Quarter of families will get into debt over school costs, survey finds
€1,152 School Post Spending Primary Average In Per An Primary Child Child And Parents €1,288 Of Per Now Are
More families than last year see the new school year as a considerable financial burden, despite the introduction of a new free schoolbooks schemefor primary schools from September.
According to the latest Irish League of Credit Unions (ICLU) survey, cost-of-living increases are continuing to hit parents' budgeting for back-to-school time, with families planning to cut back or get into debt to cover the cost of educating their children.
With parents now spending an average of €1,152 per primary school child, and €1,288 per child in post-primary, more than one in four (29%) report getting into debt sending their child back to school.
The ICLU annual back-to-school tracker looks at the costs of education across books, extra-curricular activities, uniforms, and voluntary contributions.
More than 720 parents took part in the survey which was conducted in June. This year, 72% of parents surveyed said that covering their child’s back-to-school costs is a financial burden compared to 66% in 2022.
Despite this, the amount being spent per child on back-to-school costs has fallen slightly compared to last year. The average debt burden has also fallen.
The survey also found that nearly half of parents surveyed did not know about the introduction of the new free schoolbooks scheme from September, announced by the Government earlier this year.
The scheme is expected to remove the costs of schoolbooks, including workbooks and copybooks for children attending recognised primary schools and special schools.
A further 70% of parents said they believe schools don't do enough to keep costs down, while 75% of schools ask for a "voluntary" contribution.
Almost two-thirds of parents (62%) reported being forced to deny their children extracurricular activities because they can’t afford them. More than one-third (37%) reported they are forced to deny their children new shoes.
The reduction in back-to-school costs is partly due to parents cutting back on extra-curricular activities, according to ILCU chief executive David Malone.
"We still have parents getting into debt to cover back-to-school costs," he added.
With cost-of-living increases continuing to impact on all households, 40% of parents have cancelled or reduced non-essential services or activities to cover rising costs.
"More concerning is that 18% of parents of school children are trying to earn additional income and the potential impact this might have on family life," Mr Malone said.
The average level of debt parents reported was €306, €33 less when compared with 2022 with 17% of parents having debts of over €500.
"We are also seeing the same number of parents getting into debt compared to last year — 29% both years," Mr Malone added.
"Thankfully, the message on getting a credit union loan rather than using payday or money lenders for help with back-to-school expenses seems to be getting through."