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.

Better squished legs than broken neck.

You obviously have no idea of the benefits of staying rear facing as long as possible. In a head on collision a young child's spine is likely to snap if forward facing. If rear facing the spine and neck and head stay in alignment.

2 cars at 60mph give a 120mph impact. Your child's spine is likely to snap if forward facing. Doesn't matter how big he is or how much head control he has. He still has a delicate spine.

Dc should ge rear facing till 4 imo . No probs about squishy legs. Kids squish their legs up anyway

Is that all? I thought it would be much higher considering how often cars are used vs coaches.

but trains go dead fast. No one takes a child seat on there.

you kinda need to get this in perspective

I guess you don’t use a lot of public transport Op

But then I think you are talking about this one off trip

Personally if I was going to go the trouble of taking in a booster seat, I wouldn’t take in a backless one but one with a back or none at all, I’ve never owned a backless one even though my older children could have used them before the law changed.
We rear faced our children for longer then many others, our 5 year old has only recently turned front facing but when he went on a nursery school trip to the beach aged 4 I didn’t take one of our high backed booster seats that his brothers used with him because I didn’t see the need, plus the coach wasn’t staying, it was literally dropping them off and than heading onto something else.
No one will bat an eyelid if you do take a booster, other children won’t notice and if it will make you feel better and the school are happy then you should definitely take one to ease your mind.

I sent DS's booster seat in for every school trip. He's 10 and still in a booster now as he's not quite tall enough not to use one legally yet. No one said a thing and I was happier knowing he was safe. People are so incredibly lax about safety when it comes to car seats!

When my son was in nursery, they were going on a trip to the zoo by coach. Nursery requested the kids sat in their car seats so my son went in his high back booster. Obviously, it wouldn't work with the isofix, but the coach seat belts were all 3 point harnesses.

My son was just turned 4 btw.

I think its particularly different with girls who often tend to be smaller, I understand your worrying in safety first, my sons school didn't have them on a too far away trip that required a long coach journey until around age 6, but I'd have known he was perfectly safe even now at 8 years old when he goes on 2 hour coach school trips I trust his teachers and school could ask am I right in thinking you would be wanting him rear facing even on the coach?

With kindness OP, your comment regarding a crash you had when you were younger appears to be to crux of your issue here.
i get wanted to keep your child safe, that’s what every parent wants.
But I also agree with other posters that this is coming across as a little patronising at times, although I’m sure this is not your intention and maybe a bit of a defence mechanism?
Being a good parent is letting your kids have these fun experiences with friends and not pushing your anxieties onto them.
By all means, tell the school you want a booster but where does it stop? Will you also be doing this on overnight residentials? Will you be pushing your fears onto them?
you are clearly a good mum who wants the best for your child but sometimes that is simply letting them have the same experience as all the other kids and not projecting your fears onto them and singling them out on a school trip (which, to a 5 year old would be such a fun and freeing experience!)

This x 100! Are people really putting their 5 year olds in rear facing seats?!

Mine were so cramped after about age 2 it was cruel to keep them in it.

People's concept of risk is so skewed these days. Maybe go on an advanced driving course? That will likely reduce your chance of crashing far more than any car seat will protect if you do.

We used a bubblebum on school trips when ours were little

I refrained from mentioning it until then because I knew someone would come along and say this! I have had much more traumatic experiences in my life than that, believe me I am not projecting nor anxious about it.

Please refer to the “coach” section here. It’s clear as day. If possible, a car seat or booster is safest and best practice.

https://www.childcarseats.org.uk/media/1018/carrying-children-safely-in-taxis-coaches-buses-and-minibuses.pdf

OP you seem to have made “being super into car seat safety” a key part of your personality, and in doing so have lost the ability to accurately risk assess. The factors that govern car safety do not directly translate to all other modes of transport. The increased safety of a rear facing car seat in a car comes from the increased likelihood of a front on collision at speed in a car. Coaches don’t tend to have those kinds of accidents.

What would you do on a plane?

😧

This is for cars though not coaches and is also on the event of a collision. Look into the percentage of coaches involved in collisions, and then of these what resulted in serious injury.

It maybe ‘safest’ but that doesn’t make not using a seat ‘unsafe’.

Sure, but if I can make it safer with minimal effort, why wouldn’t I?

And the answer to that is, I don’t want to alienate my child. That’s my dilemma, and the reason I posted!

I am interested OP, if you actually had a question or if you wanted to raise car seat safety awareness?

you've clearly made up your mind before even posting because you are just responding with rear facing stats (which I’m not against, as I said, we still rear face at nearly 5!)

But it doesn’t seem like you really want opposing views!

It’s finding the balance of what you deem ‘safe enough’ and the practical considerations. Your threshold for ‘safe enough’ appears far higher than most people, and that is what seems to be making you present as anxious. It’s out of step with the majority.

What a ridiculous response. There have been some absolutely awful bus and coach accidents, many involving children.

FWIW my XH has worked on the technical side in the heavy vehicle industry all his life, including for 3 different bus manufacturers and a coach line. He (successfully) advocated at our kids' schools and other activities to always use coaches with 3 point seatbelts. So there's some magical insider knowledge for you.

But I think the OP said the coach is using three point seatbelts?

I think the point about an advanced driving course is a good one. So much on Mumsnet about the precise type of car seat and being backwards facing but if you want the very highest levels of safety you should be developing your driving skills too - especially defensive techniques. I did the IAM course and test plus a skid pan session when my first child was a baby and it was a complete revelation to me. Observation and risk assessment are generally far more important than we might think.

Why are you asking anything when you're so absolutely convinced that you're right? Have you just come on to lecture people? If you have, at least be honest about it.