On Why Arranging School Trips is a Nightmare*

1. Paperwork

Permissions slips. Risk assessments for walking, trains and tubes, attending an event and being alive. Budget statements. Approval forms. Cover requirements. Medical forms. Insurance. Parental letters.

2. Cover

My accompanying teacher will need cover for two lessons, but we were told we’d have to pay for a cover teacher for a whole day. £180. This would more than double the cost of the trip for the students. Luckily, our teachers are heroes and have rallied round to offer internal cover; massive thanks to Mrs B who has agreed to come in on her day off and help us, and Mrs P who will cover the first ten minutes. Crisis averted.

3. Travel arrangements

Can the train companies tell you how much it will cost to get ten kids and two adults to London? No. National Rail Enquiries went through ten minutes of questions then told me they could only calculate the rail part of the journey, not the additional Tube travel. The booking website took all of our details then told us the group was too large and threw us out. The Group Bookings website told us that it would cost £204, which was insane. They recalculated and estimated £160. Then recalculated again and suggested £64. That’s more like it. Total of two hours spent on the phone.

4. And just when you think it’s all sorted…

…they announce a Tube strike for that day. Hiring a mini-bus and driver (all three of the school ones are already being used for a PE trip) would cost us £300. Looks like we’re going to be taking a little hike across London.

*facepalm*

What gets me is that we have a fantastic finance department who take on a huge portion of the sorting out on our behalf.  I hate to think how staff in schools without this level of support manage. 

*Of course I may have shot myself in the foot rather by planning two trips in one week, but that is beside the point.