To be suspicious about school trip costs?

[SmiteYouWithThunderbolts]

Recently I (and a few other parents) have noticed the cost of school trips reaching ludicrous levels - far more than the entrance prices for the places they're going to and the coach fees. For example, this week ds2 brought home a letter about a trip to a local museum which costs about £3 per child. The letter asks for a £10 "voluntary contribution" from each parent and says, as always, that the trip will not go ahead without a payment from each child.

The last few trips have been similarly priced and we just cannot see how the difference between the entrance fee and what we're asked to pay is entirely taken up by the coach. From the brief research we've done into coach prices, they're nowhere near that expensive, so where is the rest of the money going? AFAIK, schools are not allowed to profit from school trips, but does this apply to academies too?

Please tell me if IABU and it's actually perfectly justifiable to ask for £10 from parents for a destination that would cost a third of that to go ourselves?

If the price is unreasonable, what could we actually do about this?

For context and to avoid drip feeding, there are other issues around the school and money, such as making extortionate PE kit compulsory at a cost of £32 per child (and only available through the school) and charging £1 for non-uniform days 3-4 times a term.

Speak to the Head and ask for a breakdown of costs to be sent out to parents?

Coach fees ARE very expensive. However, what you write about Pe kits and non-uniform days seems extortionate to me.

Speak to the Head and ask for a breakdown of costs to be sent out to parents?

Hmm, was hoping to avoid that if possible. He's a bit of an arsehole.

The museum are probably providing a special educational day rather than allowing the children to just wander around so the charge will be more than the normal entry fee. There should be a room allocated for lunches, a speaker or two to talk about the collection at an appropriate level and there might be extras such as a film show or hands-on activities. Talk to the school and they will explain the costs.

Just ask that the school publishes the break down costs of trips in the weekly newsletter, along with other costs.

It benefits the school as transparency gets parents on board with fund raising.

Coach prices round here cost about £8 per child (as accompanying adults don't contribute). We (as the parents of a particular year group) objected en masse to the cost of £8.50 for a trip to a local museum that had free entry, and the children were only going to be there for an hour. We refused to pay the "voluntary contribution" .The school refused to organise any more trips for that age group for the rest of the time they were in the school, 3 years!

That is expensive, but is it just a regular trip to the museum or do they get things like extra activities and lunch included in the price? Also, coaches really aren't cheap and if they have to hire, say, a 60 seater coach for a class of 40 because there isn't anything else available, the price for those extra 20 seats will have to be made up somewhere.

I don't disagree that £10 to see the local museum is extortionate, though!

I've just looked at the museum website and their section about school vists says it costs £135 for 35 children, which is still less than £4 per child. Would a coach really cost £600 to make up the difference in what the school are asking?

I'll ask one of my braver friends get a breakdown of costs from the head then.

Also - no extra activities are included in the trip and we have to provide lunches for the children.

I hadn't factored in insurance. Good point. Looks like the only way to find out is to ask the head to explain the costs then!

Could it be for insurance? I dont know much about school trips and the cost but I'm assuming they would need insurance cover for taking children off school premises.

You have not factored in the cost of insurance so £4 entrance and the other £6 travel and insurance is not a bad deal

Our school does all trips by public transport apart from rare trips further afield. So they did houses of parliament for nothing - free transport for the kids on London transport and no admission cost. The train station is about 30 mins walk away but if they time it right they hop on a double decker bus (fun watching 60 kids taking over a bus)

Sounds like a lot of money for a local museum!! My DD recently went to a local museum and they travelled on the train for day out- cost £5.00 partially subsidised by PTA

Lizzy's got it right, and coach fees have rocketed in the last 5 years.
But no one could possibly think you were being difficult if you asked for a breakdown of the costs. Could they?
I've done it for parents who asked.

We're always being blackmailed tapped up for cash by the school. "Fees are voluntary but the trip cannot go ahead without sufficient funding", i.e. all you tight middle class parents had better dig deep or the poor kids won't get a trip.

Then there's various "funky hair days", non-uniform days, craft funds, raffles. All with a healthy dose of guilt.

Oh and we have twins, so all the fees are doubled.

op it's probably insurance. totally take your points but the insurance is bloody vital and needs to be good.

The coach would cost about £200 max if hired 9-3, so 30 children would work out at £7 per head.

Speak to the Head and ask for a breakdown of costs to be sent out to parents? Hmm, was hoping to avoid that if possible. He's a bit of an arsehole

Theres your answer. A breakdown of costs for the seemingly random £10 should be provided without asking. If you feel unable to ask or if it is not provided after asking, I'd be very suspicious its going elsewhere.

Most professions and indeed most trades have to provide a breakdown of costs - there is no reason why this should be exempt. The buck rests with the headteacher - he should be doing his job and he should certainly respond to any reasonable enquiries about this.

"Fees are voluntary but the trip cannot go ahead without sufficient funding"

Well, a trip can't go ahead without sufficient funding. What would you expect them to say?

Our school has started using pubic transport a lot more although it must be an organisational nightmare keeping track of everyone! Last year, a good number of trips were cancelled due to a lack of funding as more parents didn't bother to pay.

But it is true: the trip can't go ahead if the school doesn't have enough money to pay for it. It's not necessarily poorer families that don't pay - its quite often perfectly affluent but entitled middle class families who don't see why they should. We have a massive problem in our (pretty middle class) school of families not paying which means nice-to-haves such as days out simply don't happen.

Transport is often the major cost.