For a lot of kids, their First Holy Communion is all about how much money they will get on the day. And new research conducted by MummyPages.ie has found out EXACTLY how much some of these primary school children actually receive.
According to the research, the average amount of money children were gifted last year on their First Holy Communion was €323, up from €299 in 2015. However, the biggest jump is at the upper end of the scale where 56% of children received sums in the region of €500-€1,500 compared to 31% in 2015, and of these one fifth received over €1,000.
And it's actually worrying mums, as six in ten say the sum earns children bragging rights on the school playground.
However, mums are using this opportunity to introduce their children to saving, with 87% stating that their child will put most of their money away. The top choice for 59% of our young savers seems to be the Credit Union, 26% will use their local post office and 9% will put their savings in a bank.
But it's not just the amount of money that they receive as gifts that is concerning. Over half of parents feel the strain when it comes to paying for their child’s big day with the average family spending between €1,222 - €1,525.
Interestingly, mums are calling for primary schools to implement cost saving initiatives to help parents cope with the costs, with 70% agreeing that children should instead wear their school uniform on their special day.
But it's not just about outfits for one person; the overall spend on clothes for the entire family increased this year, with 13% spending up to €100, 63% spending between €101-250, 20% will spend anywhere in the region of €251-500 and 2% of mums will spend up to a whopping €1,000 on new clothes including shoes and accessories for the entire family.
But that's not all.
One in ten mums will spend up to €50 on the school communion photos provided by the school, while 27% of mums plan to spend up to €250 for professional photos. Most mums mums don't feel the need to stump up for a professional photographer, and are happy to capture their child’s special day using a smartphone or digital device.
“It seems that as we become more financially stable the materialistic nature of the Holy Communion Day is creeping back in. Parents are spending more on outfits and the celebrations while children are now obsessing over how much money they will receive in gifts on their big day,” said Laura Haugh Mum-in-Residence for MummyPages.ie.
“In an effort to help parents curb costs and instill a sense of community within their school, many will now throw a big party for the children after the church ceremony. In addition, just over one in ten schools will hire sacramental robes for the children or insist they wear their uniform on their big day.”
