Katherine Rich MP
National Party Education Spokeswoman

27 August 2007

Parents bail Labour out on school funding

Figures that show schools had to personally raise almost $508 million dollars to keep themselves afloat in 2006, says National's Education spokeswoman Katherine Rich.

Ministry of Education statistics for every school in the country show $507,939,583 was raised by schools to plump up government funding.

"Of that, $155 million was donated by parents personally, another $57 million was from donations and a further $80 million was rustled up by fund raising.

The top five ways schools are attempting to keep their heads above water are:

* Parental contributions $155m
* Donations $57m
* Fundraising $80m
* Overseas students $91m
* Trading sales $76m

"Parents and communities are under constant pressure to make ends meet at their local schools and should be congratulated for the sterling effort they make in contributing to their children's 'free' education.

"Maybe Helen Clark should have taken notice of her own words when she launched Labour's Education Policy in 1996 - 'Some schools fund raise to send the first fifteen overseas and others to pay for basic maintenance. The cost of education is denying capable, keen people the chance to reach their full potential'

"Her Government has done nothing to improve the situation."

ENDS

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