Jags (dealing with their fees)

[hilili]

I had supper with a couple of friends last week and Jags came up in conversation - parents have been receiving letters in the last week of term (a little late in the day I feel) to say any arrears for school fees must be paid in full before September or their children cannot go back to school in September, one of the parents has missed only a few monthly payments in six years at the school and had already set up a payment plan for the arrears AND has just received the same letter - I think this is a little harsh . Can anyone suggest ways in which to deal with this as I'm sure people affected by this are EDF users.

[Bunny19]

Rather simple, if you choose to go the private education route, you have to be in a position to pay, if not, don't pretend you can. Sorry if that sounds brutal, but it's a fact.

[Damian H]

Would the obvious way to deal with this not be for your friend to contact the school, tell them that she has set up an agreed payment plan to settle her arrears and ask why the letter was sent to her? Is there a reason why such an obvious course of action cannot be pursued?

I imagine any private school is like any other business in that they will have to manage their accounts, cashflow and chase up defaulters. I don't see why sending out these letters at this stage is a little late in the day (other than for the school's cashflows perhaps) as it gives parents a couple of months to get things sorted. Do you mean that the school should have sent out these letters earlier and excluded children during last terms instead?

It seems to me that the school are being extremely reasonable here and I just don't understand the thrust of the OP. As Bunny19 says - if you can't afford to pay for private education, don't enrol in it. If you fall behind in your payments, expect to be pursued about it and have the threat of withdrawal of service mentioned.

[hilili]

I chose private education because I wanted a school that was offered a wide range of sports - I don't have much money - I work two jobs so that I can pay for it and don't go on expensive holidays which is fine because my child is happy, settled and playing a lot of sport !!! however if I lost one of my jobs, I would expect the school to be patient, reasonable and understand that I needed time to sort out the finances (especially when I have invested a lot of time and money into it already ). Pretence doesn't come into it.

[hilili]

Thanks Damian H - she has done all of this - but they have new personnel who have changed the goal posts !

[Bunny19]

I respect all her work ethics and routes to solve the issue in hand, but as Damien H says at the end of the day it's a business and has significant overheads to meet each month. How would you feel if the staff striked because they hadn't been paid, because of parents are living beyond their means?

[hilili]

How do you know they are living beyond their means ? this isn't about one particular person - my point was if you are having trouble paying bills of any kind right now - generally you can speak to the company and sort it out - most people are willing to come to an arrangement, I work with companies every day that have to do this . Unless fees haven't been paid for a good few months I feel it's harsh on the parents who have supported the school for years .

[Bunny19]

This is not a utility company, it is a pretty small business in the scheme of things. Private education is enormously expensive from 3 to 18, probably more than most people's mortgages pro rata. We all want the best for our children, and circumstances change beyond our control, which causes income to fluctuate. But I wouldn't dream of sending a child through private/public school education unless the funds were secured to do so in the first place. I saw too many kids yanked out of my public school (25 years ago) for exactly the reason of this topic, so it's nothing new.

[Damian H]

Having seen the OPs reply, my position may have changed a little. I had assumed that this matter was simply an administrative error and that the school had sent out a letter by mistake, ignoring the agreement reached.

If, however, they have simply decided to overturn an agreement that had been agreed by previous administrators that is a bit different. Without knowing more I wouldnt want to comment further.

I still agree that the school is entitled fully to collect its dues and withdraw provision of service if fees arent paid but it does seem a bit off to renege on an agreement to pay arrears if it had already agreed to that.

One for the Ombudsman perhaps?

[Townleygreen]

You must talk to the school - I would write to the head, she may not know the finance people are sending out these letters now.

[zeban]

I'm with Bunny19 on this one. I've seen people get into ridiculous amounts of debt and live in fear and stress because they 'want the best for their children'. Personally, I think that's it's too much pressure all round and really not worth it unless you really do have the money. What if your child hates school and/or doesn't do well? I've seen parents resenting their children when situations like this occur. I'd rather spend more time with my kids than work two jobs to pay for them to go to private school.

[hilili]

Since I work from home - I probably spend more time with my kids than most. Resent my child ????? I don't think it's fair to pigeonhole people

[zeban]

I don't understand why you think the school would care. I'm sure they should really but they're a business, I'm not sure ethics and fairness are exactly at the forefront of such establishments. They want your money. If you don't have it, you're out and it probably is as simple as that.

[hilili]

yep Zeban - think you're right

[Townleygreen]

zeban,

you are wrong, they are schools that happen to be charities too. They obviously share some of the atributes of a business, but in my experience JAGs is far from being a harsh or uncaring place, and I am sure they would do what they could to help this situation be sorted out, unless things are totally hopeless with ones finances. In which case the answer would be for a parent to find another school.

[Sol]

Someone is asking for advice and some people is making a judgment, without even knowing the person.........!that's terrible!

[zeban]

Townleygreen Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> zeban,

> you are wrong, they are schools that happen to be

> charities too.

I'm fully aware of this!

Sorry OP, clearly this doesn't affect me but I wish you and your friend goodluck and from what Townleygreen wrote, they might not be as harsh as the letter is suggesting.

[hilili]

-- moved topic --

[zoal]

I suspect it is as you described that there has been a new change in the guard - I would write to the head and finance and explain your situation.

JAGS unlike many of the bigger public/independent schools (but rather like many of the little ones) run from one terms fee to the next with very little leeway. The problem is that the teacher's salarys are so high (relatively) that most of the fees go on this - I guess this is why they are playing more hard ball as they couldnt default on that could they?? ;-)

good luck either way. I think it is important to do what you think is right by your children and not bow to any (especially dulwich) liberal (not socialist mind) agenda. Our states schools have their merits and the newer ones are on a par in terms of facilities even if the league tables dont necessarily reflect this (yet). Selection Bias will always mean that conditions are skewed in favour of one over the other (simple example is SEN pupil %).

[suzisoo]

The same thing happened to me twice due to my husbands work ( or lack of it). Each time the school allowed us to pay in arrears but come the end of the school year we had to settle the balance or take her out of school. I think this was fair as it allowed us to let her finish the year without interrupting her education and then we had the choice to take her out at the end of term or pay the balance without getting further into debt.

[indiej25]

Private/publics schools get charitable status, but this is purely financial, they don't have to pay as much tax and in exchange they provide scholarships, at the end of the day they are businesses.

The best thing to do is speak to the school directly and see what they have to say about the letter.