Lozzie
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Ethics of FundraisingAs chairman of my school's PTA, I get handed and sent an awful lot of marketing and publicity material trying to persuade me to take up wonderful offers from companies selling their goods and services and sharing the profit with the school.
An obvious example of this technique is the Book Fair, where a percentage of the profit from each book sold goes into the school coffers. Others examples include things like recycling printer cartridges and old mobile phones.
But there are quite a few things that cross my desk that make me wonder about the pedigree of behind what is being offered. For example: A company that sells minerals (crystals) and fossils to children - admittedly, a lovely-sounding idea, especially with the Jurassic Coast on our doorstep - but where have these crystals come from? How were they mined? What chemicals might have been used in their extraction? Were the people who dug them out of the ground paid a fair wage?
Or what about this one - a company that specialises in collecting quality second-hand clothing which is then sold on to wholesalers in Russia, Latvia and Lithuania. These wholesalers then sell on to individuals in these countries. But don't these "developing countries" have garment and textile indurstries of their own which, presumably, will be inhibited by a rush of cheap clothing from the privaledged West? **sigh**
I am finding it difficult to balance out my own ethical standpoint with the need to make money for the school. Does any one have words of wisdom for me? ((And should it be ME who decides upon whether we take up any of these offers, or should I be offering the committee a fully backed-up and researched argument as to WHY we shouldn't be using these people ... oh, I am sure you see my dilema!))
Good home offered here for ideas for sustainable and ethical fundraising initiatives 
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moongoddess
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this is a brilliant thread Lozzie and I shall be following it eagerly.
I'm going through a similar dilema at the moment; I have a 'thing' about good 'real ' food. Twice a week there are icecreams for sale at the school to raise money for the school.
The lady that organises this is a lovely lady; very altrustic, always there in the front line doing stuff for the school. The sort of person who would help anyone out.
However, this is 49p for 2 litres icecream with awful chemically laden sauce on top. So basically, the children's health is being exploited (as I see it) to raise money. I let my daughter have one ONCE a week on a friday - I don't want her to be the 'odd one out' but invariably she comes home with a rash around her mouth from this dreadful stuff and is hyperactive alongside complaining of stomach ache.
We get so much from the school - lots of the trips are funded by money-raising such as the ice-cream and I am so grateful for the care they take of the children, but there are principles that I feel are compromised too. The irony is that this is an Eco school and they are trying to get some sort of health award 
I have no words of wisdom at all, but I really wish you luck on sorting this one out and I look forward to other's opinions.
(((HUGS)))
mg x
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marigold
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A very good point Lozzie, so many "good causes" aren't well thought through (though I do appreciate that if you thought through everything to the ultimate conclusion nothing would ever get done).
One of my own bugbears is Comic Relief red noses - PLASTIC stuff which is manufactured where? By whom? At what cost to the environment? Becomes litter/landfill the day after the event....
And what about all those "trek the Andes for breast cancer" type fundraisers? Polluting long haul flights shouldn't play a part in any sort of health campaign IMO.
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Mrs Fiddlesticks
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It's got to be in conjunction with the school. That's the line we take. We use to have a tuck shop selling sweets after school when I first joined. The new head who arrived a year or two afterwards suggested that as the school worked towards Healthy School status we drop it. The committee understood the point and obviously ended it. I would say that the chair at the time was very much in to giving the children treats without thought of the consequences (she's not in the school now so I can say that) and it was an education for her.
As the chair its for you to set the ethical tone. If it doesn't sound right ( I've read very bad things about the selling unwanted clothes to eastern europe things) it probably isn't.
Having said that our school does the book fair ( kids get to buy books and they usually have a dress as favourite book character for a day and a £1) and collects mobile phones and toner cartridges. That's something they do; it has nothing to do with us.
As for the ice-cream, can you suggest a healthier alternative? ( I suspect there are other parents feeling as you do) Even homemade cakes and biscuits would be an improvement and could still raise money for school. I'd not have thought that a few ice-creams each week would really raise that much - our tuck shop didn't!
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tahir
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Re: Ethics of Fundraising | Lozzie wrote: | | Or what about this one - a company that specialises in collecting quality second-hand clothing which is then sold on to wholesalers in Russia, Latvia and Lithuania. These wholesalers then sell on to individuals in these countries. But don't these "developing countries" have garment and textile indurstries of their own which, presumably, will be inhibited by a rush of cheap clothing from the privaledged West? **sigh** |
Yes indeedy, this is a major issue in Africa and other places, in East Africa their fledgling textile trade has been bankrupted by imports of secondhand clothing from the UK.
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alison
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We have the same thing with toast at break time.
The most rubbish bread is used, and a slice of toast, with flora  is 10p a slice.
The year 6 children take it in turns preparing the toast, and selling it, so there is an educational value there.
It is a rip off though.
The school cook does make flapjacks which are delish, and cost 20p.
My children take a home made snack, which I know what it contains, and once in a while I let them buy from the tuck shop.
I had a real problem when my youngest started school, as he kept asking at the office (where my next door neighbour works) for some tuck money, which she would give him, even though he had tcuk in his bag.
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sean
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| alison wrote: |
I had a real problem when my youngest started school, as he kept asking at the office (where my next door neighbour works) for some tuck money, which she would give him, even though he had tcuk in his bag. |
You've got to give him ten out of ten for ingenuity though.
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alison
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Had to beat that out of him fast. Couldn't afford to keep up with it! 
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moongoddess
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| Mrs Fiddlesticks wrote: |
As for the ice-cream, can you suggest a healthier alternative? |
That's a mission I'm considering and help would be appreciated. Might be better to start another thread rather than hijack this one........
mg x
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dpack
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car boot sale in the playground ?
hire out the hall for events ?
put on events
get a cocacola machine  ?
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Lozzie
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It wouldn't exactly be hijacking moongoddess, just a little digression. I am personally always up for a little digression, aren't you??
You're just suggesting a healthier and perhaps more effective way of fundraising for the school - making your own frozen yoghurts or icepoles, for example. Basically what you're saying (as I see it) is that to be truly ethical (and healthy!), fundraising initiatives need to be self-generated, rather than relying on the kinds of companies and organisations who are showering me with junk mail.
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Mrs Fiddlesticks
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| Lozzie wrote: | | Basically what you're saying (as I see it) is that to be truly ethical (and healthy!), fundraising initiatives need to be self-generated, rather than relying on the kinds of companies and organisations who are showering me with junk mail. |
Don't even think its that clear cut. We've done well with offers through seed companies, selling bulbs and seed packs. We've done the 'everyone put their picture on a tea-towel' thing. We do order things through the Baker Ross catalogue for prizes and stalls, but that's an economics thing. All you can do is judge each bit of junk mail on its own merits and decide if its really right for you and your school. We have our own issues since we're a very small school; only 55 pupils so some things are inappropriate in terms of scale. I think the area that the school serves must also be taken in to consideration, some things would work and some your parents (customers) just wouldn't be interested in.
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