One of the most stressful times of the year for parents is back-to-school – not only is it a busy and stressful time, but it can be financially draining.
One Australian mum has shared her anger and frustration over the price of sending her three children to school, posting a copy of the whopper bill for their ‘basics’.
Cindy Bogan has three kids in the public school system: one in Year 10 (typically aged 13 to 15), one in Year 8 (typically aged 13 to 14), and one in Prep (typically aged five to 10).
In a post accompanied by a screenshot of a receipt, Cindy explains that the ‘basics’ of books and stationery for all three children rang in at $578 (just over £354).
“$578 just for the BASICS! That’s not including the $300 for COMPULSORY uniforms. That’s not including $150 on SUSTAINABLE backpacks to last more than one school term,” she explained.
Cindy went on to lament the phasing out of the Schoolkids Bonus Scheme whereby, if you fell within a certain tax bracket and income category, you could receive Government payments towards these expenses.
“The above cost to myself today is what 74 percent of Australian Families earn in a WEEK! That’s without having to pay rent/ mortgages and without the rising cost of electricity/ food and fuel. So many families relied on the Schoolkids Bonus to do exactly what I did today – prepare their children for the coming school year,” wrote Cindy.
She went on to urge the country and the Government to ‘wake up’ to what these crippling costs are doing to families. Can you relate?
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