MARIGOT–Following statements in the French media about difficulties and long waits encountered by some parents in registering for the school canteens, Caisse Territoriale des Œuvres Scolaires (CTOS) in a press release issued a reminder that registration for school meals and extracurricular activities had been opened at the beginning of July 2019, according to a precise timetable, by sector, to allow parents to carry out these procedures well in advance.
Parents had two weeks per sector to complete their formalities. The list of documents to be provided was published on the Collectivité’s website www.com-saint-martin.fr in early July so that parents could obtain the required documents. This information has been widely reported by the media and CTOS.
If difficulties related to the processing of applications exist, it should be recalled that the purpose of staggered registrations is to prevent waiting and to enable parents to carry out these formalities in advance and under good conditions.
The overcrowding of the service also stems from the need for the Collectivité to regularise the files of parents who have unpaid canteen fees. Unpaid invoices have to be cleared in the computer software before being able to complete the registration formalities for the new school year. This mandatory regularisation considerably slows down the registration process and causes parents to wait longer.
CTOS is aware of these inconveniences for parents and will ensure that solutions are found in the future to prevent waiting. For the time being, it is doing everything it can to speed up the registration process. In addition, CTOS is exploring the possibility of creating an online registration portal for school canteen and extracurricular activities registration formalities.
The cost of this system requires an investment of around 25,000 euros. The finances of the CTOS, whose 2019 budget has a deficit, does not allow such expenditure, especially as the structure is being evaluated and reorganised to find solutions to return it to a more balanced operating system.
As a reminder, the price of the canteen meal is set at three euros for pupils in primary schools and four euros for students in secondary schools. Payments can be made by credit card (from 20 euros and up) or in cash. The registration fee is eight euros per file.
CTOS thanks parents for their understanding and invites them to complete their registration formalities as soon as possible.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/90816-unpaid-bills-not-respecting-timetables-cause-of-long-wait-at-canteen-registration
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