Limerick schools looking for voluntary contributions

irishproduce

Hi folks, a lot in the media at the moment about schools looking for donations, its in todays independent too if you are intested. I am interested to know if any of you as parents know which schools in Limerick look for these donations? I have a son but too young for school so interested to know what the future holds.

Thanks
Irish

Agent_99

Two sons,
National School €50 includes insurance they usually don't ask for it until Oct/Nov as they understand that September is expensive enough

City Secondary School €180 installments or €150 if paid on time in one lump sum.

naughtysmurf

I imagine nearly all schools ask for this, current secondary school requests €250 minimum plus other smaller charges like locker rental, insurance etc, current primary school is €100 (I think) plus other smaller charges for stuff like photocopying and arts & crafts etc...it adds up

angeleyes

My DD's primary school looks for a voluntary contribution from the parents. However, the school is under the auspices of the archdiocese of the Catholic Church with a priest as Chairman of the Board of Management. We don 't pay it - if the Church want to run the school they can put their hands in their pockets and contribute.

byhookorbycrook

:rolleyes:If you don't want to pay towards heat /light /books etc. then don't. It's your own child who will suffer, but don't let your hatred of the Catholc church get in the way:rolleyes::rolleyes:Why did you choose a Catholic school if you hate the church so muchIt's not as if this money actually went to the clergy.

angeleyes

byhookorbycrook wrote: »

:rolleyes:If you don't want to pay towards heat /light /books etc. then don't. It's your own child who will suffer, but don't let your hatred of the Catholc church get in the way:rolleyes::rolleyes:Why did you choose a Catholic school if you hate the church so muchIt's not as if this money actually went to the clergy.

Its now down to my hatred of the Catholic Church, but I don't agree with priests being on the board of management. However, it is our local school, I am a past pupil of this school, so its down to tradition in one way. My child's religious education is down to me. Anything else we have to contribute to for the school we do and we have supported every fundraising draw/event in the past twenty years. But the fund is as the word means voluntary. Its not demanded.

byhookorbycrook

But the less people pay it, the more expensive it is on those who do.It's not like it goes on funding a cruise for the BOM.

phog

angeleyes wrote: »

My DD's primary school looks for a voluntary contribution from the parents. However, the school is under the auspices of the archdiocese of the Catholic Church with a priest as Chairman of the Board of Management. We don 't pay it - if the Church want to run the school they can put their hands in their pockets and contribute.

angeleyes wrote: »

Its now down to my hatred of the Catholic Church, but I don't agree with priests being on the board of management. However, it is our local school, I am a past pupil of this school, so its down to tradition in one way. My child's religious education is down to me. Anything else we have to contribute to for the school we do and we have supported every fundraising draw/event in the past twenty years. But the fund is as the word means voluntary. Its not demanded.

Do you realise one of the reasons why there's fundraising required is that the voluntary contributions aren't covering the costs.

angeleyes

phog wrote: »

Do you realise one of the reasons why there's fundraising required is that the voluntary contributions aren't covering the costs.

My child's school is not fundraising at the minute they don't need to. The points you quoted are taken out of context. I have in the past supported fund raising events. However, I still don't agree with the CC hiring staff - appointing favourites to the BOM. I just wish Minister Quinn would just take all schools out of the jurisdiction of the CC. It will come but of course it will take time.

phog

angeleyes wrote: »

My child's school is not fundraising at the minute they don't need to. The points you quoted are taken out of context. I have in the past supported fund raising events. However, I still don't agree with the CC hiring staff - appointing favourites to the BOM. I just wish Minister Quinn would just take all schools out of the jurisdiction of the CC. It will come but of course it will take time.

You seem happy with the staff they hired as you yourself went to school there and you are now sending your child there.

say_who_now?

angeleyes wrote: »

My child's school is not fundraising at the minute they don't need to. The points you quoted are taken out of context. I have in the past supported fund raising events. However, I still don't agree with the CC hiring staff - appointing favourites to the BOM. I just wish Minister Quinn would just take all schools out of the jurisdiction of the CC. It will come but of course it will take time.

I wasn't going to comment on this thread, but what you said there angeleyes is incorrect. The CC has nothing to do with hiring staff for Catholic ethos primary schools, nor electing "favorites" as you put it, to the BOM. I myself am on the BOM of a local catholic primary school and I have no issue with voluntarily contributing €50 to the school to cover the costs of arts and materials used to educate my child.

And even then, this contribution doesn't cover enough, as I have seen teachers pay for materials, photocopying and other miscellany from their own pockets! I'll hold my hand up and say that I don't know how much funding the school gets from the dioscese, or even if they get any, but I do know that state funding isn't even close to funding the cost of the school for the term, let alone the costs of repairs and fixtures.

I was elected to the BOM as the parent's representative, after elective papers were sent out to all the parents whose children were attendant in the school. As far as I am aware, you personally are entitled to inquire for the financial records of your school, and I guarantee you it'll be quite an eye opener! The absolute MESS that is school funding certainly takes precedence over any concerns about religion when you actually see what goes on at these meetings.

We have a nun actually represent the Catholic Church on our BOM, no priests, and anyone who is elected to the BOM has to be Garda vetted. Things are certainly nowhere near as black and white as you might be given to thinking based on your predjudices of the Catholic Church.

Has this gone beyond the remit of the Limerick Forum yet? Because this could just as easily be applied to any State UNDER-funded Catholic ethos national primary school anywhere in the country.