[Ricky]

Hi Guys,
How much does it cost per annum to send children to state primary schoool in new zealand.

I read in a furum that donations were accepted but i would appreciate clarification on this .;)

[dharder]

How much does it cost per annum to send children to state primary schoool in new zealand.

I read in a furum that donations were accepted but i would appreciate clarification on this .;)

Depends on the school and largely what its decile is (and whether you have the right visa).

I think our school wants about $300 per child per year ($475 for two children), but is probably going to increase that, their decile rating has just gone up (and therefore government monies down).

I do think these are voluntary payments, but I think you are pretty much expected to pay them, and they are 'voluntary' in name only.

Daniela

[Ricky]

Thank you so much Daniela
All the best for Dec

[gil]

Daniela is right Ricky. Voluntary means you are expected to pay. Our kids' schools allow you to spread paymnets throguh the year if preferred

I would suggest checking out fees for the schools you are interested in via their website. You can get those through this link http://www.tki.org.nz/e/schools/index.php
THe school will indicate what their fees are for domestic and international students. If you don't have PR which enables kids to go to school here or a work visa which enables a student visa to go to school here, you will be up for international fees.... lots of $$$!

Gil

[mgbridges]

Hi,

We have PR and our son goes to a local (North Shore, Auckland) Catholic Primary, Decile 10 school. Our fees for this term were $231.00, there are four terms in a school year so roughly $1,000 per year. This may be higher than you would fine elsewhere as because its a religious school it isn't totally state funded and has to raise its own funds.

Don't forget that these fees are in addition to costs for uniform, stationery & photocopying.

Hope this helps,
Anneliese

[Carol]

We pay $100 a year for our daughter's Decile 9 primary.

Our sons who are at college - rack up "donations" aka activity fees of around $1000 a year each.:eek: (because they both do design type subjects which need ongoing materials) + uniforms.

[incredible hulse]

Hi,

Don't forget that these fees are in addition to costs for uniform, stationery & photocopying.

Hope this helps,
Anneliese
Hi Anneliese - could you give me an idea of these costs ? I was aware of the donations but hadn't been aware of the extras.

[kiwidebs]

We pay $171 a year for our daughter's state primary (decile 10) school. Uniform costs are quite high as the uniform has the school thingy embroided on it. Can't remember at the moment but will try and get hold of a uniform list to let you know prices.
We also pay an activity fee every term which covers excursions and so on. This term it was $18.50 which covered a trip to the zoo, a puppet show thingy at school, visit from the local fire dept and the Life Education trust caravan. Last term it was $20 which covered trip to Kelly Tarltons, some dance thing at the school and a trip to the local art centre. So all fairly reasonable I feel.
We also find, being a decile 10 school, therefore less govt funding, we are often being asked to donate to this or that to raise funds. eg sausage sizzle, mufti day, sushi lunch, calendars, disco, carboot sale, entertainment books, zoodoo, clingfilm and so on. And these are all optional, although I do make an effort as it raises funds for the school.

Overall, it works out alot cheaper than my son's daycare and the uniform is great cos i don't have to argue with a 5 year old about appropriate clothing for the weather every morning! :laugh

Hope this helps
Debs

[Tia Maria]

This thread has some useful school costs on:

www.emigratenz.org/forum/showthread.php?p=155159

Cheers

Tia

[sizzlingbadger]

We've got two at Catholic Primary school and next year it's going to be $320 each for the year :exit Got another child yet to go, definitely going to need a second mortgage.

This doesn't include the uniforms which are very expensive especially when they lose stuff :(

Like the way they say it's 'donation' when it should say compulsory but we've been told there's a reason why they do it that way (don't ask me why because I've forgotten :uhoh ). We have heard through some people that you can claim the tax back on the fees, not sure how it works though and if it's legit :o

[incredible hulse]

Like the way they say it's 'donation' when it should say compulsory but we've been told there's a reason why they do it that way (don't ask me why because I've forgotten :uhoh ). We have heard through some people that you can claim the tax back on the fees, not sure how it works though and if it's legit :o Yep; you can add it to your tax return (well my accountant did and haven't had the IRD round yet ;) )

[speckythecky]

I think we have to pay $350 for two boys at a decile 10 school on the north shore, then on top of that there is a entertainment / trip charge each term which covers swimming and trips etc. The biggest shock to me was the stationery list. Even though we only arrived in September one of my boys teachers asked for everything on the list for the whole year, the other teacher just asked for essentials to last until next year.
Uniform wasn't cheap either.

[mgbridges]

Ok folks here we go with complete list of uniform costs as at July 2007 for my sons Decile 10, Catholic Primary school on Auckland North Shore. Price ranges are due to size, the bigger the size the higher the cost!

Summer Dress $62.00 - $66.00
Winter Tunic $76.00 - $82.00
Boys Grey Polo Shirt $34.00
Boys Grey Shorts Elastic Waist $30.00
Boys Grey Shorts Zip Front $35.00
Woollen Jumper $47.00 - $54.00
Long Sleeve Polo Shirt $22.00 - 24.00
Black Woollen socks $10.00 (per pair)
PE Shorts $18.00 - $20.00
PE Polo Shirt $21.00
Sweatshirt $36.00 - $38.00
Sunhats Cap $10.00 or Slouch Hat $13.00

Very few if any of these items can be purchased from anywhere other than the school as a lot of it is a very specific unusual colour or has the school logo on it. Hats are compulsory in the summer term. Oh yeah and don't forget the black leather fully enclosed shoes for winter and black leather sandals for summer.

And here is the Stationery List for 2007 for the more junior rooms at the school.

SECTION 1
Story book $0.50
Storywriting/spelling book $0.70
Handwriting book $0.70
Document Wallet $0.70
Poems/Sound Book $2.00
'Interest' Book $2.20
Portfolio book $4.00
HB Pencil $0.30
Triangular Pencil $1.20
Jovi Plastic Crayons pack of 24 $6.70
Dreamland Oil Pastels $3.00
Coloured Pencils x 12 $4.00
Glue Stick $2.50
Maxi pencil $0.70
RE Children's Activity Book $13.00

SECTION 2
Phonemic Awareness Book (set of 7) $34.00
RE Family Whanau Book $13.00
Reading Book Bag $4.50
Blye Nylon Library Bag $4.50
My Word Book $4.50
Book Record Cards $0.20 for 2
Eraser $0.30
Pencil grip $1.20
Personal File $0.50
Art Shirt $14.00
PE Bag $4.00
Chair Bag $9.50

SECTION 3
Duplicating charge $16.00 per child

Section 1 - required by everybody and have to be purchased from the school to "ensure consistent quality"
Section 2 - Itmes here need only be purchased if your child needs them
Section 3 - Fixed charges per child, compulsory

Our son joined the school 3 weeks before the end of Term 3 so he didn't need everything and I avoided the Art Shirt and PE Bag costs by providing them myself by our bill was $57.90

Hope this helps,
Anneliese

[Oregonkiwi]

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10479245
Parents spend almost $500 a year on a primary school child's education, research has found.

The Council for Educational Research's three-yearly survey of primary schools found the costs of "free" education included school donations, activity fees, trips, uniforms, fundraising, stationery and transport.

On average, the cost was $489 a child a year - up from $471 in the previous survey, three years ago.

[gil]

Your're an early bird Oregonkiwi, I just saw that and was about to post it here!

[speckythecky]

The reason for the contribution being voluntary is that it then becomes tax deductable. I think we have just paid $300 for the year for 2 boys. You then need to add on the 'Entertainment contribution' (covers trips and sports etc) which they haven't announced yet.
Also don't forget the price of books - I was shocked by the size of the book list.

[Probyn]

The reason for the contribution being voluntary is that it then becomes tax deductable. I think we have just paid $300 for the year for 2 boys. You then need to add on the 'Entertainment contribution' (covers trips and sports etc) which they haven't announced yet.
Also don't forget the price of books - I was shocked by the size of the book list.


I guess its all relative.. but I hear the schools are pretty good,and so it sounds not a bad deal from where Iam going from.!!

[Oregonkiwi]

Compared to what we're paying for full time daycare for our 3 yr old, $500 per year seems like an unbelievable bargain! :D