To think that a child who has never been camping is not necessarily from a ‘deprived’ background

[Urbandweller]

DD’s school organised a camping trip for Y5. DD is younger and didn’t attend but her class teacher went to chaperone. I was chatting with her about it today and she said she was so glad the school was able to organise the trip as so many of the Y5 kids had never been camping and would never otherwise get the chance to go. It was clear that she felt sorry for the children who hadn’t been before and was shaking her head sorrowfully, saying many of them are the same poor kids who have never been to the beach and this is one of the saddest aspects of deprivation...

AIBU to not see the link between camping and deprivation? We’ve never taken DD because it’s my idea of hell, nothing to do with lack of funds!

Maybe she meant camping as never been on holiday?

It's not necessarily that the teacher meant that not having been camping suggests deprivation, though!

I've never done a family skiing holiday, because I don't fancy skiing much. We could afford it, & have loads of mates who ski - I just don't like the idea of my klutzy self a) being embarrassingly bad at it & b) breaking a leg.

So I've enthusiastically offered to sign dc up for school skiing trips. Only one has taken me up on it, & he hated it, but that's fine. We snorkel & camp a lot, instead.

It's one of the main purposes of school trips; you get to try out stuff your parents wouldn't!

However, to be fair, camping requires a bit of an outlay. You need to be sure you'll use the kit regularly, or it's going to cost you at least the same for a one off as a cheap holiday in the sun - so yep, also can see that families on tight budgets might be a tad wary.

I would have thought never having been abroad or on a plane, would be more a sign of poverty, and I bet more kids have done either or, than have been camping? I know lots of reasonably well travelled people, who would hate camping.

Surely the teacher was lumping never having been camping in with never having been to the beach and therefore never having had a holiday?

That in itself is a shame for anybody.

Not having been camping but having had other holidays is no sign of deprivation.

@HeyDemonsItsYaGirl

I'd consider myself deprived if I'd been made to go camping tbh

Amen to this.

Never going camping is the ideal, not a sign of a deprived existence.

Surely the teacher meant the children didn't get any type of holiday, not camping specifically?

I'm rubbish at at taking DS for a lot of the things that people call "experiences" but I am good at camping. As far as I can see it's just going into the garden and lying down, with a little bit more embellishment. It's my idea of an easy win.

Having said that, I think it's nice that the school took kids away for a fun activity. I think for some families where there are health problems camping would be hard, so having someone else take them is great.

I've never been camping and neither have my kids. Not about to start either! If they'd like to when they're older it'll be something new to try. I don't see the importance of it in childhood.

I kind of get what she meant. I used to volunteer at a London boys club along with my parents some 50 years ago. We would take the younger ones on days out and although they weren't dirt poor, a percentage of then had never been outside London or seen a sheep or a cow in real life. I am thinking she may have meant "not even camping" by which i don't mean glamping or all the gear but the simple basic kind.

From the viewpoint of experiences, it is an indication. I worked in a deprived area for years and whilst many parents try to give their children different experiences, lots don't ( many reasons).
I remember observing a teacher who was asking children to describe their favourite holiday. One child said she'd been to Alton Towers for the day and the teacher, in a very patronising tone, said, " That's not a holiday though is it ?" And I was thinking to myself, ' It was to her !'
Similarly, asking children to describe a beach. If they've never been to a beach, how can they describe it ?

Never having a holiday is a sign of deprivation, never been camping isn’t- plenty of people much prefer other holidays (of whatever price bracket). Mine have camped with brownies/cubs/scouts/DofE etc and in the garden but not as a family holiday (chronic pain condition here, I wouldn’t be well after a night in a tent).

We’re on our first camping trip this weekend

It will be our last

Mu dh would love to go camping and can take out kids should he wish to. I would then take myself off for a spa weekend in a nice hotel.

I wonder if it's cultural to some extent, I'm asian and that just wasn't considered a 'holiday' when I was little, it might have changed now for some families. I would try a caravan holiday though but camping outdoors does not appeal.

remember observing a teacher who was asking children to describe their favourite holiday. One child said she'd been to Alton Towers for the day and the teacher, in a very patronising tone, said, " That's not a holiday though is it ?" And I was thinking to myself, ' It was to her !'

What an awful teacher. I hope that they found employment elsewhere, far away from children, with an attitude like that.

@Wearywithteens

We attempted to take our children camping a few times, they still talk in withering terms about how awful it was and are astounded as to why any parent would put their children through it!

I can imagine. It's beyond me what the attraction of sleeping on the ground, cooking over a camping stove and trekking to a toilet block in the pitch dark can possibly be.

Does she not mean the kids are from such poor families that they wouldn’t even get a camping holiday, nevermind anything more luxurious? Obviously glamping takes sleeping under canvas to a whole new level, but bog standard camping has to be the cheapest holiday going, unless you collect £9.50 sun tokens to butlins. This is probably the only holiday they will get.

@Ozanj

She is probably only talking about specific kids who are on FSM or cared for. She won’t be meaning anything beyond that.

I think this is a very closed mind statement. Many children get FSM and still give their children as many experiences as they can. I personally wouldn't be eligible for them for my children before people ask but I think this is not a very nice statement to make

A child might be deprived of a particular experience of being close to nature if they had never been on a country type holiday, even camping or to a beach. This is quite common in deprived areas. I'm sure the comment wasn't aimed at families with more luxurious choices of holiday.

She was referring to camping, not holidays in general. She suggested the school had specifically organised camping because many children at the school do not get the opportunity to do this activity and this is a direct result of deprivation.

Just under 20% of children at DD’s school qualify for FSM which is low for our area (we are in inner London) so I’m not even sure how she has come to this conclusion.

I remember observing a teacher who was asking children to describe their favourite holiday. One child said she'd been to Alton Towers for the day and the teacher, in a very patronising tone, said, " That's not a holiday though is it ?" And I was thinking to myself, ' It was to her !'
Similarly, asking children to describe a beach. If they've never been to a beach, how can they describe it ?*

I can relate to that. I never went on holiday as a child.

Camping is shit, we never even went once we went on good seaside holidays instead. Not deprived.

I thought camping was the kind of holiday people go on when they are budgeting?

Never been camping or taken the kids.
Ds at 16 or 17 went ti a party and they camped over night - he has absolutely no desire to repeat this experience :)
Aboard or haven (caravan) yes, camping no!

I’m very poor. The only holiday I can afford is camping. What planet is she on?