Can't afford Dd's very expensive school trip

[Wario54]

My DD is 15 and in year 10 at the moment. We live a deprived part of the North of England. She goes to a local, state comprehensive

My DH has had his hours reduced at work in recent months. I work part time in retail (can't get anymore hours unfortunately - I have asked). Like a lot of families, we're financially struggling to keep our heads above water. But we get by (somehow) and I never take the little things for granted (that we have each other, food on the table and a roof over our heads). We've not told our kids about our financial worries - they know there isn't much spare money but not about the extent of our problems.

Dd has come home tonight with a letter and great excitement about another school trip. They had a guest speaker today (external travel company) in assembly today enthusing them about a trip to Borneo of all places. It's 4 weeks long and the cost is £6,500. Currently planned for June/July 2027 (just after her GCSE'S). They are expected to fundraise some of the cost themselves (bake sales, sponsored walks etc) but we will have to pay the majority if she's to go.

She said today that she'll get a Saturday job to cover some of the cost herself. But even with that, taken into account we just can't afford it. It breaks my heart, because I'd love to give her that opportunity but I know we simply can't.

She's full of excitement about trekking through the jungle and cuddling Orangutans. But how do I tell her when she's already set her heart on it? 😢

I just think the school are being completely ridiculous by offering such an expensive trip in a cost of living crisis.

And you know that for s fact, do you? They all volunteered? None were expected or begged to go? Even if they were and you did actually have that conversation with the teachers (which you didn't) they're not going to say, "no I didn't want to go. It's costing me a fortune in childcare!" are they? They're going to placate and say their looking forward to it.

You're point is exactly what I was saying though, anyway. Staff on go because of goodwill. They do it because they know the kids get a lot out of it. They are not doing it for themselves. It is not worth it for the teacher. The only reason they do it is for the kids.

@Yesimmoaningaboutbenefits Yes. Small private school and teachers spoke about enjoying trips and they put many on. DD and others were well behaved and a pleasure to be with. I guess some people like children and many did trips for years. I think some schools do attract staff who like going abroad/on trips and doing their best for dc. There doesn’t need to be coercion or arm twisting. Teachers are very proactive regarding the trips and I was delighted they were.

Both DDs did a school exchange to South Africa aged 13 (y9) for one term. It was a school that expected dc to be responsible and be self reliant.

😂 I went to an all girls private school and there was, every so often, a girl sent home from abroad (parents had to come and collect) because they were smoking/drinking/whatever else. Staff will not tell you everything. Even as a parent governor you are not that special.

Regardless, you are talking about the past. Many teachers did enjoy residentials in the past, even as recently as 2019 (still not a holiday though). Post COVID, teachers are begged to go on residentials. Some will still volunteer, but nowhere near as many. It's just not worth it. Especially when people like you keep banging on about it being a holiday.

Do you not see how your oblivious anecdotes are just perpetuating the myth that "it's a holiday" for teachers. It's not. It's work. And it further damages the reputation of the teaching profession.

@OhDear111 and @Yesimmoaningaboutbenefits, this is my experience - young, committed teachers with a taste for adventure, confidence, leadership potential, and a very strong sense of duty, are ones who do these trips.

I’m bloody glad they do, I know they don’t appeal to all pupils and families but all credit to them, they go above and beyond.

If the teachers’ kickback, and I mean, come ON, truly… is a 4-week trip to Malaysia/ one week’s skiing/ 5 days in iceland “free” then that is fine by me.

I’m not naïve enough to think all teachers are salt of the earth. Some are rubbish, both my kids have had a fair few of these over a combined 24 years of schooling. But taking kids on trips, especially if it is to the other side of the world, and staying outside metropolitan areas, is no holiday: I’d think of it more as an endurance test with benefits.

Same goes for any risky trips - like skiing. Every single year one teacher is deputed to go to the fracture clinic with a pupil, and very occasionally much worse. That’s not a fun way to spend your February or Easter Holiday. Trips are amazing, until they’re not amazing.

The three schools I am aware of having such a scheme do not have the cash
The governors run schemes supported by ex-pupils, lottery grants, charity events etc.

That's not the issue being addressed
But you are not wrong

No one mentioned the school funding it

The schools don't have the money
But they often have trusts supported by ex-pupils, lottery grants, charity events etc. that do

No way! I would imagine most of her school won’t be on this trip!!
I have a yr 11 she’s going on the ski trip at £ 1500 she’s paid £1000 of that herself by working and me and her dad contributed the rest.
i hate the way school do this talk to parents first!!!
its totally unacceptable of the school

@snowmichael They absolutely do not! I’ve worked on school budgets and secondary schools do not have access to £ thousands to support non curricular trips. It would be wrong to divert any money to these or pp money for that matter. This trip is not a right - it’s pleasure. My old grammar school at 600 years old doesn’t have money in trusts or wealthy donors willing to stump up £6500 per child. State education simply doesn’t have money lying around like this for unnecessary trips.

Even if they do, that money would be spent on essential trips like the GCSE Geography fieldwork trip that they have to do for the exam. Or at least curriculum based trips. It would never be spent on something like this.

You're just wrong to say 'never'
I am on the committee for my old school's fund
We make lump sum payments for this like this 10-20 times a year, plus interest free loans for another fifty or so pupils

You are absolutely wrong to say this doesn't happen
As I said in an earlier post, I am on the committee for my old school's charitable fund that exists just to help pupils for events such as this
We work with a number of other schools sharing best practices for such funds, as well as contributing to a general pool should any of the schools involved have a shortfall in any year

Ok...state schools would never fund this.

Are you talking about a private school or a state school? State schools have to fund educational trips or at least help with costs but anything not directly related to education are not funded.

My DDs state school does sometimes fund the curriculum adjacent trips. Like the Spanish/art trip to Barcelona, or the Geography trip to Iceland. The ones costing in the £500-£1k mark. But a £6k trip.. no way. The school has a below average FSM of around 20% and would prefer to help as many as possible rather than blowing it on one pupil for one trip.

I actually went on this exact trip 20 years ago when I was 16. I worked 4 shifts on a weekend in a shop and pub and raised the rest fundraising, saving from birthday money etc. It took a hell lot of dedication but I am so grateful my parents allowed me to do it, it really was a life changing trip for many reasons.

I would sit down with your daughter and go through the realities of raising that huge amount of money. It will consume her life. If you aren’t able to financially contribute, tell her that. She needs to be 100% committed. But if she is, it’s an amazing opportunity for her to achieve so many things for herself.

@Tropicalfruitssquash What do you achieve exactly? Surely most of it is placed in front of you? Yes, you are away from parents, but what achievements? It’s really a holiday and a bit of virtue signaling thrown in probably. I would be visiting a care home here for a bigger achievement and keeping the money for university or towards a house deposit or a car.

Agree ohdear111. Any money she can earn will be much needed for other things. Some posters don't listen well.

Read other posts - literally the one below yours - and you'll see that this is not something that, in other's words, 'never happens'

Two posts down from yours, an example of a state school funding such trips

So stop saying 'never' when you mean 'in my (very limited) experience'

Bit tricky to read posts below mine… they would have been posted after I did. In my experience of working in a variety of state schools in my LA and a previous LA they don’t fund trips not directly related to the curriculum as there is no legal obligation to do so.

You mean the one saying they'd fund curriculum or curriculum adjacent trips? .... So exactly what I'd said.

A state school would never fund this.

(And it's not limited experience. Like PP, I have decades of experience across schools in 4 LAs)

What was it about the trip that made it life changing?
What have you done differently that you wouldn't have done without the trip?

@Yesimmoaningaboutbenefits I think many schools have similar fees and remissions policies and they are based on curriculum trips when applied. Obviously state schools aren’t funding £6,500 trips for pupils. Neither do they have substantial funds in trusts or ability to fund raise to fund pupils.