The over the top gifts that parents treat their child's teachers to have been revealed © RexThe lavish gifts that teachers receive from parents at the end of the academic year have been revealed in a survey by supermarket Waitrose.
One much loved teacher received a horse from a (over) generous parent, while another was lucky enough to be given a free trip to Mauritius.
More adventurous gifts included a bungee jump, ski lessons and zorbing vouchers.
The survey also found that many teachers are treated to the latest high tech goods. Parents admitted gifting their child’s teacher pricy items including iPods and Kindles.
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Other parents thought outside the box giving one lucky teacher a worm farm, another a brace of pheasants and one, hopefully a pet-lover, received a hamster.
But before you feel like your last minute petrol station bouquet will be a massive letdown, these lavish and unusual presents are in the minority.
Chocolates are the most popular gift, with 45 per cent of parents buying these for their child’s teacher.
“Lots of people do like to thank their child’s teacher and chocolate is always a popular choice,” said Waitrose confectionery buyer Louise O’Brien.
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A bottle of wine is second most popular, with 22 per cent of teachers receiving a nice bottle of bubbly at the end of the year.
The survey found that 69 per cent of parents always or sometimes bought their child’s teacher a present – but 60 per cent of parents don’t feel pressured to do so.
Parents usually spend under a fiver (45 per cent) or between £5 and £10 (36 per cent).
But a generous 16 per cent spend more than £10, with a small number offering up exotic presents like those above.
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The survey also revealed that 70 per cent of parents think that when they were at school, teachers received either fewer presents, or none at all.
Clearly the tradition of giving the teacher an apple as a present has fallen out of use completely!