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Daughter is going to Spain with school in July, the cost of the trip is ÂĢ330, which i have paid up in full Today i get a letter from the school asking for an extra 50 Euros due to the fluctuation in the currency, which they say is out of their control, will it's not my bliddy fault either, this was never stated when the trip was offered that this may happen, the school is closed so i can't phone up Do you think they are in the right to do this? if i cancel the trip i will lose ÂĢ100

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That's quite worrying actually...  I get that its not the schools fault the exchange rate has fluctuated...  & I get that the school cannot afford to sub the difference to the tune of 50 euro's per kid... but:

would they have refunded the difference had the exchange rate gone the other way?   Has this ever happened in previous years?

also... they really do need to make this absolutely clear in the initial letters for trips... in big bold writing or something....

I am sitting here at the moment looking at a letter for a ski trip for my boy .... he has just told me he doesn't want to go!  (I could hug him so bloody hard!! )

But I think we have a French trip coming up...   thanks for the heads up Aimee...  I will ensure that we try to include any change in exchange rate in the budget xx
Dirtyprettygirlthing
Daughters not even that bothered about going anyway  theres an adventure trip coming up and she'd prefer to go on that, but your right what if it had decreased would we have got some money back, also i'm going to ask about the deposit, i can't really afford another 50 quid as they are also stating in the letter that they will  need about ÂĢ200 for food and other expenses, they are only going for 4 days  this is turning into a very expensive trip
Aimee
If money really is an issue, then all schools will have a small amount of money available which can be used to help out in cases of hardship.  I don't know of any school which would see a child miss out on a trip because their family could not afford the cost.  But if your daughter really doesn't want to go,then I would just say that you can't afford the extra and if you weren't warned that the cost could go up, they should refund you the whole amoutn you've paid.
FM
Our school has refunded in the past when the exchange rate has been more favourable than expected...so it does happen that way round too.

I'd take Growly's advice if it's a problem for you Aimee. As there was no warning of the extra cost in the original letter, the school should use the hardship fund, or if you prefer, refund you ALL your money. Do you have the original letter still?
Ducky
I think that they are out of order tbh Aimee. I mean if you had paid for it last year then maybe they could have a point but surely the rate hasn't changed that much in 3 months.
If you weren't advised that there might be this problem when you booked for you daughter then I don't think they should have the right to ask for it now.
And if the increased costs mean you can't afford it then they should refund ALL the money you've paid.
FM
Reference:

Reference:
I mean if you had paid for it last year then maybe they could have a point but surely the rate hasn't changed that much in 3 months.
I'm fairly certain the school wont be ripping the parents off for a quick profit. Obviously the prices have gone up since the time of booking .......unfortunate yes but not a scam on the schools part ...........it's simply the world we live in. If you really cannot afford the extra - I would go to the school and explain the situation - as someone said earlier - they do have funds set by for exceptional circumstances.
Soozy Woo
I've managed to get through to the school today and asked for the teacher to call me back next week, i'm more annoyed that the school can suddenly asked you for extra money at such a late time, surely they should have mentioned this in the original letter.


The person i spoke to today also mentioned that there is going to be a ÂĢ25 behiovour bond (refundable) if your child isn't naughty or cheeky you will get your money back, daughter has been to France twice with school and they've never asked for this before


So in total they want ÂĢ75 extra, i've asked for a full refund as the extra cost isn't something i have any control over
Aimee
I keep my eye on the exchange rates due to work, I check the Euro on a daily basis...in the last week it has dropped around 5p, but on the whole, the extra cost should only be around ÂĢ18 or there abouts (just looked back at my records from Feb to May).....&ÂĢ200 for spending money as well, blimey, i could get a week All Inclusive right now for that, lol...
The Devil In Diamante
I think this whole thing has the whiff of "administrative error" about it.   As in... someone has made a boo boo when doing either the cost calculations or the bookings...  & rather than just fess up..... has decided to put it all down as an exchange rate thing.

Maybe they had forgotten to factor in the costs of the staff travel & accommodation
Dirtyprettygirlthing
Reference: Ditty
Maybe they had forgotten to factor in the costs of the staff travel & accommodation


You know Ditty, when my boys were at seniors and they had the trips to France, Germany Spain etc you couldn't move for teachers wanting to go to pick up the duty frees. It was a standing joke amongst them that the boat didn't sink on the way back from all the extra weight.
But when it came to supervising trips to the Lake District etc (no duty frees) the school always had trouble getting the required number of teachers!!
Not that I blame them btw - if I had to go away with a bunch of hormonal teens the least I'd expect is cut price booze as a perk!
FM
Twas the same when I was at school... there was the French trip - and there were always stories of teachers supping the duty free whiskey etc.

When we were getting picked up from the coach when we returned... one of my friends went running towards her parents & knocked into a teacher clutching his bottles of whiskey... he dropped them and called her an effing stupid bitch!  within earshot of the parents!

Dunno quite what happened about that..   but when my brother went on the same trip three years later, the same teacher was getting narky for the kids jostling near his baggage cos of his boooze!
Dirtyprettygirlthing
Spoke to the school today and the refund of the trip has gone from losing the deposit of  ÂĢ100 to losing ÂĢ200  so i'm in a no  win situation, pay the extra ÂĢ75 or lose ÂĢ200  the teacher says it's all the hotels fault and daughter isn't that bothered about going but her mate is so she's going wether she likes it or not
Aimee
Aimee, I really think there is something untoward about the schools behaviour. I had a quick look on the internet but couldn't find anything specific but the Citizens Advice Bureau are involved in a campaign with other groups about costs within free education so I would think that your best bet would be to give them a ring or email them tomorrow and ask if the school can:
a) ask you for extra money and
b) suddenly double the amount that you cannot be refunded.
If you have to get shirty with the school then do it. Isn't your daughter about finished with school now anyway?
FM
Aimee...

If you really do want your money back I am sure you can get it back.  But you need to throw the book at them.   First of all request a copy of the school complaints procedure immediately.   Then write a letter to the Head, sending copies (and stating on all the letters who the other copies have gone to) to the Chair of the Governors & the County Council Education Office.

This alone is usually enough to sort things out.  It initiates a laid down procedure...

They can't keep your ÂĢ200...  especially as its  because of a further demand for money out of the blue!

We've only had to play hardball like this once with a school... .& that was because of the serious bullying my boy had to go through...     But from banging our heads on a brick wall when trying to deal with just the teachers & the Head...  to suddenly things actually getting sorted... and sorted quickly once we involved County Hall & the Governors.
Dirtyprettygirlthing
They are seriously having a laugh now Aimee
I've had a really good look on the web but can't find much out.
I did find some stuff on a couple of teachers and governors sites about costs. Apparently, if you are in receipt of certain benefits and the trip is an essential part of the curriculum then you shouldn't be charged - I think! Are you still signing on?
Also if little Aimee is entitled to free school meals then apparently the school have to deduct the cost of bed and board when charging for the trip - again I think!
It doesn't seem to be really laid out in a 'one size fits all' way but I'm sure that CAB can help you out - if not try Gingerbread or one of the other one parent family group.  They helped me (a long time ago) when I had problems with my sons school relating to trip costs - although the rules were different then.
Mainly coz it was at the time that this was all fields lol
FM
So the extra cost is not just down to the exchange rate? It sounds even more wrong than it did initially...I'm no legal expert but I'm sure the law of Contract is being undermined here. If you consented to the original deal of a non-refundable deposit of ÂĢ100, they can not suddenly change it to ÂĢ200. Unless, of course there was some small print in the original letter warning you that all these costs were liable to change.
suzybean

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