Education critics say that charging school fees for things like library cards and computer printing skirts dangerously close to breaking the laws that guarantee a free public education.

Five years ago, the B.C. Supreme Court ruled that schools couldn't charge for the courses students need to graduate, but that doesn't mean parents aren't paying big bucks.

Every September schools collect thousands of dollars in student fees for everything from locks to agendas in public schools.The Investigators found a wide range of fees that vary from district to district and school to school.

Killarney Secondary had the lowest Grade 8 fees in Vancouver, at $40. The highest bill for Grade 8 is Point Grey Secondary for $390, including a camp.

Prince of Wales Secondary has a $5 charge for computer printing and $10 for a library ID card.

CTV News asked Vancouver School Board Chair Patti Bacchus if she'd seen charges like that before.

"I would say I've never seen charges before for a library card and that would concern me and that would be something that we'd be looking at ensuring there is a reasonable standardization," she said.



Bacchus says she doesn't know of any schools breaking the law, but there are still fees being charged throughout. She admits there's a lack of clarity and she's asked district staff to stay on top of the issue.

All of those charges add up. The total for Grade 8 at Prince of Wales is $149. In Surrey, B.C.'s largest school district, Grade 12 students pay about $110, but in West Vancouver, the total soars to $295.

Grade 12 fees range from $95 at King George Secondary to $294 at Prince of Wales.

Apart from a few exceptions, the law says that schools cannot charge course fees and they can't charge for supplies students need to complete the course. But in many courses, there are fees that schools call optional, like workbooks.

Some at John Oliver are about $20. Workbooks and supplies can add another hundred dollars to your school bill.

Helesia Luke of the B.C. Society for Public Education believes the real purpose of calling certain fees optional is to circumvent the existing law -- "to get around the Supreme Court ruling that basically outlawed charging fees for courses that are required for graduation," she said.

Many parents don't see the workbooks as an extra, or optional school equipment. Many districts say that students can pay a workbook deposit, but then they wouldn't be able to write in the books and would have to return them at the end of the year. If students want to keep the workbooks, they have to pay.

Bacchus says she'd like to see no fees at all, but that's not a realistic option.

"In the best case, we would have enough funding available where we could provide every child with a workbook but our funding is tight and we do try to stretch the resources," she said. "It concerns me that one child may choose to have it and another may not."

For Lenore Clemens, whose son is in Grade 9, the $95 back-to-school is a big hit to the family budget.

"They let me write a post-dated cheque for the end for the end of the month," she said, adding that she didn't have to pay the money upfront.

Schools can waive fees for those who can't afford it, but Clemens would rather pay. She doesn't want to ask for charity.

"It is awkward -- it's embarrassing," she said.

With a report from CTV British Columbia's Mi-Jung Lee