From the school cone to the graduation trip – over the years, parents face high costs related to school attendance. In many areas, however, there is potential for savings that add up over the entire school year and are therefore worthwhile. Because not everything is really necessary for the school success of your child.
Parents pay around 21,000 euros for their children’s 12-year school education. There are sometimes horrendous differences between the individual federal states: If you live in Lower Saxony, for example, you will have to pay almost 30,000 euros for your child’s schooling. If you live in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, it is just under half. It is therefore worth taking a close look and exploiting the existing savings potential.
Potential savings in care
More and more parents are working full-time while their children are at school. In this respect, they are dependent on supervision. It is therefore not surprising that the costs for after-school care make up the largest proportion of the total costs of school life. Because: In the open all-day schools, care is offered at lunchtime and also in the afternoon, even if there are no more classes. Many parents are happy to take advantage of this, which means that a share of the childcare costs is incurred. On average in Germany, this amounts to 7,911 euros over the course of school life. In Thuringia, parents only pay 2,750 euros, while in Lower Saxony they are asked to pay 14,000 euros.
If you don’t want to resort to school care, you should try to organize care yourself. Together with other parents or even grandmas, grandpas, aunts, and uncles, neighborhood care can be organized that is completely free of charge. If a childcare contract is drawn up, the costs up to the age of 14 can even be deducted from tax as a special expense. Alternatively, you can hire a childminder or a student to organize the children’s afternoons in a meaningful way. This may even be beneficial for school success.
Potential savings in school materials
School satchels and sports gear are offered in new designs by the manufacturers every year. However, if you go back to a previous year’s model instead, you can save significantly. In terms of quality, this usually makes no difference and most materials are not used for long anyway. And since the children in the higher grades use the same models, your child is not at a disadvantage. In any case, it is worthwhile to compare different providers online, as the prices sometimes vary greatly. If the things no longer fit after a year, it is also advisable to sell them on. For this purpose, many schools have book fairs for school books, where you can buy used books and sell them again.
Potential savings in school meals
A healthy lunch is important. Nevertheless, you can still save here if you give your child a lunch box that you have put together yourself instead of letting them take part in the school lunch. However, arithmetic is required here, since school meals are often subsidized and therefore very cheap.
