To not go on the residential?

Speaking as someone who's attended and led many primary school residentials in my time, I don't think YABU.

As previous posters have said, although I loved sharing some of the experiences with my classes it is incredibly hard work. Many was the trip where we took snacks to eat after the kids were in bed and never touched them all week! Sleeping with one ear open, constantly head-counting, sitting on the draughty floor outside kids' bedrooms waiting for them to go to sleep so you can finally go to bed, dealing with homesickness, travel sickness, vomit, accidents, bed-wetting, meltdowns, fall-outs between friends and just being responsible for the safety of 30+ of other people's children while having to leave your own children to manage without you for a week. Plus when we got back to school parents would complain if we were delayed by traffic, hardly anyone said thank you and on more than one occasion I waited for up to an hour for a late parent to collect their child so that I could finally go home to mine, have a hot bath and a proper sleep.

Then there was the year we were away with a group of London children when the London tube bombings happened and a stupid woman came running up to us and (in front of children whose families were in London) said, "Oh, is your school from London? It's just been on TV that bombs are going off there and loads of people have been killed!"
Yeah, the aftermath of that comment was fun for us school staff to deal with...

OP, I've known more than one occasion when for some reason a class teacher/TA hasn't been able to go on a residential (e.g. because of pregnancy) and what's always happened is that another staff member has swapped with them and the teacher who didn't go has covered the other person's class at school. I've done it myself- taken someone else's class away. So with enough notice to your HT I'm sure a swap could be arranged.

Teacher goodwill is eroding fast. I’ve been teaching for over 25 years, have done many residentials and will do another early next year. However I am no longer guilted into doing all and sundry because ‘teaching is a vocation’. No it’s a job, like many other jobs. I work stupidly long hours, many unpaid and always have because it’s what need to do to make sure my class get the best experience I can give them. That’s my choice. But I won’t be guilted by colleagues, parents and management into doing anything extra that I don’t want to do anymore. Two years ago I was repeatedly attacked by a pupil, culminating in him trying to stab me. His right to an education meant he remains, to this day, in our school and I don’t have the right to refuse to teach him (I don’t anymore only due to a supportive HT). At that point teaching became a job, nothing more.

Do it if it works for you but if it doesn’t say no. You’re part time for a reason OP.

I just want to see what AlisonChains has been saying.

I’ve done business trips - some glamorous (for me). Some really not. Even if they’re the grotty kind, when the task is done you get some alone time, maybe in a cab, on a plane or in a hotel room.
Ive also done 2 school residentials. At the first, the head gave the teachers a bottle of wine for an evening. We never had time to open it.
I’ve done a couple of residentials with my class - one with a day off in lieu, one without. It’s a week of shit food, poor sleep, not seeing my own kids, not a moment to get a cup of tea, no home comforts, can’t chat to a friend, being cold, standing around in the rain. And of course, not a single thank you from child or parent either because it didnt occur to them or because they think it’s all part of the job.
I will not be doing another one. I’d happily go away on one of my old business trips again. Anyone who thinks that having been on a business trip gives them any insight into what a residential with kids is like needs to give their head a wobble.
If the parents want their kids to go away with their classmates that much they can sort a PGL week over a half term.
So no OP, YANBU.

Above and beyond sometimes is not every week (and yes residentials are not every week but there is something extra every week).

"Teachers just enjoy ranting about it."
Just like people enjoy ranting about teachers.

Remember there will be some children who can't or dont want to go on the residential trip.
They too will need a teacher.
Possibly, you could arrange some fun activities for them at school.

Absolute rubbish! It’s never been part of the Y5/6 curriculum! @AngelinaFibres

You said "don't be a teacher if you can't commit" to someone who clearly cares about their job, has a 4 year old child and a poorly husband, and is being asked to work more than double her hours as unpaid overtime.

So yes, my comment "don't be ridiculous" still stands.

It's people like you that put people off going into teaching in the first place.

The school shouldn't be arranging a 5 day residential if they can't afford to pay staff to go.

Yes it is bloody work! You are out all day with kids who you're responsible for and then up a lot of the night getting kids to settle, calming upset children.
You get no/very little time out other than for showers etc. You often share rooms with other staff. You organise /eat with kids, you do activities during the day with them and during the evening.
A bloody overnight conference visit is not even on the same page !! 😑
And it wouldn't necessarily be known it happens before taking the job!

I think a union, btw, would absolutely support a member of staff who refused to attend a residential while offering to work their normal hours in school, and would take a dim view of otherwise good staff who were discriminated against as a result (ie who delivered excellently in the classroom 37/38 weeks but didn’t attend a short residential). They just haven’t been asked to rule on a blanket ban.

I enjoy residentials, and have been on a large number. Equally when working in a previous role, I enjoyed courses and conferences and running workshops in this country and around the world. However I see no reason why an otherwise good teacher who chose to say they could not attend a residential should be discriminated against.

My DH is a primary head and he'd have no issue if someone said they were unable to take part. His staff get a day/days off in lui for doing a residential

That realy usn’t my point. I was reacting, very specifically, to the suggestion that residentials might be cancelled if staff - teachers and TAs - were unwilling or unable to staff them, for completely reasonable reasons such as childcare, part-time working or other family situations.

And I was saying that in that case the additional time might have to be paid - TAs in particular often attend residentials at a net financial loss - or the school
might have to balance the educational benefit of residentials (usually to meet the ‘outdoor adventurous activity’ element of PE, and some PSHE objectives) versus the time, distance and expense. More staff, for example, would find it easier to attend a 3-day residential 30 miles away than a 5 day one 3.5 hours away., and that would prevent residentials being cancelled through lack of staff.

Or they would become more expensive- as the poster from Australia said - as staff would have to be fully paid or given toil.

The line ‘if you don’t …… then what about the poor little children?’ is a very common underlying theme in many ‘unwritten’ expectations of teachers (from parents, from leaders and from ourselves). Is that theme - essentially emotional blackmail - right? Are residentials a childhood ‘right’ that over-rides a teacher’s needs and wishes? Should we in any case be scaling them back, making them shorter, bringing them closer to home, offering them only to children who could never have such experiences unless the school provides them?

It shouldn't be a question that needs to be asked.
If a school requires you to do a residential trip then it should clearly be stated in the terms and conditions of the contract and come with suitable compensation for your time.
What should happen is that schools and education establishments should be run correctly and not require the goodwill of the teachers nor the blackmailing of teachers (ie the withholding of promotions) for these things to happen.

No, I agree. I"m not in anyway saying she should be forced. But I do think, knoeing the school she was applying does them, she should have asked the question at interview about whether she would be likely to need to do them, and explained that she would not/could not.
Would have been much easier than trying to get out of it once has started the job.

The fact is that no one can force you to do an unpaid residential trip.
This

A lot of goodwill has gone from things teachers would once be expected to do like School Fayres, coffee mornings etc because of the lack of respect from pupils and parents and the workload. At the end of the day, it's a job and nobody should be expected to do things out of their normal contracted hours for nothing.

The fact is that no one can force you to do an unpaid residential trip.

Absolutely, I consciously volunteered with an organisation which does residentials OP consciously took a job with a school which does residentials. If she knew she was not able to do them, this should have been discussed at the interview and sge should have asked whether an exemption could be agreed.

Yes there is potentially another discussion about whether they should be part of a teachers job, but that is a seperate discussion.

The facts are, OP took a job, knowing they may be asked to go on residentials - (before you go for a job you find about about everything that job may involve, and if you are unsure, you ask before accepting). Then once has the job, is saying they will not do it. That's unfair on their employer and colleagues.

Don't want to do residentials - fine. Then don't go and work at a school which does them!

@Youthiswastedontheyoung
Ultimately nobody can force you to do it. You either do it willingly or not at all.

Only you can decide what's in it for you, feel good factor, career benefits, better bond understanding of the kids, better bond with your colleagues and boss.
Only you can decide.

Maybe you compromise 2/3 nights and drive, maybe you say not while LO is so small.

I would agree with the pp - just stay quiet about it now. As a new part time teacher with a young child, you may not even be expected to go. Have they asked you already? I would play it by ear. If you start telling people what you are not prepared to do in your first couple of weeks in the job - it will raise heckles and people will get the idea that you are a bit of jobsworth and will be 'difficult to deal with'.

Then again, if you are 'difficult to deal with' then they may not want you to go...

I think it would look bad though, if in the first week in September you start telling about stuff that you are not prepared to next year.