My 11 year old twin boys are due to go on a school trip away in a couple of months and the cost of the trip itself is going to cost £320 for the both of them. This excludes and kit they need and spending money etc...
Where will we stand with regards to this with our ip do you think?
Has anyone else been in a similar situation?
An IVA is a long hard road but valuable lessons have been learnt along the way. Now looking forward to enjoying a debt free future!
Unfortunately trips like these are not included in your expenditure allowances, however your IP may show some understanding but very doubtful for the full amount.
The costs of school trips is ridiculous and how they expect parents to fund these trips time after time again I do not know ....
Have you any relatives could help on this occassion?
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
There is a solution for everyone .... Just need to stay positive !
Hi, I have got 3 children, one at university, one going into secondary school in September and one in Primary school and apart from the usual ongoing (very high) cost of supporting my eldest at uni, there always seems to be some activity or trip going on that the younger kids want to take part in. Although I don't want our kids to suffer due to our IVA's, they also have to accept that we do have to live within the constraints of the IVA allowances so they can't always do everything they want to, although surely this is the same for everyone - if you can't afford it, they can't do it!! That said, we have managed to save enough for the two youngest to go on a school trip each by cutting back as much as possible on shopping and household expenditure and putting the savings towards their school trips. We have had to say No to certain other after school activities because we simply don't have the money and that is just the way it has to be - we are not going to borrow money from people or do anything stupid just to be able to have the money for them to do these things. In the end, it's more important that you spend time together, getting out and about in the fresh air rather than trying to buy expensive toys/games or thinking you have to spend loads of money keeping them occupied.
Exactly, esgt1967 - and schools should take more responsibility to organise activities that do not cost parents a fortune. In my day you got one day's school trip per year to Barry Island for the day, and that did not do us any harm!
My two penneth for what it's worth. I would have gone without for my daughter to have what her friends had, to go on any trips she wished to. However, with her being older and knowing about the IVA she was very understanding...now with younger children I know they don't understand as well (and why should they).
I agree about schools taking responsibility too.
When she was at junior school it was always a voluntary contribution (not sure if other schools have this) so I used to send in about half of the money with a letter of explanation. Also there are bursary funds for older children available, always ask as that's what it's there for and when you've explained about the IVA once you don't have to do it again (well I didn't).
IVA final payment left the bank on the 26th January 2013...looking forward to a debt free future.
It is very difficult paying for school trips, we only have one child and find it hard. Our son's school do give lots of notice (about a year)for expensive over night trips and also offer a payment plan which helps
Lesley, that's an interesting comment about the voluntary contribution and letter of explanation. We find it difficult because we are not actually low earners so kids don't qualify for free school meals etc but obviously it is very difficult for us being in our IVA's and having to fund school trips for two children as well as pay out for the uni costs. However, as nobody knows about our IVA's apart from our 21 year old daughter, I'm not sure I really want to let the school know about them and would rather take the financial hit, to be honest, although it would be useful at times. For example, at Christmas they took the whole school to the pantomime which was a "voluntary" contribution of £11 each but there was the note, slightly on the blackmail end of the spectrum, that if there weren't enough voluntary contributions, the trip couldn't happen. Paying £22 for this school trip at a very expensive time of year anyway - I have 4 family birthdays in December as well as having to deal with Christmas - was quite difficult. As one of the other posters said, you usually get plenty of notice and we start saving a little bit as soon as we know about the trip to try to soften the blow. It's certainly not easy.
I feel the trip would go ahead regardless if planned as part of the curriculum. However, not all parents would not pay (hopefully) so when I used to send half I never felt guilty.
I do agree it's not easy and we all handle our IVA's independently. It will end though eventually and hopefully then life become a whole lot easier. All the best. x
IVA final payment left the bank on the 26th January 2013...looking forward to a debt free future.
Hi
the cost of this trip is £160 per child for 2 nights away. I have the twins age 11 so it will cost £320 and it will be their first trip away from home.
we have only been given 3 months notice of this trip.
We have no family who can help financially. As we are high earners we don't get nothing 'free' and we don't feel we want to disclose our terrible iva situation to the school. The cost of the trip will probably be in excess of £320 as they are going to need kit to go with it. It is their final year in the school as they are going to high school in september (more expense) and feel that they should go for part of their development. We will just have to starve for a month when they go.
An IVA is a long hard road but valuable lessons have been learnt along the way. Now looking forward to enjoying a debt free future!
There is no harm in speaking with your IP as it is for the benefit of your children. It may require a variation to allow you to miss a payment or two but if these payments were added to end creditors may well be sympathetic. You have gone this far and it seems fair enough to me as your children should not suffer as a result of your IVAs.
I'm with you Christabelle, I would starve rather than my child not go, however, I also disclosed my situation and was able to claim from the hardship fund, but again each to their own. All the best.
IVA final payment left the bank on the 26th January 2013...looking forward to a debt free future.
My children come first in everything also and would give them my all. I do feel though that schools push parents to extreme. Our eldest last year came home with a letter for a school trip to china at a cost of £1800 for a 4 day trip. Glad to say he didn't want to go as I don't know what we would of done apart from say "no"
