Cost of school trips/activities: do you restrict what they can do?

[OrmIrian]

DS#1 had a camping 'get to know you' trip when he first started Yr7 (£60). He went to a rugby match (£15). Enrichment week camping trip (£90). Trip to see Stomp in September (£32). £60 a term drum lessons. And now a week in Germany (£200 just before Christmas ).

These are all things I want him to do. And I think the German trip is essential (and good value). But it all adds up. And more worryingly DD is starting in secondary school in just over a year so it will be all that doubled. We can afford it now but X 2 (and then X 3 in a few years time) is going to be a bit of a struggle.

How do you deal with this? Should we be restricting him a little in preparation knowing that he may not be able to do all these things when his sister starts Yr 7?

I went to school in Ireland where there was 1 'orchestra' tour to Dublin every year, small cost I think.

Once, during my 5 years, there was a trip abroad offered for about 200 pounds then which was huge money for us. I really wanted to go and begged, eventually it was agreed that it was my birthday present. I had the best time.

When I came back I was truely more interested in learning French. I had been a 'good' student. I hadn't actually said that much over there, but had analysed what the waiter said to us and what the sign in the métro meant etc. Aparently a lot more had sunk in though, because after that I became a francophile and loved French lessons. (Married a frog and now live in France, RESULT!)

And are you fluent in both French and German?

Me? My German is fluent (I went on and did a degree). My French was OK aged 18, but is rather rusty now tbh!

aged 18 was a long time ago btw!

We said no to DD going on a £1300 ski holiday as we also have 2 boys and we would have to do the same for them at some point.

However we went skiing as a family over easter, (with peak retreats) and it came to about £1500, including ski hire, tuition, food and an extra week at a campsite near Paris.

DD just brough home another form to fill in for a trip to see Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in January. It's only £21 but just one more thing. And she isn't even in secondary school yet

bloody hell serin, thats a bit much for a ski trip! I was pleasantly suprised by the one that DD is going on next easter, think it was around £600 including 5 days of lessons and all equipment etc.

I don't restrict what ds goes on but was mighty relieved that he didn't want to go on the ski trip as none of his mates were going. It was about £800.

Well if I couldn't afford a trip I would simply tell DS and restrict him going.

Last year they had a day trip that was just under £30 and I told the school I couldn't afford this. Luckily they had enough to cover the cost of DS going so he didn't have to miss out, but I would not hesitate to simply keep him at home if I couldn't afford it and the school couldn't sub him.

Gosh riven and Anna, interesting how different our priorities are! I would always value a sports trip above a language trip and would rather I was spending money on extra sport for DS rather than language

the cost of trips may go up even more because of 'rarely cover'. We have been told that we now have to price in the cost of supply teachers to cover the cost of the teachers who have to accompany trips.

Did you know that most schools have a trips fund for educational trips which you can apply to the governers to receive funding from?
Also, you only have to pay for the cost of travel and accommodation on curriculum related trips, and the school has to pay for the rest, to give children a chance to go.
Riven - might it be worth talking to the head, or just sending the reply/consent form back without money and seeing what happens?

DD went on the school ski trip to Austria at Easter (best part of a grand). She had a whale of a time but she is perfectly aware that it was a one-off, and she will not be going again.

I will encourage her to go on other trips as she goes through the school, however I will not be paying a fortune. Certainly wouldn't pay £1000 again, that could go towards a family holiday for all of us.

As a child I never went on any school trips which had to be paid for, I was not allowed. Don't feel I missed out though tbh.

Think it is far easier when you only have one child, it must be hard to both budget and keep a tally of what has been spent on who when you have 2 or more children.

Mummy2Scarlet - our school certainly doesn't have a 'trips fund'. This year a boy is going on the French trip without paying a penny, because his family asked. His family circumstances aer not any worse than many, many other students in our school; and a damn sight better than a significant number.

This money is coming from elsewhere in the school budget and would otherwise would have been used on the education of everyone.

However there are c.250 students in yr7 & yr8 studying French, and only 38 are going on the trip. About 25-30% get free school meals.

If we were to have several requests for students to go on the trip but not pay, we could not run the trip.

I checked - we don't have a 'trips fund'. Any shortfall has to come out of the depatment budget. The cost per child is now 'loaded' to cater for one or two who can't pay.

We have to reduce the number of trips to the absolute minimum next year, and some departments will not run trips at all.

We are not allowed to 'load' the cost per child to cater for ones who can't pay.

There is talk of charges for cover to be included in trips budget, but I don't think this is remotely possible.

£14.2k Total cost of residential trip (42 students @ £340 each)
c.£5k Cost of supply for 5 staff for a week.

Revised cost per pupil would be £460 each, which is ridiculous for a 5-day-trip.

not as ridiculous as £1,500 for a 7 day trip

Have just discovered one of the downsides of going to a school in a deprived ward - no-one can afford to go. Looks as if DS1's German trip may not go ahead because not enough children have signed up It's not really expensive but I guess it's all relative.

I am kind of half way on this, as kids we NEVER went on any of the expensive trips, eg skiing on the basis that there were 3 of us in 3 consecutive years. we just stopped asking after a few nos.

we have paid for dd1 to do a trip to Germany- which she loved and made some good new friends, so money well spent.

She wants to do a trip to Austria next year- £400 so we have agreed that she will need to save/earn half of it.

however, i will feel no guilt at her not going to USA or Canada or anywhere else. I didn't get to go to New York til I was 36--they've got the rest of their lives to do all that- doesn't need to be done before they are 16!

My view is that we are using state education, so as long as we can afford it they can go on any trip they want to go on. They have had some fantastic opportunities which range from one day to WW1 graves to a week in Russia.