The cost of school fess, books, uniforms and extramural activities can put a big financial strain on any parent. But sending your children to school is necessary if you want them to grow up to be successful individuals. Here are some useful tips to help you save money and make sure you can always pay your child’s school costs:

1. Don’t give up on last year’s school uniforms
They may be a little worn, but scuffed shoes and a missing button are no reason to toss that uniform away. Fix hems that are coming undone, polish old shoes, and do any other alterations that can save you buying a new item of clothing. If the uniform is too small, sell it at your local second-hand store. You may even find a uniform in the right size there.

2. Find out about school fee discounts and discuss a payment plan
Schools will let you pay in monthly instalments, but it can be more expensive to do this because you’ll end up paying interest. If you can, try to pay the full amount for a year at the start of the new school year. Schools often offer a discount for full payments as they then don’t have to worry about following up with parents throughout the year.

Tip: Plan in advance for your child’s schooling, by saving every month of the year before they start school.

3. Buy second-hand wherever possible
This applies to school uniforms, as well as school books and sports equipment. Many schools have small second-hand shops for buying used textbooks at a much cheaper price than in stores.

4. Don’t give in to your child’s request for tuck shop money
Besides being expensive, tuck shop food is unhealthy and unnecessary. Rather plan your child’s lunch meals for the week and pack them a delicious, healthy sandwich, juice and water, fruit and a snack/treat.

5. Join a stokvel
A stokvel works best in larger groups, and here’s an example:

• In a group of say 12 people at work or in your community, each person contributes R100 to the stokvel every month.
• Each member draws a month to see when they’ll collect all their stokvel monies (everyone’s contribution for that month).
• You will now know beforehand how much money you’ll be receiving and when, and you can then factor in the amount into your kids’ school fee budget.