Head Teacher Fiona Dunop says that when the school does ask families for money:
“We always predicate anything with the thing that it’s a donation we’re looking for. We used to do dress down days for a £1, but actually we’ve taken that away now and we’re doing fundraising for specific things. Then it’s obviously a donation.”
Fiona describes how the school tries not to fundraise generally but still does small things for specific events, where the money will allow a whole class to do something.
“My primary fives are planning their Harry Potter trip to London because they were studying the book and they were really interested. So they’d come up with lots of little ideas that they’ve all worked together with local businesses to gather money to subsidise that, so that now it’s a free trip, nobody has to pay. That’s because of the efforts of the teachers, Parent Council and the parents and families that have supported that. We still want our children to value the experiences that they get, but not value them because of the cost of them but value them for what they are, for the educational experience that they have, and I think our parents appreciate that.”
