School ball committee fundraising
A senior student ball committee raises money through the year (mufti days, sizzles, sponsors) to cut the ticket price and fund tickets for students who could not otherwise go.
Typically raises
$4,000
$1,000–10,000 a yearest.
About $67 per organiser hour
Is it right for us?
- Money
- $2,000–10,000
- Work
- A team for weeks
- Helpers
- 7–15 people
- Lead time
- 4+ months
- Red tape
- Light
Common: every secondary school ball committee fundraises
- People
- 8-15 students on the committee plus a staff liaison (estimate)
- Organiser time
- 40-80 hours across the year, shared by the committee (estimate)
- Lead time
- 6-9 months: start in term 1 for a term 2 or 3 ball (estimate)
- Up-front cost
- $200. Sizzle stock and printing; most activities cost little (estimate).
- Risk
- Low-medium: food stock for sizzles and bake sales; venue deposits are a bigger risk but are a ball cost, not a fundraising cost.
How it works
The money, as an example sum
Take about $4,200, pay about $200 of costs, and you keep about $4,000 a year: the typical result.
From the typical figure on this page. Your result will differ.
Where the money figure comes from
No NZ benchmark of totals found; figures are estimates. Context: NZ ball tickets range from about $100 to over $300 (RNZ); Selwyn College kept tickets to $95 partly through year-long committee fundraising (RNZ); Ōrewa College cut a $230 ticket to $195 after backlash (NZ Herald; Principals Today).
Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.
Step by step
- Form the committee early with a staff liaison and a budget: venue, food, DJ, decorations, photos, security.
- Set a ticket-price target and work out the gap fundraising must cover.
- Plan 4-6 fundraisers across the year: mufti days, Bunnings sizzle, car wash, bake sales, a raffle (NZ Herald notes mufti days are common).
- Approach local businesses to sponsor items (photo booth, flowers) or student tickets; Massey High lets the community sponsor a student to attend (NZ Herald).
- Bank every dollar through the school office and keep a running ledger the committee can see.
- Offer early-bird pricing and payment plans (Manurewa High sold early-bird tickets at $45 before $55 (Manurewa High School Facebook)).
- Set aside a confidential pool for students who cannot pay, handled by staff.
- Send families the school's alcohol and after-ball guidance from Police before the night.
- Report the final accounts and any surplus carried to next year's committee.
Getting the word out
Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.
- Ask for help
- Helpers for the day or night, and local businesses for prizes.
- Ask people to buy
- People to book tickets or tables, and turn up.
- When to start
- Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 6–8 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.
Where to put it
- School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
- Local Facebook pages and community groupsPost in your town’s community page and local groups (check their rules), and share from your group’s own page.
- Facebook events and what’s-on listingsMake a Facebook event people can say they’re going to, and list it on your council’s or town’s what’s-on page.
- Community newsletters and magazinesResidents’ newsletters, village magazines and other churches’ bulletins often run community notices free. Small ones close early.
- Other groups sharing itAsk the school, kindy, church, sports club or marae down the road to share it in their newsletter or page. Offer to share theirs back.
The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.
What you’ll need
- Place
- Not neededNone needed
- Landowner’s permission
- Not needed
- Council permit
- Not needed
- Food rules
- CheckNo registration if you sell food to fundraise for a good cause up to 20 times a calendar year. It must still be safe and suitable, and your council may need a stall permit
- Alcohol
- Not neededNo alcohol sold
- Gambling rules
- NeededClass 1: prizes and the value of all tickets printed both $500 or less. If an individual runs it, all the money goes back as prizes. Sold in person only. Our rule: a numbered paper ticket for every entry
Bank committee money through school accounts. Supplying alcohol to under-18s needs express parental consent and responsible supply; Police warn against after-balls with alcohol in the ticket price.
Make more from it
Businesses sponsor tickets for students in hardship
$100-300 per sponsored ticket (estimate)
a concrete, feel-good ask
often $500-2,000 (estimate)
a large senior cohort selling to family
Stack it: on its own, about $4,000. With the 2 priced add-ons above, roughly
$5,500est.
What you can get donated
Local businesses sponsoring the photo booth, decorations or a set number of student tickets; prizes for raffles.
Tips
- Choose an affordable venue: Selwyn College reused the same venue to keep tickets under $100 (RNZ). The school hall can be free (Schoolball).
- Sponsored tickets for students in hardship are an easy ask for businesses (NZ Herald on Massey High).
- Remind families the ticket is a fraction of the night's cost; dresses, hair and transport add hundreds (NZ Herald).
Watch out for
- A venue upgrade can cancel out a year of fundraising.
- Cash held by students outside school accounts goes missing or causes disputes.
- The school being seen to endorse an after-ball: keep any after-ball clearly private and separate.
School ball committee fundraising: checklist
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Before
After
Bank committee money through school accounts. Supplying alcohol to under-18s needs express parental consent and responsible supply; Police warn against after-balls with alcohol in the ticket price.
* General fundraising information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Money figures are examples and estimates, not promises. Check current official requirements before you commit. About this guide