What this policy needs to do
It should reflect:
- Advice from the Department for Education (DfE) on charging for school activities, and
- The Education Act 1996 (sections 449 to 462)
It's not your job to cross-reference the policy with this guidance, but you should expect your senior leaders to have done so.
You'll want to make sure the policy sets out:
- What your school can and can't charge parents for
- When your school might ask for voluntary contributions, and that parents aren't obliged to make any contributions
- Under what circumstances your school will remit/cancel any charges (wholly or partly)
3 key questions to challenge this policy
You need to ask challenging questions of senior leaders when the policy comes to you for approval, so you can be sure the policy-reviewing process was robust.
Check the entire policy is clearly written for a parent audience, without too