Prom for Grade 11 and 12 students will now cost £40 per ticket, despite having been free to attend in previous years. The event will be held May 18 at the London Marriott Hotel in Regent’s Park, according to Director of Student Life Royce Wallace’s email sent March 27.
Interim High School Principal Jack Phillips said prom has been free of charge since it was incorporated into the budget in 2014. He said the main reason behind implementing a cost per ticket this year is the school’s budget cut, which has prompted the need to save money on extra costs.
“We’ve targeted all kinds of administrative costs and little things here or there to try and cut back, and one of the things we’re always running over is prom,” Phillips said. “The school has been running in a deficit, but we’re on track to be budget neutral this year.”
Phillips said another reason for this new price is the rising venue costs in London due to economic inflation.
“Everything has sort of skyrocketed within London, so finding something within budget was impossible this year,” Phillips said.
Lamine Sao (’24) said the sudden cost change “feels out of the blue,” since students weren’t notified earlier.
“Perhaps the biggest change is just the student reception to the fact that we have to pay,” Sao said. “I think if there had been some in advance communication, that might have been a more effective way.”
Olivia Holmberg (’25) said she understands the school is shifting its budget this year but is disappointed that prom now has a cost.
“Financially it makes sense in a year where the school is really trying to reshape its budget, but it’s just a bit annoying and very easy to complain about,” Holmberg said. “While I do understand that they’re doing budget cuts, I feel like prom at a private school maybe should be something that’s covered by the school.”
Sao also said he trusts that the school would make an informed decision based on its financial situation.
“I know that it’s not the kind of decision that they would make lightly, and there’s probably a good reason for it,” Sao said. “Everything’s becoming more expensive with inflation and the school’s got to do what it’s got to do.”
Phillips said his main concern is the new cost discouraging students from attending prom. To mitigate this, Phillips said financial aid will be available for students.
“There should not be a technical reason that people can’t attend,” Phillips said. “However, I fully understand that it’s possible that to somebody, £40 is too much, and they’re uncomfortable asking for that amount of money.”
Sao said he does not think the added cost will have a negative impact on most students, especially considering the financial aid system in place.
“The cost of prom is not so prohibitively high that it would pose a financial burden to the majority of the people at our school,” Sao said. “This might not be the case for everyone, but as long as there’s a system in place to ensure that everyone can be included, I don’t think it will adversely impact people financially.”
Likewise, Holmberg said she does not think the new cost will discourage a significant number of students from attending prom.
“Overall, a lot of kids are going to be able to go to prom because there are a lot of families who can afford that money,” Holmberg said. “As long as the financial aid system is comprehensive, and covers those who can’t go, then I don’t think it’ll have that huge of an impact on attendance.”
Sao said the new price tag on the event might make prom more cost-effective in the long term since it would stop the school from relying on the budget when organizing.
“Proms aren’t usually free in other schools, and I think it just shows the nature of the world is changing with increasing costs and things like that,” Sao said. “So it might actually be a way to make it more sustainable in the long term.”
In addition, Phillips said he is expecting the price to remain for next year’s prom as well, given venue prices aren’t currently decreasing.
“I think we’re predicting we’ll be in a similar situation,” Phillips said. “If prom is really unsuccessful this year, I think the primary demonstration of that would be attendance is abysmally low, obviously we need to rethink both the venue, the process and the cost.”
