Would it be wrong to only pay half of DS school trip cost?

[Shirtbuttons26]

DS is going on a school trip. Its costing 45.00. Would it be wrong if I only paid 20.00 /25.00? I am on a low income and I'm juggling things a bit at the moment. I have another child at the school as well so I have been paying out for 2 children.

The school rang me saying i need to pay by tomorrow.

It does say contribution but I feel wrong for even thinking about it.

I'm confused, why are they calling you demanding payment if it's voluntary? I wouldn't pay anything at all if I didn't have the money. Pay what you can and not a penny more.

@HopeIsAScaryThing
I second this!

One year we had parents actually commenting; why should they pay, their child will get to go anyway. Voluntary contributions at one stage were so low that one year parents were asked to pay £10 at the start of the year and if there were enough contributions they would look at booking a trip, rather than go to the effort of arranging everything, then having to cancel or subsidise a large amount of children whose parents wouldn't pay (and I do mean wouldn't) pay. There was I think one year group that didn't get a trip and parents who'd paid the £10 were reimbursed.

OP I would definitely have a chat with the school, if it's anything like ours they will appreciate the call and do what they can to help.

£45 is quite expensive, even with the cost of coaches going up. A flat rate of £45 whatever the trip is a lot! We've just done a lovely trip to the seaside, cost about £19 per child, that was for nearly 90 children though, perhaps yours is a smaller school so the cost isn't spread out so much?

I usually pay double for school trips for this exact reason - I can afford it easily and pay it so the extra paid can fund a child whose family might be worse off. I know quite a few parents who do that.

No I'm not working. I have a child with special needs.

@Shirtbuttons26 Ah I understand. I assume you get additional financial support in that case? 🙏

Probably because she should be letting them know if she is or isn’t paying and if so how much. Just ignoring the letter won’t help those planning the trip.

Do you have any idea how much it costs to have a disabled child? Sorry, not having a go but these comments annoy me. Yes we get (or now in my case, got) extra financial support but the costs are far far larger then the support. And they dont cover "extras" in school like these sorts of trips, the money still has to be found.

If you can’t afford it then that’s it really. I believe it’s about 20% of parents don’t pay/pay less and the school can account for that to a certain degree. There should be some school discretionary fund to top up slightly under paid trips or might ask parents /pta to pay a little extra if it’s a bit too far off. Coaches are massively expensive these days.
If you’re going to be hard up for a while then you could ask if there’s a hardship fund and what the conditions are to apply for it for future trips… Can’t remember how old your child is but the Y6 residential springs to mind as a candidate typically.
If you use holiday clubs/ after school clubs make sure you’re signed up for the tax free childcare scheme!
www.gov.uk/tax-free-childcare

is your child on pupil premium? may be worth looking into it if they are.
Our school funds kids on PP via PTA funds or other parents 'paying it forward'

I guess the only unreasonable thing is that you presumably haven't just been told about this trip.
If you were struggling I think it probably best if you let the teacher know as soon as possible so that either a monthly payment plan could be set up, or they could look to see what PTA funds are available.

Making them chase you for payment on the last day it is due is a bit rubbish for the people who are trying to plan this for 30 kids.

“I have another child at the school as well so I have been paying out for 2 children”

You and the majority of other parents! Some people will have more than two children there.

And how many of them can't work because they have a disabled child?

It’ll genuinely be fine! Surprised at some of these posts. Other half is a teacher and they have funds for situations like this - they never want a kid to miss out! Ring them up , tell them what you can pay and see what they come back with.

@PyongyangKipperbang The OP referred to her child having "special needs" rather than a disability. Obviously I don't know how severe these needs are but if they mean this lady can't work at all then I am sure the school would be understanding of this (as the child attends the same school so will be aware).

Yes he's on pupil premium. What would that mean?

Having special needs IS by its very nature, a disability.

If your child is on Pupil Premium, ask if some can be paid from that pot.
If this is a whole year trip, then this is perfectly acceptable.

@PyongyangKipperbang Not all additional needs are disabilities. A child can have Special Educational Needs (SEN) requiring different educational provisions without being legally disabled.
But as I said, I'm sure the school would be understanding here regarding the situation.

If your child receives PP, the school should completely understand and expect that you will not be making a contribution. Most schools actually explicitly state this in the initial trip letter. Don’t panic OP, just let them know you won’t be

This is a lovely reply. I hope to find more of its kind as I scroll the thread.

I haven’t had DC in school since CoL made OP’s situation sadly commonplace but take this attitude in other situations. The best answer is for parents to join together and petition the school for fewer, more economical school trips. These trips are nice for DC but they are not necessary, and teachers I know would be relieved to have fewer of them.

You are wrong. A disability under UK law is defined as "You’re disabled under the Equality Act 2010 if you have a physical or mental impairment that has a ‘substantial’ and ‘long-term’ negative effect on your ability to do normal daily activities." from gov.uk

So......

The problem is, these hardship funds are dwindling with no means to top them up. Without the generosity of families who pay extra for their child’s place on trips, fewer trips are going to be possible.

school budgets are being stretched beyond their limit. Staff cuts are going to be more frequent. Fewer extra curricular such as crackers with the Christmas lunch, science experiments, cooking club etc. unessential Maintenance will be put on hold. Equipment will have to last an extra year before upgrading.

and, as mentioned by another poster, the PTA is slated, criticised, bitched about. But then expected by many to top up trip funds.

OP, I hope your child’s school are able to find the funds to subsidise their place. Please don’t get yourself into debt to cover the £45. But maybe, in future, you could raise this discretely with the school far sooner so they can see what funds they can find. This late in the school year and the day before the trip makes it very difficult for them. Although I’m sure they’ll be understanding and do whatever they can to help.

I work in a school, it’s fine not to pay if you can’t afford it, you’re child should still go on the trip.

in our primary and secondary, children on pupil premium (so FSM) get all trips for half price. I just assumed this would be the same in all schools. Is it not? It’s explained in the info letters / emails we get about trips.

And I wish the PTA at my children’s school supported some of the less privileged schools in the Trust rather than giving an already privileged cohort even more treats. But we all have different values.