Booster seat on coach for reception school trip?

[Maybeitsok]

My just turned 5 year old is going on a school trip soon via busy dual carriageway to another city, journey time approx 45 min each way. They are still in a rear facing car seat with me, which is all they know, and how they will continue until they outgrow it at 36kg or 125cm tall. They’re currently only 16kg and 107cm!

Anyway, I was reluctant to let them go on the coach but have decided to do so but with a booster seat, so I’ve bought a carry on portable one that’ll be easy enough to use.

Thing is, they’ve asked if it’s just them that’ll have this kind of seat, and it probably will be, since people aren’t that clued up on car seat safety it seems.

Has anyone else sent their 4/5 year old with a booster before? I’m fearful they’ll be ridiculed but then again not sure considering their age. Safety first in my opinion, but want them
happy too.

What are you basing this on? Because if I was running a trip, I'd not allow anything that threatened the viability of it. If one parent asked, that would probably be fine. If ten did, it wouldn't be so either I'd be saying no or cancelling the trip.

Exactly. Their trip their rules! If parents aren't happy then they can take the children out or drive them. You are lucky they decided they could accommodate you. I personally wouldn't do this as I wouldn't want to install a carseat in case I got it wrong.

Only you can weigh up whether the risk of not sending her in with the booster is worth it. Yes it makes it safer if their is a crash but is that percentage increase of safe worth it at the potential expense of being seen as different, the stress of being different and dealing with it.

and that is only something you can answer. For a lot of parents I imagine it would be sending without (not wanting to be seen as an awkward parent, not wanting their child to be different, the child not wanting to take it (and as an aside it has been awhile since mine were in reception but they would have had some opinion I am sure DD certainly would) and wouldn’t send it) because for coaches the risk is actually not that great in comparison to cars.

So it is your choice OP - also 107 cm is not short for a reception aged child

So, if it's a 2-class cohort, the coach will likely have a 2-3 seat configuration in order to fit 60 kids (plus the requisite number of adult helpers). Those seats are narrow. What "risk" will the poor kids be at, who end up squashed to one side of your child sitting on their throne in alleged comparative safety?

I would love to be a fly on the wall of the staff room at your dc's school.

They won't squash a child next to op's dc's booster seat. She'll just have to sit by herself.

As an aside, my mum was too anxious to let me learn to ride a bike until I was much older than my peers because she was afraid I'd injure myself. She never cooked with the oven (!) because she was afraid of fire. I know what anxious parenting is when I see it. Op, step back and rethink.

How does your child travel on public transport? On the bus for example?

I'm going to stick my neck out and suggest that the OP's child doesn't do such a thing.
Although, what about the train? No seat belts at all on those.

You obviously don’t because that’s not me at all.

You should stop trying to gaslight people though 😉

But that is a little bit how you are coming across OP.

because it is going to be a balancing act weighing the decision up

Again, it’s quite telling that those trying to suggest I am just an “anxious” parent have completely ignored multiple links posted by credible sources, clearly stating that car seats should be used on coaches for young children.

Why is that? 😃

Hardly.

Not using an oven for fear of fire is completely irrational. And I’ve been involved in a house fire!

Considering sending a child on a vehicle with a booster seat as recommended by multiple experts is not.

I guess the professionals are lunatics as well as all the folk that I’ve seen on here posting that their kids have used boosters for the school transportation 🤔

Ah bless her I can understand your concern as she is so small for her age. My son is the same age and over 120cm tall and yes I would be concerned too.
at that age though I think they would be unlikely to make fun of each other so I wouod go for it if it is allowed

Because none of that actually matters OP - it still doesn’t help you make the decision you need to make.

Your question is will taking the booster seat have consequences and potentially yes it will and no amount of safety information is going to change that.

for a lot of us it isn’t relevant anymore - my 12 year old is 5ft 10 so certainly doesn’t need one. What we do have experience in when kids get older is the side that you are worried about and you are equally ignoring the fact that yes it could be hard on her taking the booster seat, the school could very well be pandering to you and trust me having had to accept that for DS being that parent was necessary school staff do talk!

You know the safety stuff, you have asked and answered about the other side and the potential effects of taking it now you have to decide which side you are going to come down on

The "credible sources" wouldn't be affiliated to Britax, by any chance?

No.

Irrelevant though, either way.

I’ve been a primary school teacher for nearly 20 years and have never come across a parent providing a booster seat for coach travel. We do ask for one to be provided if a child is travelling in a staff car (e.g to a sports event.) But never for a coach.

The risk is far more minimal. Obviously not zero but then nothing is zero risk.

Of all the things that worry me as a parent, this has genuinely never even occurred to me!

But you’re not prioritising their safety, if you were you’d be using public transport over a car.

Because it’s not reflective of real life. As are many things when raising children. My child rear faces and will rear face until 7, but I still understand that car seats on school trips aren’t going to work. If the school is happy with one parent insisting on one, that’s fine for you. It doesn’t mean it’s not overly anxious or the “right” thing to do. Everything is a balance with regard to safety.

Most people agree you are being overly cautious and if more parents insist on these sorts of accommodations, school trips will become more and more difficult for schools to arrange.

This situation is more akin to

child wears a helmet on their bike? Yes ✅
child wears a helmet when running around in the playground? 🙄

They could still fall and bang their head in the playground.

Car seats are absolutely necessary in cars. You are not weighing up the risks rationally in this situation though.

You need to do what you are comfortable with, but really weigh up the risk and the reality of this occurring. Do you never go travelling or on a bus or train trip?

Only you can weigh up whether the risk of not sending her in with the booster is worth it. Yes it makes it safer if their is a crash but is that percentage increase of safe worth it at the potential expense of being seen as different, the stress of being different and dealing with it.

and that is only something you can answer. For a lot of parents I imagine it would be sending without (not wanting to be seen as an awkward parent, not wanting their child to be different, the child not wanting to take it (and as an aside it has been awhile since mine were in reception but they would have had some opinion I am sure DD certainly would) and wouldn’t send it) because for coaches the risk is actually not that great in comparison to cars.

So it is your choice OP

Not using an oven for fear of fire is completely irrational.

Good, I'm glad you can see this. My mum uses an oven now too.

But what if I told you that not using an oven reduces the chances of a house fire by xyz%? Using a hob is five* times safer, why wouldn't you want to keep your child safe?! Most dishes can be cooked on the hob, and anyway wouldn't you be willing to forgo a roast to save your actual child's life? Just because other parents use ovens doesn't mean I should put my child at risk.

*no idea, seems about right though eh. I'm sure I could find an induction hob manufacturer with a blog about it.

You’re clutching at straws here I’m afraid.

I really don't think you can claim that ovens are safe. They've been known to cause house fires and children have died in house fires. You'd put your child at risk of dying by using one? I don't use one at home but now my child is going on a school outing where there'll be an oven that might go on fire and I've emailed the school about using alternative food preparation because not everyone seems to be aware of the risks.

...do you see it yet, op?

Well, my mum really did never use her oven until I left home. There were other bonkers things but that was up there in the most bonkers rule she had.

Your dc eill have their own anecdotes when they're older