consent for school trips

[3duracellbunnies]

AIBU to not want to sign a form giving blanket consent to take my child on unspecified school trips for the whole school year (with the exception of residential ones). I can see from the school's perspective that it is a PITA if they have to get consent from every parent every time they want to go to a shop to demonstrate how to spend money, or to library etc, but I would still rather have that control than be told that I had already consented to something that I didn't want my 5yr old to do. It's not a specific trip etc that I object to (as there aren't any iminent, as far as I know) but the principal of blanket conset.

My ds often goes out and about round the village for which I gave blanket consent, they still ask for permission (and money!) for anything else, could it be similar?

What on earth are the school going to plan that you might not want your child to do?

It says all trips except residential stays, if it said 'local activities' I would be more willing, but even then it would include swimming, which I don't have a problem with but others might. I know they will still be requesting money for trips, but it is the principal that I have already given consent for all these activities that I object to.

We fill in a general consent one that like south covers thing like a visit to the church, allotments or somewhere else in the local vicinity but for trips we sign (and pay) individual ones. Dd's teacher is quite spontaneous so may only decide that day if the weather is good to go to the country park and do activities there.

We have some good local places that our school can and do use.
The blanket consent means that like yesterday ds1 went for a walk with his class to see some of the local are and walked past just in time to watch part of a local building being demolished. They loved it.
For other trips where it involves a bus trip we get individual consent.
And surely swimming wouldn't be an issue as you would have to supply swimming stuff anyway so any parent not wanting their child to go could opt out then.

My DCs school does this, and it means they have consent to take the kids into the field next to the school, or along to the woods when the bluebells are out and down to the Church, or to the bookshop when there is a suitable author visiting. Things like swimming still get a specific form, as do any which require the use of a coach.
If schools don't do this they are very unlikely to take kids on the little trips, as getting consent forms is a nightmare. So instead of taking Green class into the field to re-enact the War of the Roses, half the class can go, some of the other half can go after frantic ringing around, the rest have to stay in school being "babysat" by a TA.

If you send your kids to school then you are relinquishing some control, if you trust the school then such a blanket permission is fine. You do normally have lots of notice of big trips, but mabe less of the little ones (which still need risk assessments etc. by the teachers).

If you don't sign it, you child will have to stay at school if the teach decides it's a lovely day and they are going to go for a walk. They couldn't take them swimming spontqnouusly- they'd have to book the pool and get them to bring in swimming stuff.

My ds often goes for a last min walk (across the rd to the park). If I didn't sign his form they wouldn't ask me again (wouldnt have time) so he'd just be made to sit in classroom. So if your ok with your child missing out don't sign. They still asked for permission for trips further away.

There is only one place near the school that they are likely to take a 5yr old, any other trips would be 20min walk each way for 5yr. As I say, if it said 'local activities' or to go to x y and z during school year I wouldn't mind, but I'm not going to give blanket consent for everything. I do have sympathies when they are ringing parents before trips that the parents haven't returned forms for, but still think is parent's responsibility.

Then your child will have to stay at school while his friends go for a walk. Would you be happy with that?

If you have reason not to trust the school, thendon't and you child there.

Sorry, but I think you're being ridiculous.
How long before you post: AIBU to be furious that ds was left in school on his own with a TA/another class while all his friends had a lovely time out on a walk? Why didn't the teacher take valuable time out of her day attempting to phone me on my home land-line, work land-line and two mobiles, one of which no longer works, to ask my permission?

YABU

This makes the teachers life easier. So they can spend more time doing important stuff.

They won't take your child anywhere unsuitable.
They'll still send home endless letters asking for money for trips.

Have some faith in your school. Else you ruin it for everyone else.

That's why it's optional, they can't force you to.
Likewise, if your child misses out on a spontaneous trip because you didn't sign the slip and weren't instantly available to do so, you can't complain.
My sister felt the same as you do about both of her children and gave permission as and when necessary, which meant her children did miss out on occasion. For which she then blamed the school.

Any trips which involve coaches are going to end up needing you to provide a "voluntary contribution" towards costs anyway so you would be informed it was happening.

If you don't do it then you have to accept that your DC might just get left with another class while the rest go out.
Why are you sending them to a school where you don't trust them to take her up the road or to the library? You would know about long trips because you would have to pay.

What sort of thing might you NOT want your 5 year old to do? What is it that you are worried about?

I am trying to imagine what you could object to that doesn't need a coach and doesn't cost money-and failing.

This year, if you child was in reception at our school your child would have missed out on at least nine little local trips e.g. to lay flowers on the war memorial.

It is a three form entry school. Blanket permission slips is 90 pieces of paper. To get permission for all of these separately would have meant an extra 720 pieces of paper to chase! They didn't do so, and your child would have been left behind - possibly in the nursery, possibly in year one, possibly in a different reception class if there didn't all go at the same time.

Anything remotely "dangerous" e.g. scooter training, trips further afield, had separate slips.

Do you mind your child missing out so often?

What are you worried about? What are you concerned they might do that, if asked, you would not give permission for?

Tone this would be great. I'm shit at remembering to fill in forms!

Thanks for all the feedback, I will talk to the school about a modified consent form so they still require our consent to go somewhere on a coach, but not for local trips. Or at least clarification that this consent can be withdrawn if we don't want them to go. I have heard discussions between staff about what to do with children on major trips when they don't have consent (when they previously asked for individual trip consent), am just concerned that if I give blanket consent they might then say that they can go, when my intention is for them not to go. And just because I don't always agree with their choice of a daytrip, it doesn't mean that I don't trust them to teach my child in school.

But you haven't said where they might go that you wouldn't consent to?

But what you're intending to ask them for (modified consent) is what already happens. I can't imagine any scenario where a school would take children on a coach and yet not ask for funds towards it.
"Little" trips out around the local area is what blanket consent is about. With anything further afield, even if contributions were not required, you would be given advance warning, so you can opt out at that point.
Why do you need to "agree with their choice of a daytrip?" You are sounding very "precious."

The nearest library/shops etc are a 20-30 min uphill walk, which is why I think it unlikely that they would spontaneously go anywhere. And yes I probably would want to know if they intended to walk them somewhere for almost an hour so at least I know to pick them up by car after school.

Is this your first child? I'm curious to know what sort of trip you would not approve of? Strip club? Bookies?

As long as you realise though, that it's helicopter parenting like this that is why some schools rarely go out on trips nowadays. It's becoming simply unmanageable.