To Be P***** Off at yet another expensive school trip

[meah]

Hi, my ds has is now starting yr 9 & dd yr 8, in yr 7 a school trip was offered but cost was in the £300s (i forget exactly how much) being so expensive i couldn't afford it and it left both kids gutted when well over half of the kids in their yr got to go. ive just recieved another school trip email (not sure which yr not that it matters) offering a ski holiday trip, abroad for 6 nights for £680. which would be fantastic if i where loaded!! Why cant schools offer school trips that are affordable to all like they're supposed to instead of making those whos parents cant afford it feel left out!!!

Liability, you may feel it is naive but in some cases it is true. Sweeping statements mean nothing. You cannot know the circumstances of the people on this thread, so it's rather rude to accuse people of 'living off their husbands' just because their views do not tally with yours.

I think that noblegiraffe is correct and a lot of people wouldn't send their DC for something like a week of caving, canoeing etc even if it was free.
My DS applied for a free bursary to an outward bound course - he got a place- I don't think that anyone else from his school bothered to apply.

I think it's much ruder to suggest people who don't have money don't work hard and there is some lesson to be learned for the kids who have to stay behind. funny how the poor always have a lesson to learn.

But Liability who has suggested that? I don't see it, sincerely I don't - and frankly if someone has, then they deserve to be flamed. Save your statements for them

OP I don't think you are being unreasonable to be so upset. I think school trips have gone completely over the top. What's wrong with a day in the countryside?

To really put the cat in the pigeons one of my friends is a teacher and she goes on these trips. The parents are completely unaware that they also pay for her trip.

I don't think expensive school trips should be offered at all. It's bot essential and IMHO it's better for richer kids (who more likely get

I don't think expensive school trips should be offered at all. It's not essential and IMHO it's better for richer kids (who more likely get lots of family trips) to miss out than for there to be this horrid inequality fir poorer kids.

Should have put "miss out" - let's face it, they aren't rely missing out just because they can't go skiing.

Sleep deprived much?

Miss perception - who else should pay for the adults who are giving up their time to accompany the trip?

Why does it have to be the parents who pay for the trips? My ds wanted to go on a very expensive sports tour to South Africa. We had two years notice so ds got himself firstly a paper round and then a Saturday job in a shop. For a year his entire earnings (yes, every penny) went towards the trip. He says now that part of the enjoyment of the trip was the satisfaction of having worked so hard to achieve it himself.

I am a bit on the fence on this.

On one hand, I feel it is important for children to learn that they need to live within their family means and cope with disappointment gracefully.

On the other hand, I don't see why some children should be 'rewarded' with trips, just because their parents are willing to pay for it. Comparing it with being selected for the choir or cricket team is disingenuous, because the children have to work hard and make the effort to get entry into competitive sports.

I think, like a poster suggested earlier, that the whole year should organises a fund raiding activity. Then based on the funds collected, the children should be divided into groups to come up with a 'business plan' on where to go, the cost and benefit' and one of these selected as the winner for the class.

This way, not only would all the students get an outing, but they would learn valuable skills of teamwork, budgeting, persuasion, and most importantly, learning thatbthey are part of a large whole, not individuals out to grab what they can for themselves.

Fund raising, not raiding

I would agree with Liability that there has been a fair bit of suggesting just that. The thread is too long now to go through and pick individual quotes again, but if you reread from the start there has been a recurring theme that

a) it does children no harm and some good if they don't get to go on these trips because they are learning what 'real life' is (no matter that the posters invariably sent their children on these trips because they thought it was really important their child benefit from the experience) and

b) the posters' children get to go specifically because the parents 'work hard for their money' (each time this is mentioned there seems to be an implicit assumption that parents who can't afford it are simply not working hard enough to provide for their children).

I do think if you read from the beginning (although it's bloody long now I grant you!) you will find this attitude.

I don't think that it is acceptable to have a poorer child's experience limited because of their parents' inability to pay. Not within school.

Of course everyone is aware that the they are paying for the teacher-the teacher is working and carrying all the responsibility - and jolly hard work too!

Flatbread. I love your idea.

I have heard it all now! 'Would you like to be responsible 24/7 for 30 teenagers in a foreign country - and by the way you need to pay £600 for this! I think the teacher would say ' no thank you very much - I will use my £600 to go on holiday with my boyfriend/family!'

I've been reading this thread from the start and do not see where anyone has said that people who cannot afford these trips are not working hard enough for their children.

I have seen many, very sensible, posts about fund raising. For what I think is the first time ever on MN I agree with a post by Flatbread . If schools are going to offer these trips then I think fundraising activities for students that want to go but cannot afford to go would be a great idea. I also think that getting children to put together a business plan for the type of trip they want is a fabulous idea. They may come up with something entirely 'off the wall' that a conservative (small c) adult may never have thought of.

Flat bread - I like your idea too.
I agree with the posts from Porto, SoSweet and Liability. I too feel an inkling to decline abroad/expensive trips on principle. Especially 'twatting figi' to quote SoSweet!

I understand fully that schools should be as level a playing field as possible, but as I've said upthread I also believe in widening opportunities to as many children as possible.

How do those who disapprove of schools offering £600 skiing holidays feel about music lessons? Because those are really expensive. Not a one off cost, but the best part of £300 a year, every year.

All children should have access to in school music lessons too.

But they don't have access to free tuition, other than the token time scheduled in the timetable. Instrument lessons in Wilts are £270, or double that if you want one-to-one tuition.

Should we stop those too, because a lot of people can't afford them?

My school had money available for those who genuinely could not pay (from general fundraising/sponsorship) but there are going to be another group of children whose parents could afford to pay but who didn't want to for whatever reason. I'm not sure how you could offer non-educational trips in holiday time and make them truly available to all.

No, we should dump Trident and let kids learn instruments instead, it would do a lot more good in the world.

And in the meantime?