Cash fairs are hard work
Every PTA knows the feeling. Here's the difference a token card makes.
With cash
- A float and a tin for every stall
- Helpers stuck making change
- Queues build while someone hunts for 20p
- Coins to count and bag at the end
- No idea what you've made until late
With token cards
- One till at the gate, or none if cards are sold the week before
- Helpers just stamp or punch the card
- Stamp and go: queues move, children get more goes
- Nothing to count at the stalls
- Takings known before the first stall opens
Every go is a stamp.
Your school's name and your stamp value go on every card. Tombola, lucky dip, face painting, cake stall: each go is a stamp or a punch, and the helper hands the card straight back.
Switching to tokens for the first time?
It's a big change for parents. Here's how PTAs make it easy.
Tell parents early
Announce it on your socials and ask school to email home, well before the fair. Say what tokens can be spent on and what a typical stall costs, so families can work out how many to buy.
Sell early, then collect
Sell cards in the playground or from the school office the week before. Paid-for cards go home in book bags, or wait at a quick collection desk before the gates open, with its own queue.
Put it on the poster too
A line on your fair poster, plus its own "Let's talk about tokens" poster by the gate. Both can be made free in our studio.
Many PTAs keep cash for food and drink and go tokens-only on the games stalls. That alone takes most of the cash off the field.
And it raises more money
Token cards don't just make the day easier. They make it pay better.
Paid up front
Every card is paid for at the gate or before the day. The money's in before a single stall opens, and it's done.
Leftover stamps stay with you
Children rarely use every stamp. Whatever's left on the card stays with your fundraiser. Say so on the card or your poster, so everyone knows.
Faster queues, more goes
Stamp and go: no fumbling for coins, no waiting on a card machine. Queues move, children get more goes, crowds stay happy, and your stalls take more.
Why card, not plastic tokens?
Plastic tokens work, but they're made for festivals, not a Saturday school fair.
Plastic tokens
- Often a minimum order of 1,000 per design
- Weeks to make, so you order in the summer for Christmas
- Collected back and counted at the end
- Go missing in pockets and book bags
Stubbs token cards
- Order as few as 50 cards
- Nothing to collect back: a used card is done
- Business card size (85 x 55mm): slips into a purse or pocket
- Your school's name and your stamp value on every card
Short on time? Design your cards free in the studio, download them and print them at school tonight.
How it works
Three steps. Your helpers will thank you.
Sell the cards
At the gate on the day, or in the playground the week before, so the money's in early.
Children spend stamps
Tombola, lucky dip, face painting, cake stall. Each go is a stamp or a punch.
Nothing to count
The money was taken once, when the card was sold. The stalls never touch cash.
Design them free, in two minutes
Pick a token card in our free design studio, add your school's name and your stamp value, and either download it to print at school or let us print it on card.
Questions PTAs ask
Is this gambling?
No. A token card is prepaid credit to spend at your stalls, like a coffee loyalty card. There's no chance involved in the card itself. If a stall is a raffle or tombola, that stall's own rules still apply.
What size are they?
85 x 55mm, the size of a business card or a coffee shop loyalty card. Small enough for a child's pocket or a parent's wallet, big enough to read and stamp easily.
What value should a stamp be?
Whatever suits your fair. 50p a stamp is a popular choice because most stalls price in 50ps. Put the value on the card so helpers never have to think.
What if a card isn't used up?
The card was paid for, so any stamps left over stay with your fundraiser. Be upfront about it: a line on the card or your poster, such as "unused stamps are a donation to the PTA", means nobody feels short-changed.
Can we still see what each stall makes?
Yes. Give each stall a simple tally sheet or a clicker counter: one mark per stamp. At the end, marks times your stamp value is that stall's takings, with no coins to count.
Can we print them ourselves?
Yes. Design them free in the studio and download to print at school. We print them if you'd rather have proper card.
This year, leave the coins at home.
Token cards for your Christmas fair, printed on proper card at a fair price and delivered to school.