Thank you for choosing to send your child to our Catholic School. As you may know, faith schools have traditionally had to contribute to any capital project funding and as a Catholic School in the Xavier Trust, the school must continue to contribute, or pay in full, the cost of building projects and general site repairs and improvements. We do this through the Governors Fund.

The fund is made up of contributions from parents, grandparents and friends who make voluntary donations for the benefit of the children. Some parents set up a regular payment, others pay termly through SCOPAY. In the last two years, the fund has spent £38,000 on the following projects: maintaining the school hall floor, new blinds for all classrooms, air conditioning units in year 5 and 6, interactive whiteboards in classrooms, and soon to be installed playground sheds, school signage and a new hot water dispenser for the staff room.

We would love to continue to develop our school and facilities while your child is at The Marist and would ask you to consider signing up for monthly donations. Whilst we have been able to spend on various projects, the funds are currently running low, and we will not be able to fund or partially fund project requests over the next year.

The suggested voluntary donation is £120 per child per year, which is slightly less than 50p per day. However, the Governors fully accept that £120 per year is a lot of money to find at once, so we ask our families - if possible - to set up a smaller regular payment through internet banking. Alternatively, there is an option of making your payment/s online via SCOPAY (https://www.scopay.com/login). Please ask at the school office if you require help with this.

To set up a direct debit, the account details are:

Account name:  The Marist Catholic Primary School – Govs Fund

Sort Code:                30-99-80

Account number:       18658763

Reference:               your child’s/ children’s name(s)

If you are a taxpayer please also complete a GIFT AID FORM, which allows the school to claim an additional 25p for every pound donated.

Many employers operate match funding and/or similar funding schemes that could increase your contribution. We know how busy parents are, but if you think your employer may run one of these schemes, we are happy to assist in any administration that might be involved.

100% of the Governors Fund goes to the school and is used to benefit each and every pupil at The Marist.

Thank you for your time and generosity.