‘Pay €100 or don’t get a locker’ – what one school told its students as parents struggle with costs
A SCHOOL that demands €100 be paid before students can access lockers is stigmatising young people, a mother has said.
Susan Kenney, from Roscommon, said her daughter was told this week that students would not get a locker for the year until they paid the money.
Ms Kenney has two daughters attending a secondary school in Roscommon where cable ties have been placed on all the lockers, and will only be taken off if the students pay their fees in full within two weeks.
She said that her daughter, and many others, are entering Leaving Cert year and need the locker spaces for books. Ms Kenney rang RTÉ Radio 1’s Liveline programme yesterday to highlight the problem.
The school sent parents a letter at the start of the summer telling them that the costs for the upcoming year would be €100 for each student.
In previous years, the fees were €80 per student. The costs include insurance, art supplies, photocopying, school journals and lockers.
Last year, the school tied some of the lockers, but this is the first year they have taken this approach with all lockers, Ms Kenney said.
The mother of three said she doesn’t mind paying the school costs – but that the children should not be punished or placed under pressure.
‘My daughter was really looking forward to going back to school, and this is what they were greeted with,’ said Ms Kenney.
‘She should be able to enter her Leaving Cert year excited, but they’re putting the kids under financial pressure, never mind the parents. It’s okay to contact the parents directly – leave the children out of it.
‘Let them enjoy school. They shouldn’t have to carry this financial burden.
‘They’re being punished for whatever financial position each parent is in.
‘If the school was to contact me every day, harass me, for this money, okay, that’s fine.
‘Don’t put cable ties, and make them prisoners, neglect them – this is supposed to be a welcoming school. They shouldn’t do this to the children.’
Ms Kenney worries about the stigma that will be experienced by students whose families are unable to pay the €100.
‘If my daughter hasn’t paid the €100 in two weeks, she’ll be still carrying her books, and then the stigma is there, especially among a girls’ school,’ she said. ‘There’s a lot of bullying, and it will be noted if someone doesn’t pay.’
Meanwhile, in south Co. Dublin, mother-of-two Kirsty, who chose not to disclose her surname yesterday, said that her son was prevented from using the computer room at his school until she paid his costs.
Kirsty, who also rang RTÉ Radio 1’s Liveline to highlight the issue, said she had to pay €182 in fees for her son for this year, plus €200 for his school books – and the school will also ask her and all the other parents for a voluntary contribution on top of this.
Earlier this week, the Society of St Vincent de Paul reported a 20% increase in calls for back-toschool help this summer, receiving more than 6,000 calls from parents. ‘August is the busiest month for school costs in SVP and calls continued to come in this week from worried parents,’ said St Vincent de Paul social policy officer Marcella Stakem.
‘We know this time of year is stressful for most families as they try to meet the costs of uniforms, books and “voluntary” contributions, and that these costs bear most heavily on families with limited incomes,’ it said.
The St Vincent de Paul has called on the Department of Education to increase capitation grants to schools, which were cut in 2010.
Since then, schools have turned to parents to make up the financial shortfall.
A spokesman for the Department of Education last night said the department has urged schools to keep costs down for families wherever possible.
‘We have issued a circular to all schools to ensure that they put a greater emphasis on reducing costs for parents,’ the spokesman said.
‘The circular requires schools to do everything possible to keep costs down for parents, including the use of generic items, sew-on or iron-on crests.’
The department spokesman said it remains committed to improving capitation funding, highlighting the fact that the education budget is at its highest ever.
‘The department is conscious of the need to improve capitation funding, which funds general running costs, for schools,’ the spokesman said.
‘That is why increasing capitation is one of the actions included in the Action Plan for Education and this Government remains committed to achieving this.
‘The Education budget has increased by €1billion over the last two years and is now its highest ever.’
The department spokesman added that schools are allowed to request voluntary contributions, with the proviso that parents are under no obligation to contribute anything.
Education Minister Richard Bruton yesterday highlighted the increased investment his department has put into schools.
‘Fine Gael in government has increased investment in Education by over €1billion in the last two years, bringing the Education budget to its highest ever, at over €10billion,’ Minister Bruton said.
‘This investment is being used for more teachers, more SNAs and better resources for our children.’
The Department of Education did not comment about the Roscommon school, and the school itself did not respond to a query from the Irish Daily Mail yesterday evening.
‘They shouldn’t do this to the children’ Education budget increased by €1bn