Hello Dear Reader,

It’s that time of year again! As a parent, I knew about this time of year from September onwards and it worried me from September onwards. If this time of year is breaking the bank or in my case my spirit, then you know I am talking about ‘activities week’. My kids used to bring home letters for kayaking in the Ardeche, trips to Barcelona, German exchange and wildlife trips to Madagascar. They went on some of the trips some of the time, but I can assure you that it was at the expense of us as a family have a trip together.

I’ve been getting emails from worried parents who are struggling with the bills for expensive trips when they can’t afford it. It didn’t used to upset me but infuriate me that schools could divide up the rich children from the poor children and exclude some of the children from learning experiences based on parental income. However, this seems to be increasingly the norm in schools all over the UK and yet the recession deepens. In real terms incomes are falling, the cost of living is increasing but according to readers, parents are being asked to find sometimes £700 - £1500 for school trips to far flung and exotic destinations.

Activities such as coasteering, kayaking, sailing or rock climbing can cost £50 - £75 a day. I’m a great believer in stretching and challenging children but a week of this would be totally unaffordable for most families.

Just do a google search dear readers and you can find organised excursions for UK schools to all parts of the world. I knew of a school that took the school orchestra to Australia! The students fund raised but mostly paid their own way. Schools regularly take a skiing trip each year and parents get the opportunity to pay monthly instalments. I feel that expensive school trips are that they are socially divisive and if I were the secretary of state for education, I would set a cost cap that any school could charge for school trips at an amount that even parents on minimum wage could afford. Life is divisive enough without parents worrying about the cost of education which is technically paid for by taxation.

I will add, for those who live outside the UK, that some schools have abandoned ‘activities week’ because the whole process is divisive and parents couldn’t afford the activities. I know schools that offer activities that are free or at a very low cost. I really enjoy taking children on trips where they can learn in other ways and will often see the best of them outside the classroom. Some families make the decision to not have a holiday as a family and pay for their children to go on activities week instead.

When my children were at school, I was a mature student who worked for minimum wage and DB also had a low paid job. We did our best and kept a roof over our head and food on the table. Our children didn’t have much but did go on some of the school trips. I remember getting ‘the letter’ and almost shaking and crying with despair at how I would find the money to pay for it. I really feel for parents who are struggling and would say this to them. If you can’t afford it, talk to the school as a lot of them can help with costs. If you feel the school is being socially divisive then write to the Chair of Governors and politely voice your concerns. You have a right to express your opinions. My heart goes out to parents who have to say no to their children when the children know they are being left out. Life can be very unfair.

Over to you Dear Reader, I would love to know your opinions on the increasing costs of ‘extras’ that parents are being asked to pay towards their children’s education. What bank and back breaking costs do you have to pay for? How expensive are some of these school trips? Dear American readers, did you find the money for your children to go to summer camp? What do other parents in other countries have to pay for school excursions? Does anyone have children at a school that doesn’t have activities week?

Until tomorrow,

Love Froogs xxxx