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Children denied school trips over teachers' fears of being sued
Local authorities paid out just £293.44 per year following problems on school trips, research finds
Children are being denied school trips for fear teachers will be sued if something goes wrong, despite the fact that only 156 recorded legal actions have ended in compensation in the past decade, new research reveals.
A culture of fear has grown up around trips, with anxious schools avoiding taking children out of the classroom because of the perceived possibility of legal action if something goes wrong. Teachers also claim the amount of time taken up dealing with health and safety concerns is a deterrent. But teachers' fear is based on the "myth" that they could be sued, the research finds.
Of the millions of individual school trips taken over the past 10 years in the 138 local authorities that responded to requests under the Freedom of Information Act, only 364 ended in legal action and in fewer than half of cases – 156 – were schools found to be culpable and ordered to pay compensation.
Between 1998 and 2008 the total compensation paid out was £404,952, meaning on average local authorities paid out just £293.44 a year following problems on school trips.
The findings are contained in a dossier of evidence presented today by the Countryside Alliance. It includes a survey of 1,400 primary and secondary teachers that found 76% felt the main barrier to venturing out of school was "concerns about health and safety", while nearly half (49%) cited "fear of litigation in the unlikely event of an accident".
A separate poll of 2,127 children aged six to 15 found that while 85% of young people would like more school trips, only 46% of children had been to the countryside with their school in the past year.
Simon Hart, chief executive of the Countryside Alliance, said: "Statistically, the chances of accidents happening are low and we are working to explode the myths that the countryside is any more dangerous than anywhere else. The benefits of practical countryside education far outweigh the concerns."
Beth Gardner, chief executive of the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom, said: "There is a culture of fear – health and safety are one concern – but there's not good evidence that there are real problems. There is not a culture of litigation out there. We shouldn't be wrapping children in cotton wool but teaching them how to manage risk."
There have been concerns that up to a quarter of school trips will be cut this academic year after new government regulations, designed to protect teachers' working hours, stated that teachers should "rarely" be asked to cover an absent colleague's lessons. School trips often mean more teachers out of school, with others filling in for them.
Government research has also condemned the cost of school trips, with parents spending an average of £78.44 a year for every child at a primary school in England, and £289.71 for those at secondaries.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families said: "Schools should not let ungrounded fears of a compensation culture deny children educational opportunities. School trips should be an integral part of every child's education and personal development."
Children denied school trips over teachers' fears of being sued
School trips used to be the best days of the year while I was at school and I find it a real shame teachers are being put off. It may be down to an irrational fear or that the teacher feels that if something goes wrong it will happen to them, it’s this self doubt that is stopping them from organizing a trip. I now work for a company that organise school trips all over the world and although health and safety is a top priority for teachers we have found that teachers do not put off and the number of teachers booking educational tours has risen. It’s a real reassurance to teachers to see that we have ATOL and ABTA registered, STF assured as well as having our own safety management system for all tours. Meaning that teachers have support and backing from us and other agencies.
for more information on health and safety on school trips and badges and associations to look out for visit http://www.halsbury.com/GroupLeaders/SchoolTrip_HealthSafety.aspx