Our eldest has just started ‘Big School’ and Year 7s are going on an Outward Bound trip. The cost is £550 for the week but has been subsidised down to £300 – still a huge amount of money for many families. /1
The subsidy is universal – it goes to all kids, irrespective of family need. And I completely get why schools don’t want to get into the business of second guessing which families need the subsidy. /2
But I wonder whether schools might ask parents whether they need the subsidy? If you have the chance to turn it down the school could reallocate it to another family which might enable another child (for whom £300 is too much) to go. /3
Schools provide a lot of universal subsidies. If you are a parent, even if the school does not ask whether you need the subsidy, you might choose to donate it to the school to bring down the cost of a place for another kid to (in my example) £50. /4
(If you donate the subsidy, make sure your school has a captive charity. Donations to most independent schools attract a bonus from the Treasury in the form of charitable tax relief but donations to state schools don’t. But that’s another story.) /ENDS
