PARKSIDE POLICY FOR CHARGES & REMISSIONS FOR SCHOOL ACTIVITIES/LETTINGS
POLICY FOR CHARGES & REMISSIONS FOR SCHOOL
ACTIVITIES/LETTINGS
Governors Review Date / Next Review Date (Annually) or on Amendment / Governors / Adopted / Chair Signature06.02.03 / ü
30.11.06 / 23.03.11 / ü
23.03.11 / Spring Term 12 / ü
07.03.12 / Spring Term 13 / ü
12.03.2013 / Spring Term 14 / ü
26.03.2014 / Spring Term 15 / ü
04.03.2015 / Spring Term 16 / ü
24.02.2016 / Spring Term 17 / ü
13.03.2017 / Spring Term 18 / ü
Introduction
The Education Act 1996: Sections 449–462 covers what a Governing Body may and may not charge for when activities take place either during or outside of school hours, including residential activities. The need to have charging and remissions policies, and requests for voluntary contributions, are also included in the Act.
Education during School Hours
Education provided by Parkside during school hours is free of charge with the exception that a charge may be made in connection with the individual tuition in the playing of a musical instrument except where such tuition forms part of the syllabus for a prescribed public examination or as part of the National Curriculum (see separate section relating to Musical Tuition)
The Governors of Parkside may, however invite voluntary contributions for the benefit of the school or in support of any activity organised by the school. The terms of any request to parents to make a voluntary contribution must make it clear, however, that
There is no obligation to contribute.
Students will not be treated differently according to whether their parents have made a contribution in response to the request.
Where a charge is made for each student it will not exceed the actual cost. If further funds need to be raised, for example to help in hardship cases, this will be by voluntary contributions or general fundraising
Education outside School Hours
Charges may be made for education which falls mainly outside school hours and is not:
Required as part of the syllabus for a prescribed public examination or
Provided specifically to fulfil statutory duties relating to the National Curriculum or to Religious Education.
Participation in such an activity (referred to by the DfE as an “optional extra”) must be on a basis of parental choice and a willingness to pay the charges made. The agreement of individual parents is therefore a necessary pre-requisite for the provision of an optional extra for which charges are to be made.
Where an activity occurs partly during and partly outside school hours the Act prescribes a basis for determining whether the activity should be deemed to take place wholly during or wholly outside school hours and therefore whether a charge may or may not be made. The costs incurred by teacher providing the activity may be included in the costs to students.
CHARGING & REMISSION
Residential Visits - Board and Lodgings
It is the Governors’ policy that a charge should be made for board and lodging arising from residential activities. Where a school activity involves students in nights away from home a charge may be made for board and lodgings in all cases whether or not the activity is deemed to have taken place in school hours. A charge for travel may only be made when the activity takes place outside school hours and is not required for the purpose of a prescribed public examination or provided specifically to fulfil statutory duties relating to the National Curriculum or to Religious Education.
No charges for board and lodging may be made where a student taking part in a residential visit in school hours or outside school hours, where the activity forms part of the syllabus for a prescribed public examination or is provided specifically to fulfil statutory duties relating to the National Curriculum or to Religious Education whose parents are in receipt of:
Income Support, income based Job Seekers Allowance, support under Part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999, Child Tax Credit (providing that they are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual income, assessed by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, that does not exceed the annual prescribed sum); The guaranteed element of State Pension Credit; and income-related employment and support.
Musical Tuition
The Education and Inspections Act 2006 introduced a regulation-making power which allowed the Department to specify circumstances where charges can be made for music tuition. The new regulations, which came into force in September 2007, provide students with greater access to vocal and instrumental tuition. Charges will be made for teaching either an individual student or groups of any appropriate size to play a musical instrument or to sing. Charges will only be made if the teaching is not an essential part of either the national curriculum or a public examination syllabus being followed by the student(s).
Activities which take place wholly or mainly outside School Hours
Under the provision of the Act, a charge may be made for any activity which is deemed to take place outside school hours which is not provided specifically as part of a syllabus for a prescribed public examination or to fulfil statutory duties in respect of the National Curriculum or Religious Education. Activities for which a charge could be made therefore include School Associations and Clubs, Teams and a wide range of visits and trips some of which are organised on a residential basis.
Voluntary Contributions
Although Parkside cannot always charge for school-time activities, we will invite parents and others to make voluntary contributions. All requests to parents for voluntary contributions will make it quite clear that the contributions would be voluntary. Governing Bodies will also make it clear that children of parents who do not contribute will not be treated any differently. If a particular activity cannot take place without some help from parents this will be explained at the planning stage.
Where there are not enough voluntary contributions to make the activity possible and there is no way to make up the shortfall, the activity will be cancelled. The essential point is that no student will be left out of an activity because his or her parents cannot, or will not, make a contribution of any kind. The school will first decide which class, or group of student, will benefit from the activity and then look for voluntary contributions, either for that activity, or by general fundraising.
Public Examination Fees
No charges will be made for entering students for public examinations that are set out in the regulations. The Governing Body will enter a student for each examination in a public examination syllabus for which the school has prepared the student. This does not apply if the Governing Body thinks there are educational reasons for not entering the student, or if the student’s parents request in writing that the student should not be entered. The LA may not override the Governing Body’s decision on whether to enter a particular student for an examination.
An examination fee will be charged to parents if:
w the examination is on the set list, but the student was not prepared for it at the school;
w the exam is not on the set list, but the school arranges for the student to take it;
w a student fails, without good reason, to complete the requirements of any public examination where Parkside or LA originally paid or agreed to pay the entry fee.
w a student resits an examination for which he/she has been prepared earlier by the school
w a student who does not turn up to their examination
w any re-scrutiny of examination results has been requested by a parent.
Charges will not be made for any cost associated with preparing a student for an examination. However, charging will occur for tuition and other costs if a student is prepared outside school hours for an examination that is not set out in the regulations.
Charges for Materials
(Schools must provide or pay for any ingredients, materials, equipment etc which are needed for practical subjects such as Art, Home Technology and Design Technology. Parents or students may, however, contribute to these on a voluntary basis and the school may charge for, or require the supply of ingredients and materials, if parents have indicated in advance their wish to own the finished product. It is expected that a student’s finalised product will be taken home and so it is the policy of the school to charge for this
Charges for Letting of School Facilities
The responsibility of the letting of school equipment and facilities has been delegated by the Governing Body to Parkside Facilities Services in accordance with the school’s terms of letting.
Activities not run by the School of the LA
When an organisation acting independently of Parkside or the LA arranges an activity to take place during school hours and parents want their children to join the activity, such organisations may charge parents. Parents must ask the school to agree to their children being absent, just as they would if they wanted to take their children out of school for a family holiday.
However, where an activity is organised by a third party and is approved by the school, is educational or is supervised by someone authorised by the school, then it is the Department for Education’s view that it should be treated as if it were provided by the school and no charge should be made to the parents or student. Such an activity, if it takes place outside the school premises, is an 'approved educational activity' within the meaning of regulation 4A(a) of the Education (Pupil Registration) Regulations 1995 (as amended).
Breakages and Damage
Parents may be asked to pay for the cost of any damage resulting from a students’ misbehaviour. Parents may also be asked to pay for the replacement of any lost or damaged material in the care of the student.
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