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Original poster

Can't afford school trip

140 replies

Lillybeans85 · 14/11/2025 15:07

My son really wants to go on his year 6 residential but the cost is £600 for a Mon-Fri stay. This is a lot higher than I expected and we really can't afford it at the moment. He goes to a state school but everyone in his class is really well off & money seems no object to them. My husband works & we get a small top up of universal credit a month due to his income. However, we would not be eligible for free school meals or anything. I feel really awkward and embarrassed emailing the school to ask for help & don't even know if we would get it. Has anyone else been in the same situation?

OP posts:
Rituelec · 14/11/2025 21:42

Ours was 800. I emailed them to read the room. Fining families for taking children out in school time yet having a 800 trip during school time. Unbelievable

bittertwisted · 14/11/2025 21:54

Lillybeans85 · 14/11/2025 15:07

My son really wants to go on his year 6 residential but the cost is £600 for a Mon-Fri stay. This is a lot higher than I expected and we really can't afford it at the moment. He goes to a state school but everyone in his class is really well off & money seems no object to them. My husband works & we get a small top up of universal credit a month due to his income. However, we would not be eligible for free school meals or anything. I feel really awkward and embarrassed emailing the school to ask for help & don't even know if we would get it. Has anyone else been in the same situation?

Can you not work if he is in year 6?

Jenkibubble · 14/11/2025 22:05

Lillybeans85 · 14/11/2025 15:07

My son really wants to go on his year 6 residential but the cost is £600 for a Mon-Fri stay. This is a lot higher than I expected and we really can't afford it at the moment. He goes to a state school but everyone in his class is really well off & money seems no object to them. My husband works & we get a small top up of universal credit a month due to his income. However, we would not be eligible for free school meals or anything. I feel really awkward and embarrassed emailing the school to ask for help & don't even know if we would get it. Has anyone else been in the same situation?

Ask .
School are discreet about these things
Son got a place on an end of year reward trip (in year 10) to a theme park . Whilst not as expensive as yours , I hadn’t been anticipating it and didn’t want to say no to my son but it was a chunk from my budget (single
income )
school asked what I could afford and in the end they paid half !
I had to do the same with uniform once foo (fussy uniform rules - all logoed ) and I’d had huge expenses to pay out for at the time (boiler / car etc )
School reimbursed some uniform

Superhansrantowindsor · 14/11/2025 22:07

We take year 10 to France for four days for less than that. £600 for a primary school trip is ridiculous. Please contact the school. Don’t feel bad.

BlockF · 14/11/2025 22:24

Tbh OP if you’re not working, and your husband is a low earner, what do you expect?

Why should there be endless handouts for parents who don’t work, when working parents are also struggling to pay for nice-to-have extras for their kids?

TomatoSandwiches · 14/11/2025 22:28

BlockF · 14/11/2025 22:24

Tbh OP if you’re not working, and your husband is a low earner, what do you expect?

Why should there be endless handouts for parents who don’t work, when working parents are also struggling to pay for nice-to-have extras for their kids?

Perhaps op can't work due to a disabled or being a carer, there's plenty of other valid reasons for not being in paid employment.
If there's help available then people are within their right to at least ask.

Boudy · 14/11/2025 22:32

There are people who earn what should be a 'decent wage' receiving some uc. So stop wanging on about low earners and can op work blah blah

TheFormidableMrsC · 14/11/2025 22:49

bittertwisted · 14/11/2025 21:54

Can you not work if he is in year 6?

Show quote history

Oh my God 🙄

Melancholyflower · 14/11/2025 22:50

£600 is ridiculous1 I work in Y6 and ours is just under £400 now - it seems to go up by £10-20 each year- and I think that's quite a lot. We always say that we don't want anyone to miss out for financial reasons, and when the letters are given out there is a financial assistance form attached. PP children pay around £50 and depending on income others can get a significant reduction.
We have in the past had donations from parents ranging from offering to pay the cost of an extra child to a very generous donation that meant all children had a large reduction in the cost.
As for the idea that staff getting a paid for holiday bumps up the cost, imagine if we billed them for all the hours of childcare that we do outside of our working hours!

Clearinguptheclutter · 14/11/2025 22:57

def speak to the school
£600 is ridiculous for year 6 trip. Ours is £300
and parents found that a struggle and were a MC (though I wouldn’t say affluent) area

TartanMammy · 14/11/2025 23:11

Namechange822 · 14/11/2025 15:53

Could he have the residential as his main Christmas present? Perhaps with money from his grandparents or uncles/aunts etc too?

I appreciate that doesn’t make it any cheaper but does mean you save on spending out over Christmas. He could just have some chocolates etc to open on Christmas Day.

Come on, do you really think that it is fair for a child to understand that he's getting a residential for Xmas and all his class mates get a residential and Christmas presents. Maybe an older teen that approach would be easier to explain.

If money is tight it's unlikely he'll be getting £600 spent on Xmas preenu anyway so it doesn't really solve the issue.

£600 is a lot money, speak to the school see if they can help with a reduction.

SoftBalletShoes · 14/11/2025 23:14

BlockF · 14/11/2025 22:24

Tbh OP if you’re not working, and your husband is a low earner, what do you expect?

Why should there be endless handouts for parents who don’t work, when working parents are also struggling to pay for nice-to-have extras for their kids?

Don't be mean. We can't all be high earners, and the money isn't for the parents, it's for the children. No money spent on a child's education and enrichment is ever wasted.

Shinyandnew1 · 14/11/2025 23:29

peachxx · 14/11/2025 17:35

School trips are not school trips anymore its a holiday and you pay more because half has to pay for the teachers.

My sisters daughter had a trip come up years back costing £1500 per child to go to france for 4 days.
Her daughter said she didnt want to go and to be fair a lot of kids didnt go either.
The trip was canceled by the school due to the lack of funds goes to show, the parents was not dishing out for the teachers.

A year later another trip day trip to the local museum £70 per child said museum was free to enter and with in walking range for the kids.

My sister went in and asked why was they charging parent to go to a free museum the very place my sister worked in so she knew it was free to enter.
The school sent out a letter that evening, stating that an auto correct mistake was made about the trip and the price was free however each child can bring £20 saying this was max for the spending money at the gift shop and 4 ice-
cream.
We do apologise for the mistake made bla bla bla.
Kids did go.

So, what do you think you should happen instead?

  1. Teachers pay for themselves to go on school trips.
  2. Trips don't happen any more.

?

treesocks23 · 14/11/2025 23:42

My DD is now sixth form. Large school. Fairly affluent area. This year, I think all trips they have put out as options haven't received the minimum numbers due to the expense. They trips have been pulled. It's not just you! It's a lot of money.

crackofdoom · 14/11/2025 23:54

Nazzywish · 14/11/2025 16:37

Option1 go speak to the parent liason at school or head of year etc they will usually have a fund set aside for this and this is exactly what it is for, do not feel embarrassed. Maybe email them instead if it's better for you but please ask. Our school has this, it's not advertised but as soon as they see a kid isn't going the teacher reaches out and asks for a reason etc and if it's monetary then school steps in if they can

There's also alot of kids in yr6 who don't go. And in the past few years it's more. The school put on fun stuff for them to do and usually a local trip or two to make up for it and the kids who don't go equally love it. But you said your kid wants to go so please ask OP there is NO shame in asking.

Oh wow, the expectation in DS2 's school is that they ALL go on the trip! And I resent that pressure. When DS was smaller and had only just joined the school he didn't want to go on the residential, so I didn't sign him up. I was told "Well, we won't really know what to do with him if he doesn't go, because the rest of the class is". Great 🙄. Luckily he changed his mind and went.

This year it's £350 for a week- not bad, but still a stretch for me. Luckily they've sorted out paying in instalments starting now.

DS2 's secondary has outrageously priced trips! £800 for 3 nights in Italy! Luckily, it's not a whole class trip in the same way, so there was no problem with him opting out.

peachxx · 14/11/2025 23:54

Shinyandnew1 · 14/11/2025 23:29

So, what do you think you should happen instead?

  1. Teachers pay for themselves to go on school trips.
  2. Trips don't happen any more.

?

Show quote history

Ive already spoke about this if you look at my other comments.
It was not meant in a bad way.

Laurinja · 15/11/2025 00:03

Does your school to PTA where set of parents do all sorts of money rising activities through year. And then they pay for the trips etc. Or half pay the trips at least. Maybe something like that is also available. Ask the school definitely. Talk to headteacher.
Be collected and calm.
If there is a way to rise the funds...kid will go. If not...he will have better experience some other time with you guys when possible.
Nothing to worry

Blondeshavemorefun · 15/11/2025 02:36

Posters are saying can you get a job ? So can you do evening work so no childcare as dh be home

a friend used do work 6/7pm to 12/1 - shelf stacking /on till at local 24 hr Tesco

or office cleaning
waitressing
bar work
care home

unless ill or disabled - why can’t you get a job if dh is on low income

Lovefoodme · 15/11/2025 02:39

Is your child entitled to free school meals? My child's school offer reduced prices for residential trips of pupils on free school meals they don't advertise it and I only found out our school did as they called me and let me know. Might be worth asking also ask if they offer a pay plan with a deposit to secure the place.

Clonakilla · 15/11/2025 03:39

JollyLilacBee · 14/11/2025 16:51

No, campsite and fuel only, but we would only spend the same as we would at home on food, and we have kayaks, SUP’s, surfboards, bodyboards and other equipment. And that would be for 4 people. I couldn’t justify spending £600 on one person in the family as it would mean the rest of us would miss out on going away

Show quote history

Sure but you wouldn’t then approach the school thinking that other parents should contribute to fund it surely? You’d have made a perfectly reasonable choice about financial priorities, but that would be the end of it. Your son wouldn’t go. It wouldn’t be a reason to expect someone else to pick up the bill. The OP is in a very different situation.

Can you go to the school with what you can afford and see if it can be negotiated?

Zippzuhogo · 15/11/2025 03:43

dicentra365 · 14/11/2025 15:18

£600 is taking the piss. my dd is doing year 6 residential and it’s costing £225. Were not in a wealthy area, so the deposit was £50 and then the school are asking for £25 a month installments. It’s honestly tone deaf to think that £600 isn’t going to be a struggle for some families. I feel annoyed on your behalf! However do speak to the school, there is sometimes some discretion that extends beyond just pp students.

I think it's extreme too!

My DD is going to Robin Hood for her year 6 trip and it's costing £288. Our school did similar to yours and people could pay it in installments

£600 would be a struggle for us I'd actually be really upset If the trip was that price

Namechange822 · 15/11/2025 04:08

TartanMammy · 14/11/2025 23:11

Come on, do you really think that it is fair for a child to understand that he's getting a residential for Xmas and all his class mates get a residential and Christmas presents. Maybe an older teen that approach would be easier to explain.

If money is tight it's unlikely he'll be getting £600 spent on Xmas preenu anyway so it doesn't really solve the issue.

£600 is a lot money, speak to the school see if they can help with a reduction.

Show quote history

My eldest is in year 6, and a lot of the kids are getting the residential as a Christmas present, with a little token to open on the day, so I’m sure he wouldn’t be the only one.

£600 is a lot of money, and speaking to the school is a good idea, but is only likely to reduce it and not make it free. The money will still have to come from somewhere, and this is how I would do it.

ByQuaintAzureWasp · 15/11/2025 04:26

Can you get a job to get the money?

ByQuaintAzureWasp · 15/11/2025 04:26

Can you get a job to get the money?

Bjorkdidit · 15/11/2025 06:05

TartanMammy · 14/11/2025 23:11

Come on, do you really think that it is fair for a child to understand that he's getting a residential for Xmas and all his class mates get a residential and Christmas presents. Maybe an older teen that approach would be easier to explain.

If money is tight it's unlikely he'll be getting £600 spent on Xmas preenu anyway so it doesn't really solve the issue.

£600 is a lot money, speak to the school see if they can help with a reduction.

Show quote history

It's an entirely reasonable suggestion that the trip is in lieu of his main Christmas present if money is tight.

He's well old enough to understand that money is finite, that some families have more than others and if he goes on the trip, that cutbacks need to be made elsewhere to pay for it.

Hopefully the school will be able to help with the cost and they can also pay in installments plus the OP working if she is able to, which she might not be due to younger DC or other reasons.