YR5 camp staffing ratio?

[Idontwant2]

My child is going into YR5 in sept and within the first 2 weeks back are due to go on camp
for a couple of nights.

my question is are there any rules about staff attending the trip such as do you need male & female staff?

The camp is due to take place with staff of only 1 sex due to the fact there are no staff of the opposite sex at this school come September, also 1 member of staff will be new to the class so would only of known the children for 10 days before going.

Im not sure how I feel about this not because I think 1 sex is better than the other for looking after the children but they are getting to the age where a certain sex would be better for certain things that could arise.

How would you feel in this situation ?

I’m assuming you mean no male staff. Lots of Primary schools have no male staff. It’s out of the school’s control and I’m not aware of any rules re gender.
A good opportunity for a new member of staff to get to know the children in a more relaxed environment.

Presume there’ll also be staff at the PGL or wherever, centre?

DD recently went on Yr 5 residential. There was 1 male staff member and the rest female, so some female staff on the boys' corridor. The staff weren't allowed in the kids' rooms at all. At 9, they are old enough not to need help with personal tasks. Presumably if they were seriously ill, they would call a parent to come, although that would take longer than picking up from school. It's not ideal, but it's fine IMO.

There isn’t anything they can do about not having any male staff though. I’d consider myself fortunate that my child was at a school where they still do trips and camps as many don’t anymore.

Residentials have to have both sexes yes. It's worrying you think '1 sex is better than the other at looking after children"

Why don’t you clearly state what your concerns are? All the vagueness is tedious.

There's no rule saying residential trips need to have both male and female staff, which makes sense because some primary schools only have female teachers. What's more important is that there are enough sensible adults there to supervise the children properly. Our ratio is one adult to twelve children, but it'll depend on the school's own policy and risk assessment.

I don’t think 1 sex is better than the other, I clearly stated in my op, possibly read it better next time.

I was asking if there needs to be staff of both sex as that’s always how they did it, admittedly the school had the option in other years and not now and also another school locally always uses both sexes for residential trips as a rule so I wanted to know if that’s ok???

Schools I know often take TA staff on camping trips, luckily in the schools I know there are TA of both sexes , but I don’t think it matters. I often took children on school trips with same sex staff.

nor does it matter that it is early in the year, it’s a great opportunity for the new teacher to observe class dynamics and see the children in less formal settings, as well as having shared experiences to remember.

They have to have no such thing. I’ve just been on residential with my school and all the staff who gave up their time to come were female. We have no male staff. Where do you propose we find them??

This is untrue. Many primary schools have no male staff and there is no DfES requirement to do so.

There are, however, recommended ratios of staff to children and there will be a risk assessment form which lays all this out for the LEA or Trust. The school will have an EVC (Educational Visits Co-ordinator) who has filled all of the paperwork in.

It's important to note that it isn't just about a school having staff of both sexes. Members of staff of both sexes have to be willing to go. They often don't get any extra pay for going even if they are willing. Our guidance says it is preferable but not essential.