Call for school textbook rental scheme

PARENTS and politicians joined forces yesterday to call for a nationwide book rental scheme to cut the exorbitant cost of sending children back to school.

It costs almost €1,000 to buy a uniform, books, sport and school equipment for an average 12-year-old starting secondary school.

The Labour Party says the Department of Education could do two basic things to considerably reduce the cost of sending children to school.

“The first thing would be to bring in a nationwide book rental scheme, and the second would be to give the back-to-school clothing and footwear allowance to more parents,” said the party’s education spokeswoman, Jan O’Sullivan.

At the moment any family with two children which earns over €350.70 a week will not qualify for the allowance, nor will lone parents of two children who earn over €249.

“The Government will just have to raise this threshold, because there are a lot of low and middle income families who need help and are often forced to go to moneylenders at this time of year,” Deputy O’Sullivan said.

She also wants the unions, management and parents to come together and ensure that books are only changed when absolutely necessary.

“A nationwide book rental scheme would also cut costs considerably, and while it would cost money initially to set up, it would be well worth it,” Deputy O’Sullivan said.

The National Parents Council (NPC) backed the call for a nationwide book rental scheme, saying it would half the cost of books.

“It is the most practical thing to do and would help parents enormously at this very expensive time of year,” NPC (Primary) chief executive Fionnuala Kilfeather said.

She also called on all primary schools to publish their annual accounts, because the voluntary subscriptions they sought from parents varied enormously.

A Department of Education spokesman was unavailable for comment last night.