Parents hit by €400 bill for back to school costs
CASH-STRAPPED families will fork out an average of around €400 per child in back-to-school costs this September.
A study by the Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) found that struggling parents will spend an average of €470 on a second-level student and €320 to get their primary students kitted out for school.
Schoolbooks alone will cost a whopping €238 for secondary students, compared with €125 for primary students.
Parents will also be badly stung for school uniforms -- costing an average of €281 for secondary students and €177 for primary students.
Most worryingly, more than half of all families will be forced take out loans or raid their savings to meet the costs.
Parents of secondary-level children are more likely to dip into their savings or use credit cards.
And two thirds of those surveyed admitted school costs will directly affect their ability to pay household bills or afford a holiday.
Despite the expense, 9pc of Irish parents say they will continue to send their children to fee-paying schools.
South Dublin schools such as Rockbrook Park and Terenure College are maintaining their fees above €4,000 per year.
The study also found that over three quarters of parents (76pc) are requested to make voluntary contributions of around €130 to schools in September.
Chief executive of the ILCU, Kieron Brennan has urged parents to shop around for the best back-to-school deals.
"This iReach research shows us that there are significant numbers of parents using their credit cards and using their savings to pay for their child's back-to-school needs, with many parents feeling that the back-to-school allowance is not sufficient to cover costs."
hnews@herald.ie
- Niall O'Connor
