A furious mother has taken to the internet to ask fellow parents advice after her four-year-old was left devastated when she lost her sticker for good behaviour. Parents will know all too well how much those cheap stickers can mean to a youngster, so what do you do when your child loses it at school?
This unnamed mother took to Mumsnet to share her experience, explaining how her daughter had been awarded the sticker in assembly last Friday where she was given a special sticker by the headteacher. She adds: "When I collected her from school that day, she was really upset and told me about the sticker and said it had been lost or another child had taken it during the day."
Thinking nothing of it, the woman decided to email the school as soon as she got home to explain the situation, in the hopes of them offering her a new sticker that she could bring home. "I was a bit surprised and taken aback by the response," she goes on to say.
Surprisingly, the school decided to veto the idea of giving the four-year-old another sticker, explaining: "Unfortunately, the headteacher sticker is given out in the morning and has to last the day at school."
The response continues: "We are unable to give out a replacement. Sorry for any inconvenience caused." The mother went on to call the reply "mean" and "not what I expected".
She adds: "My daughter was really proud to receive it and is still upset that it is lost. She keeps wanting to talk to me about it and I don't even know what it looks like."
She goes on to ask fellow Mumsnet users for advice, with many parents taking to the comment section to offer their views. "What a rude reply!", one wrote. Another, who claims to be a teacher, said: "I think that's mean-spirited, personally. I would have replaced the sticker. I also find the response you got rather snotty. If that's indicative of the ethos of the school and headteacher, you'll need your helmet and shinpads for the next six years."
While some felt it was "a bit harsh", many suggested taking the youngster out for a treat as a well-done and to distract her from the loss. "Explain that stickers don't last and the best part is that she was given her sticker in assembly and everyone knows how great she is," one wrote.
Another said: "It seems a little harsh but the Headteacher has more things to worry about than replacing a sticker. Can you suggest to your little girl that you go out together and buy a little gift for her achievement?"
One person blamed "lack of funding" for the school opting not to replace them, writing: "Headteacher stickers cost about 15-20p each if they are in colour, and if every four year old requests a replacement, they run out before the yearly budget replenishes so the kids in June and July get nothing. Welcome to underfunded schools!"