Charities say many parents are struggling to pay voluntary contributions or charges of up to €350 or more being sought from schools in advance of the new school year.
While record funding was made available to schools this year to help pay for rising energy bills, many schools say this still does not cover their running costs, such as insurance, photocopying and arts material.
The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul (SVP) said it has had contact from about 200 parents this month alone seeking help with voluntary contribution payments.
Department of Education guidance to schools states that “voluntary contributions may be sought from parents, provided it is made clear to parents that there is no compulsion to pay and that a child’s place in the school or continued enrolment is not dependent on a willingness to make a contribution”.
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However, Tricia Keilthy, SVP’s head of social justice, said some second-level schools in particular are requesting voluntary contributions in conjunction with book rental fees, which is putting additional pressure on parents.
Its research for the past academic year found voluntary contributions ranged from €30 to €550 per child, with an average of €140 per child across all school types.
This year, it says, it is more common for requests to be made at second-level and the average is €140-€150, but SVP says it has had a number of requests for help with charges of up to €350 or more.
Ms Keilthy said it was important that parents do not feel under pressure to pay, but the reality was the contributions are not presented as voluntary or optional by some schools.
“We see many examples of the hopeless decision that parents are making by forgoing essential items and [forgoing] paying other bills to pay the voluntary contribution charge,” she said.
[ Why are teachers shaming children over non-payment of ‘voluntary’ school fees?Opens in new window ]
In response to rising energy costs, the Government announced a “once-off” capitation payment of €90 million for schools, an increase of about 40 per cent, to cover day-to-day running costs such as electricity and heat.
Asked whether this additional funding should result in a decrease in voluntary contributions sought by schools, Minister for Education Norma Foley said the Education Act states clearly that no fee can be charged for the provision of education under the curriculum.
“I want to be very clear: voluntary contributions are, as their names suggests, voluntary. No fee can be charged for the provision of education as per the curriculum,” she said.
There is a disconnect between what ministers for education say and what happens in schools
— Áine Lynch, National Parents Council
She said significant additional funding has been made available to schools this year, as well as a “landmark” free schoolbooks initiative at primary level.
If individual schools had funding difficulties, she asked them to make contact with the Department of Education, which will look at “individual circumstances”.
“We have to be cognisant that these are challenging and difficult times for families. There should be no compulsion placed on any individual, family or guardian to make a contribution to a school – absolutely none.”
However, the National Parents Council said the payment of voluntary contributions continues to be a source of tension with schools and parents.
The council’s chief executive Áine Lynch said while successive ministers for education have maintained that no parent has to pay a contribution, this was not enough.
“That response is not working. There is a disconnect between what ministers for education say and what happens in schools. Sometimes parents do feel under pressure and children get letters from the school... the complexity of the relationship with schools make parents feel under pressure to pay,” she said.
Ms Lynch called for research on the actual level of funding needed by schools and for a strategy on the part of the Department of Education to meet those requirements.
The SVP also called for capitation grants for schools to be significantly increased for the coming school year.
“We acknowledge that Government has recognised the additional pressures schools are under due to rising prices and provided one-off payments for the academic year 2022/2023,” she said.
“But this funding is time-limited so won’t carry through to the September term, and with inflation moderating but not falling, costs for schools are likely to stay at this high level.”
