Voluntary school contributions up by 50% for some pupils

Voluntary school contributions for some primary pupils have increased by 50 per cent since 2011, a back-to-school survey by children’s charity Barnardos has found.

The contribution by senior infant parents had increased by a third to €100 and was up by 50 per cent for fourth-class pupils to €100, the non-representative survey of 987 parents found. Budget cuts “mean that schools are increasingly relying on parents to make up the shortfall”, the charity’s chief executive Fergus Finlay said.

Parents were not yet seeing the impact of the publisher’s code agreed last year in the cost of school books, the charity said. Book costs for children going into senior infants increased from €75 to €85.

“Many parents are being forced to make very difficult choices and many are getting into debt to pay for uniforms, books and other education expenses,” Mr Finlay said.

The survey showed a decrease in clothing and footwear costs for primary school children. For fourth-class children, such costs fell by almost a quarter (€60) to €160. The back-to-school clothing and footwear allowance has fallen by €50 since last year.

On average, parents were paying €355 for a child going into senior infants and €770 for those going into first year at second level.