Extra curricular activities pull on parents' purse strings

With record breaking A-Level and GCSE results announced year after year, parents hoping to make their rising stars stand out from the crowd may be in for a shock when it comes to the additional costs involved in extra curricular activities.

Research from Alliance & Leicester Savings reveals supporting out of hours pursuits, like drama lessons and sport, can add over £1.7 billion to annual parental expenses across the country.

Parents will no doubt be aware of the price tag attached to regular timetabled activities, but while they will want to invest in their children's futures and provide them with as many opportunities as possible, they may not have considered the expense involved.

Hetal Parmar, Manager for Savings at Alliance & Leicester, said: "All parents know that taking part in extra-curricular activities benefits their children, and it is right that they want to support their ambitions. Whether the dream is to be a class act or sporting hero, the cost mounts up on top of the price of compulsory uniforms, school dinners and school trips.

"Only one in 20 are saving up specifically for child related expenses. Parents will feel the pinch if they have not made financial provisions already, especially if they have more than one child at school, or if their child takes part in more than one activity."

Parents of Harry Potters or High School Musical hopefuls can expect to pay at least £10 per session for weekend ‘performing arts' classes. Alternatively, the parents of dance fans will be paying around £7 for classes in jazz and basic ballet.

Similarly, parents of Wayne Rooney ‘wannabes' enticed into football fantasy can expect to pay over £130 to be kitted out, including the latest football shirt. In addition, holiday membership to a sports and activities camp can be around £575 a year, and couple this with the cost of petrol to and from training and matches and the bills soon mount up.

Hetal Parmar continues: "Saving regularly, especially little and often, can soon build up into a lump sum, eliminating stress and paving the way to pay for additional costs. Simply putting £50 from your monthly wage packet into a high interest savings account or ISA will mount up to £600 a year, plus interest."