No phones on ski trip

[AreTheyMad]

DD is going on a ski trip with school next week. We've just been informed they won't be allowed to use their phones during the day, only for an hour in the evening.
Would you be happy with your DC not being allowed to take their phones on the slopes?

I think it's mad, and I'm trying to formulate a mail which doesn't sound over protective pub! It means they can't call if they get separated from the group, check the map, if they injure themselves. What if the visibility is bad? Am I overreacting here?

This is also just about encouraging parental anxiety! She won't go missing, FFS, and trackers are as bad as phones.

I can see both points of view here.

Your view is valid and I 100% agree - 20 years ago would have been slightly different but in today’s world it’s different.

The school obviously will not be liable for damage or loss to devices thus the reason for implementing this - also, the staff will want the students to get the most out of the trip..

I wouldn’t bother writing in. The decision has been made.

I think we might have gone to the same school!

And no helmets! God my skiing holidays with school in the 80s were on St Trinians level… teachers would be sacked. Amazingly fun memories though. ☺️

Lots of children have survived skiing lessons without a phone. For many years. As PP said, they're more likely to not pay attention to their safety if they have them! They won't be skiing dangerous runs on their own.

As someone who dropped her phone into the snow off a ski lift I think this is an excellent idea!

You’re totally overreacting OP. Don’t be THAT parent.

I think it's great. A chance for them to fully focus on ski-ing, chatting with their friends, enjoying the scenery ... not glued to a screen doing tik-toks or some other shite.

Also avoids the dramatic text/phone call home about being freezing ... starving ... hate ski-ing .. fallen out with my bestie ... teachers hate me ....

None of my kids took devices on school trips or guides etc.

You are so overreacting. They do not need their phones while skiing, it will just be a distraction. They will be supervised.

How do you think people managed before phones?

At least without their phones they will be able to enjoy their time, it will be so much better for them.

Maybe ask to see their risk assessment of how they intend to safeguard the children. If they have a robust plan I wouldn’t worry about it

55 years ago for me!

And no-one ever got lost!

If the children are not going to be accompanied by a qualified instructor then this puts them in far greater danger than them not having a phone.

If you are from the UK* there is no chance that your child will not be in ski school, with a qualified instructor in charge of each group of 10-12 students and a teacher bringing up the rear. The school's safeguarding and general health and safety policies, plus the "in loco parentis" legal position will mean that the children must be under the care of a qualified person at all times.

(*School groups from Alpine countries and Scandinavia often ski with their regular school teachers, but these are all certified to "Instructor" level and are often the school PE staff).

I'd be telling my child to ignore that and keep their phone on them at all times.

sounds like my school ski-trip in France in1982 ... the teachers took us all to a nightclub one evening and they all got pissed and copped off with each other 😳😂... whenever I hear the song "The Eye of the Tiger" I'm transported back to that little dingy club 😁

DD went abroad with her school and the school planned on sending them out and about without their phones with the guidance that if they got separated from the group that they should try to find a friendly looking woman who appeared like she might speak English!!!!!!

Again we have a parent displaying their own anxiety.

Honestly go to Europe. You will struggle to go somewhere where you can't find anyone who speaks at least some English. And this is even more the case on a ski trip.

It smacks of Brits who are afraid of other languages. This isn't a fear that other Europeans have when they are abroad. Most HAVE to deal with navigating a foreign language. At least we have a language a huge number of people speak.

It's actually healthy to go abroad and navigate communicating with people who don't speak English.

If you aren't prepared to do this in an emergency, stay in Britain.

FFS.

They don’t need their phones while they are in a group with a teacher.
Restricting it to their free time in the evenings is fine.

Totally fine, your over reacting.

This.

I'd be surprised at kids being given free reign of the slopes too tbh!

I wonder why childhood anxiety is on the rise.

How are trackers as bad as phones?
I am assuming the school is banning phones because the kids mess around, not because they don't want to find them if one goes missing.

It's highly unlikely anyone will go missing, but it happens when people ski.
For me, it would depend on how advanced the group is (OP has said they are not doing ski school). If they are on black runs or off piste, there is more risk.

My 9 year old went in January they weren’t even allowed to take them with them at all!

Well, unless she keeps very quiet indeed about the fact that she does indeed have her phone on her, the staff are very likely to find out, (she will probably be dobbed in by one of her friends) it will be confiscated so she can't use it during skiing anyway...

Trackers aren’t always reliable due to signals.

Also they feed into parent insecurities. Can you imagine if child dropped the tracker up a mountain, the parent would panic thinking the child was left there overnight!

This would concern me. I assume they will be splitting into smaller groups? I’ve just been skiing and with the general conditions at the moment, if they’re on a high slope and it starts to snow there is zero visibility. They wont be able to recognise eachother or stay together, so how is the one who’s had a fall up the mountain supposed to contact the one half way down? Ridiculous.

DH had a parent who did this for a scout camp. The kid was apparently saying how they were being starved and conditions were appalling.

It was clear the parent and kid were actively winding each other up from the complaint made. It bore no resemblance to reality. And obviously it was so bad they left their kid there all weekend (it was an hour away).

The fact they complained stating that he had complained using a phone that wasn't supposed to be there, said a lot.