Page 7 | To be fed up with the cost of school trips?

Bushmillsbabe · 03/04/2025 08:01

amiadoormat · 02/04/2025 22:29

@Neverplayleapfrogwithmrpipes
at mine the residential trip 2 hours away the parents are expected to drop them off and pick them up….during working hours no less …a few parents have offered car sharing but some parents don’t want the responsibility of taking someone else’s child plus most parents work. Everyone is a bit 🙄

i really don’t get why schools even need to provide school trips - most local attractions the majority of parents will have taken their children themselves at some point - for considerably less cost!
and as for the ones abroad…what exactly is the school getting out of it since there is usually a thread or two from teachers saying they hate having to go on them and it’s “not a holiday”

Residentials are really important for building confidence and independence. Some children are fortunate enough to attend residentials through scouts or girl guides, but in our village the wait list is huge so not every child who wants to attend can.

I guess your school suggested parents taking, as parents moaned about cost of a coach in previous years? They are no win situation

Embarrassinglyuseless · 03/04/2025 08:01

GrammarTeacher · 03/04/2025 07:59

You costs actually seem really low. We’re in the South of East Anglia and wouldn’t be able to run trips to London for that cost.

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They do looking at everyone else’s costs. I wonder if our children’s (private) school has a trips budget and is subsidising them a bit…

MellowPinkDeer · 03/04/2025 08:03

0TiredMumOf4 · 02/04/2025 21:26

Hi all,
Just having a bit of a rant because I feel like I’m being totally swamped by the cost of all these school trips recently. DD1’s school trip to the Science Museum in London is coming up, and it’s a whopping £45. That’s for one trip! And to make matters worse, I’ve already shelled out for DS’s farm trip (another £35), and DD2’s little museum trip just up the road (which, okay, is £15, but still) 🙄.

I get that these trips are important, but seriously? £45 for a museum trip? That’s not even factoring in the cost of packed lunches and the inevitable begging for snacks to take on the coach. And they expect me to fork out this kind of money for all three of them every time there’s a school trip?? 🤦‍♀️

It’s not like I’m made of money, and it feels like they have a trip every other week. Am I being unreasonable to feel totally fed up with how much these things are costing? I don’t mind supporting the kids, but I can’t keep up with this!

Anyone else feel the same, or am I just being a tight arse? 😤

This is the cheap bit. Just wait for secondary school. I’m in the middle of paying for the ski trip , £1900 🤣🤣🤣

i can’t remember anything in day trips that’s been under £50 since they started!

BumbleBeegu · 03/04/2025 08:04

We only do one trip a year now due to this. I’ve just booked my class trip…full day out at a ‘historical building’, activities included and run by the Education staff at the site, plus coach, costs £12 per child. Which I think is great value!

Ohdearwhatnow4 · 03/04/2025 08:06

Insurance for these trips have to be added into the expense and years ago you use to just take parents as helpers but not all schools do this so they have to take teachers T/A and support workers from different parts of the school and sometimes the T/A might only work 3 hours normally but have to be paid for the whole day. They also have to make sure the place their visiting is safe so someone often has to visit to do the onsite safety forms, which again their travel and time have to be covered (not in every case)

Augustus40 · 03/04/2025 08:08

Could you ask to get them concessionary?

hjokhjjjkkkd · 03/04/2025 08:09

Our school cancelled all residentials this year because parents claimed they were too expensive and it was too divisive. They are going back to the drawing board and redesigning for next year, meanwhile, we are gutted as I think residentials are such a memorable part of growing up and that’s another year missed (Covid). I appreciate not everyone can afford them but it seems unnecessary to cancel them for everyone, especially as they missed out so much during covid. I don’t think schools be expected to make everyone’s experiences growing up equal, people have different backgrounds, it’s been that way forever and will continue to be.

OhHellolittleone · 03/04/2025 08:13

OonaStubbs · 02/04/2025 23:12

Why are coaches so expensive to hire? Would it be viable for the school to buy a coach and pay for a few teachers to take coach driving lessons and test?

Add that to list! Social worker, counsellor, police officer…. Coach driver!

a lot of schools do have mini buses with teachers trained To drive them. more for sports team though!

Tiredalwaystired · 03/04/2025 08:34

mindutopia · 02/04/2025 21:52

I hate to tell you, but it gets worse and it gets very exclusionary as they get older. I’m fortunate to have both the money to pay for them and the time to queue up and get dc on them, but it bothers me. Y6 residential to France was £250, which was heavily subsidised (full cost of £600 per student). Payments all happening the same month as leavers hoodie and some other end of year payment. It was not easy for some parents.

Now in secondary school, it’s even worse. This is a total ordinary academy secondary, large catchment, rural and market town but not well off areas. Mid December payments started for the ski trip happening next December. I think it’s probably £1000 in total (don’t know, my dc not going).

Enrichment week for July bookings opened 20th of December, 5 days before Christmas! Varied offerings from several European week long trips at £700 each, week of surfing in the UK at £150, down to things like board games at school and learn how to run a salon, both at school and free. I had the time in the middle of the day to book mine in (all spaces on her trip gone in 5 minutes) because I wasn’t working and I could drop £250 on a deposit the week of Christmas. I am not the majority in this school.

It’s completely impossible for a lot of parents and I will honestly say I don’t think it’s coincidental that they made it difficult for students from less comfortable backgrounds to attend the ‘posher’ trips. Less hassle chasing payments over the next 6 months, fewer students dropping out, everyone who turns up with have the right kit and enough spending money, etc. I think the school wants certain students on certain trips and not others, and I think it’s really crap.

A lottery system would be more fair and there should be support for those who need it to attend the big desirable trips. Otherwise, the kids whose lives are already enriched by travel and cultural experiences get more of it and the ones who don’t are just stuck at school learning about nail art and never seeing beyond our tiny little town. Anyway, I’ll stop ranting now, but it annoys me a lot.

Edited

No one expects the kids to go on all these big trips though - it’s nothing like the day trips.

When my kids started secondary they were clearly told they would get one foreign holiday in their school career and they had to choose wisely.

As it happens, my oldest is going on a second trip in sixth form but is paying for it out of her own savings because she knew the rules we had put in place.

TeenLifeMum · 03/04/2025 08:48

Cognacsoft · 03/04/2025 08:00

Those African charity trips are virtue signalling holidays and I wouldn’t allow dd to go. I told her that raising thousands (that mostly goes to some company) was ridiculous and the ‘charity’ would benefit more if a lump sum was sent direct and the kids didn’t fly all the way to Africa for two lines on a cv!

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I agree. I have a lot of issues with that kind of trip for 14 year olds and seriously question what value they can bring to Africa as “white saviours”.

PrincessOfPreschool · 03/04/2025 08:49

I thought this was going to be about the 800.00 for a 3 day History trip to Berlin. Iceland would be double that. My DC have only been on one trip each at Secondary (about to finish Y11) but both v expensive.

roses2 · 03/04/2025 09:21

My sons state school which has 30% free school meals has school trips 1-2 times per term. What is annoying is the spending money requests. £10 for cinema popcorn, £20 for museum gift shop. Then DS buys tat I wouldn't normally allow because everyone else is and if I don't give him the money he is left out.

Today he's gone on a trip and I've put the requested £20 on his Revolut and asked him not to buy tat and said he can keep whatever he doesn't spend. I'd much rather he uses this for his weekly chicken shop visit then a museum mug.

VickyEadieofThigh · 03/04/2025 09:26

ThesebeautifulthingsthatIvegot · 02/04/2025 21:37

They might have free school meals. If they do, school should be providing a free school meal on trip days - probably sandwiches.

OP, say no to coach snacks. There's no need and they shouldn't be eating on the coach surely?!

Those trip prices are really high and you're not unreasonable to be frustrated. how far from London are you? They could surely take public transport for far less than £45 per child!

I accompanied a trip to London just this past Monday. We had to set off at 4am because we live on the Yorkshire coast and didn't get back until 9pm. It cost each child £45 even with a subsidy because coach costs are very high (and 2 drivers were needed because of the length of the day). We'd been offered tickets to Parliament and it was too good an offer to refuse. We tried to get train tickets - and they refused to sell them to us!

Should children who live far away from London just miss out?

JitterbugFairy · 03/04/2025 09:29

Just paid almost £800 for a 3 night,4 day trip to Paris,Inc all food and entry to Disneyland Paris.,coach and ferry.

MrsKeats · 03/04/2025 09:48

Schools really can’t win can they?

Everyothernamewasalreadyinuse · 03/04/2025 10:27

It is very obvious that people have no idea how expensive it is to run a coach. And the idea of a School just buying one and training a teacher to drive it is laughable. If schools are struggling how on earth do you expect them to pay for -
Coach - a 5 year old full size coach will set you back between 110-170k - New, you will be looking at £280,000 -£320,000 + VAT or a mini coach at 30 seats around £170k + VAT
Insurance - Vehicle and public liability + Employer Liability
Maintenance - Heavy goods Mechanic will be around £45 per hour + parts(Most coaches require a inspection every 6 weeks)
tax
Fuel - 8-11mpg
Tyres - up to £700 per unit without fitting
Replace windscreens - up to 3.5k per screen
Driver CPC Courses
Tacho checks + driver training
Headlight and break tests
Driver License fees
Operator License fees
Training for Driver working Hours, Tacho checks, driver walk rounds, defect reporting, legal rest break reporting
Cost to get driver through PSV License can run into thousands
Coach parking at some sites can be £100 a day, City center such as Windsor will be £45 for 6 hours.
Clean air zone payments for some areas.

Yes coach hire has gone up since Covid, but believe me Coach companies are not rubbing there hands with glee - in fact we make less per trip than what we did 5 years ago. Costs to run this has gone through the roof, everything from insurance, to driver wages (which is still in a staffing crisis) to fuel, to site insurance has increased hugely and many operators are having to sell - add in a huge pressure from Local councils to still run home to School transport at a reduced rate as they have had their budgets cut while National Government is putting pressure on companies to turn a percentage of their fleet into fully PSVR which means finding money to replace fleet earlier to remain compliant, often earlier than planned - to replace two vehicles could mean taking out over half a million in finance agreements, the rate of which compared to 5 years ago is also shocking

Cannaeberught · 03/04/2025 10:29

If you are in genuine need your school will help with costs.
Would you rather the children don’t do anything outside of the school gates? It’s not like the school are making a profit off you…

Gogogo12345 · 03/04/2025 10:31

OonaStubbs · 02/04/2025 21:34

Just take your children to the museum yourself at the weekend or on school holidays and see if it's any cheaper.

It's free to get in . So depends where you are for transport costs

HeyThereDelila · 03/04/2025 10:32

YABU. They have to cover the cost of the coach, insurance and possibly cover supervisors at school to mind the kids who can’t go.

Does your school have a PTA? Ours does and fundraises to subsidise the cost of the trips.

At least you’re getting one. Ours is cutting residentials on account of costs and DC in year 1 isn’t having one at all this year, bar a subsidised trip to the panto at Christmas (for which we’re grateful).

The trip in year 1 is usually to a place we take him to anyway, but still a shame for the other DC who haven’t been there.

Cannaeberught · 03/04/2025 10:34

Coach costs, then maybe staff museum costs to fund the kids getting a talk or tour or whatever…

Gogogo12345 · 03/04/2025 10:36

Moonnstars · 02/04/2025 22:07

I am not sure I would want teachers taking 60 children on a public bus if I was a normal bus passenger.
There would be issues surrounding buying tickets and whether the bus had enough space. Also no seat belts on public buses either.

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No seat belts on public buses for the kids who catch them to school either but no one makes a fuss about that

3678194b · 03/04/2025 10:37

DC's school sent a letter last week about a trip to Germany, 4 nights, flying, almost £2000.

Thankfully DC doesn't want to go. If I took DC it would cost nowhere near that amount, but I guess parents are having to cover the teachers who are in attendance.

MrsSunshine2b · 03/04/2025 10:37

Just wait until your un-sporty teenager who hates the cold and anything resembling exercise comes home brandishing a letter asking for £2k for a ski trip and tells you it will only be £300 to buy all the kit they'll need.

Fancycheese · 03/04/2025 10:38

TheaBrandt1 · 03/04/2025 06:50

I would want my children to have as many opportunities as possible not just the bare minimum basics. If that meant limiting family size then so be it. The larger family is often for the parents benefit not the childrens.

Do you get a kick out of being self righteous? What do you suggest the OP do? Give 2 of her children back? Even if you only had one child, £45 for one day trip is a lot to a museum. People are permitted to express their feelings about the crazy cost of living at the minute. How is telling them they shouldn’t have had their children helpful?

Gogogo12345 · 03/04/2025 10:38

TeenLifeMum · 03/04/2025 08:48

I agree. I have a lot of issues with that kind of trip for 14 year olds and seriously question what value they can bring to Africa as “white saviours”.

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How do you know the kids going at white?