School trip worries

[MrsLemon]

Hello. My DC is due to go away on a school residential trip to germany soon.

The children are 9 and 10 yo. They are allowed to take mobile phones for calling home but they have to hand them in upon arrival and ask permission to have them to call home on an evening.

Part of the trip will involve the children going shopping in small groups unaccompanied by adults. I am quite concerned about this and am going to ask the school to consider letting the children having their mobile phones with a teachers contact mobile number on it incase they get lost or seperated from their group. Do you think this is a reasonable request? I have also considerd asking for security bracelets/stickers with a mobile number on, so an adult can be contacted.
I have broached the subject of my concern of these unsupervised shopping trips but just seem to be getting "well we have never lost a child yet" reply back. This does not reassure me at all.

What to do? Should I insist? The trip is paid for and EVERY child in the class is going. Opting out is not a favourable option really.

Advice and Suggestions welcome.

I am baffled as to how this trip was approved by an La trip advisor and can only assume yours is a private school?

i think your suggestion of them taking their mobile phones while unaccompanied is a great one, I would be pretty concerned at my DC being unattended in a foreign country - heck even this country - at that age.

Without knowing where exactly the children are going to be whilst unsupervised, I can only say that if you have paid and signed a consent form then you must either withdraw your children if you are unhappy, or put in writing that you wish your children to remain in the supervision of an adult during the shopping excursion.

Is your child used to going shopping on their own in this country?

How long do the staff allow them to go on their shopping trip?

Every year I take 11-14 yr-olds on trips to Europe, and it includes shopping excursions in groups. Students are given very strict instructions about where they are allowed to go, and what they should do in case of various possible emergency situations.

But I do think 9 and 10 is very young for this sort of thing.

I don't let my 10 year old go shopping on his own in this country! Why on earth would it suddenly be acceptable in a country where he doesn't speak the language, know which may be dangerous areas etc? Do the school really do this kind of trip every year?

I am that the school do this every year and think it is okay.

I didnt go shopping on my own in my home town until I was 12/13 let alone a town in a foreign country

I am frankly disbelieving that any LA has approved this trip. Dh has just been told he is not approved to take 8x 16 year olds on a train journey alone and needs another adult.

Is this a private school? I am surprised that it would be allowed by an LEA.