Court rules ungazetted school levies illegal in win for parents

The High Court has ruled that it is illegal for headteachers and principals to charge parents extra levies that have not been scheduled or gazetted by the Education Cabinet Secretary.

In a landmark judgment that now directly affects how schools are run, Justice Lawrence Mugambi said that even if parents unanimously agree to pay extra fees, the decision cannot pass legal muster if it is not approved by the Cabinet Secretary.

“A declaration is hereby issued that it is unlawful to charge levies in any public school, including those that may be passed by resolutions of the parents’ association under the Third Schedule to the Act, before seeking and obtaining approval from the Cabinet Secretary in charge of Education, pursuant to Section 29(2)(b) of the Basic Education Act, 211,” ruled Justice Mugambi.

The judge was determining a case filed by Moses Wasike against the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and St George’s Girls Secondary School, Nairobi.

In the case, Wasike informed the court that he has a daughter at the school. He stated that the school notified him he was required to pay an additional Sh25,000 in fees for dormitory expansion during orientation.

At the same time, he said the Parents Association (PTA) chairperson encouraged the parents to pay Sh3,000 per term for remedial fees. However, he stated that they were informed that remedial fees were not mandatory.

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Wasike stated that the narrative changed after they were added to a WhatsApp group.

He claimed that the PTA representative and a teacher demanded payment of the fees and advised parents that failure to pay would result in the school denying students entry upon re-opening the following term.

The court heard that when Wasike’s daughter returned to school for her second term on January 10, 2024, she was told to go home. He stated that the school demanded Sh7,220 as a balance. The parent lamented that he had already paid Sh40,000 of the required Sh40,800 fees set for the term.

Upon enquiry, he was informed that the school’s management was demanding Sh2,200 for four textbooks his daughter had lost and Sh5,000 for remedial fees.

“The school informed me that the fee was mandatory and part of the school fees as approved by the Ministry of Education. Notwithstanding the payment I had already made and my pleas, the school remained adamant that my daughter would not be allowed in school unless the balance was paid,” said Wasike.

Wasike said he sent a clarification letter to the TSC and the Ministry of Education Cabinet Secretary.

The CS never responded, while TSC wrote back, advising that the issue should be resolved in-house without involving the commission.

He said that the TSC had, however, in 2023 informed parents that extra charges demanded by principals and head teachers were illegal and had been banned.

Wasike noted that the dormitory completion fees had also been charged to previous parents.

“For how long has this amount been paid by the parents?” he posed, adding that although the class teacher was remorseful about how they treated his daughter, she still insisted that he was bound to pay the remedial fees.

The parent claimed he was also informed that he had been removed from the parents’ WhatsApp group as he might incite the other parents.

The school, on the other hand, argued that the court had no jurisdiction to entertain the case, as Wasike had no authority to act on behalf of the other parents.

The institution asserted that the extra fees fall under the school’s Performance Improvement Programme and had been agreed upon by parents on June 26, 2023.