get a few from the mounds that were on the table. So I picked 4, the guy says oh thats 40p . So I pointed to the sign on the front of the table, and he replied with "no one would buy them at that price so we have had to reduce them to 10p each or we'll never get rid of them" .

Meanwhile, the next table was face painting at £1.50 a shot, with a queue of at least a dozen people.

Made me really sad.