Your involvement
Parental consent
Charging for visits
Risk management
Planning the visit (or similar)
Checklist for group leaders
Educational Visits Co-ordinator
Checklist for headteachers/EVCs
Other considerations

Educational visits can have significant benefits, such as enhancing the educational experience of pupils and bringing the curriculum to life.

There are, however, important considerations to take into account to ensure visits are incident-free.

Educational visits are defined as any excursion with children outside the perimeter of the school.

These could be a regular event, such as taking pupils for swimming lessons, or a single event, such as visiting a castle, and can be within or outside the school day.

Irrespective of their nature, the same standards in the planning and undertaking of the visit must apply.

Your involvement

Visits that relate directly to the National Curriculum, the syllabus of a prescribed public examination or religious education should, wherever possible, take place during normal school hours.

Under these circumstances, a teacher may be directed to participate, provided they are satisfied that the arrangements are suitable, the procedures have been followed and risks are adequately managed.

Visits that do not directly relate to the National Curriculum, the syllabus of a prescribed public examination or religious education can take place at other times, such as weekends.

However, teachers should not be required to participate in trips that occur outside school hours.

Parental consent

In all jurisdictions, consent must always be obtained for any visit involving nursery aged children.

Charging for visits

Risk management

NASUWT advises you to think very carefully before organising or accompanying educational visits until appropriate safeguards are in place.

If in doubt about whether it is appropriate to participate in an educational visit, please contact NASUWT for advice.

Planning the visit (or similar)

Before deciding to organise or take part in an educational visit, you should be satisfied that the visit is necessary from an educational viewpoint.

You should also be clear of the health and safety implications when taking pupils off site and should ensure you are competent for the roles that you are assigned.

Additional guidance on competence is available:

• England, Northern Ireland and Wales: Outdoor Education Advisers’ Panel;

• Scotland: Going Out There.

Checklist for group leaders

Prior to organising an educational visit, the school should identify a group leader who will have a legal responsibility for ensuring the health, safety and wellbeing of the group/class.

Group leaders should ensure that:

1. the visit has a clear educational purpose, whether or not tied directly to the curriculum;

2. any required pre-authorisation, for example approval of dates, is obtained prior to extensive planning taking place;

3. a pre-visit is carried out where practicable. Group leaders should ensure that they are familiar with the venue;

4. all required procedures are followed and completed, such as online approval systems;

5. regular liaison with the Educational Visits Co-ordinator (EVC) is carried out.

Group leaders should also ensure the following:

1. All appropriate control measures are in place, especially where activities are being undertaken without the use of an external provider. In this case, risk assessments should be specific for the activities planned and the group being taken. The risk assessments will be influenced by such factors as:

   1. the type of activity and the level at which it is being undertaken;

   2. the location;

   3. the competence, experience and qualifications of staff;

   4. the composition of the group;

   5. the equipment available; and

   6. seasonal conditions, such as the weather.

Group leaders should have training on completion of risk assessments for activities they are leading.

In England and Wales, LOtC Quality Badge holders have undergone an external quality assurance process to ensure that they have all necessary risk assessments in place.

Further guidance on asking for risk assessments can be found for:

• England, Northern Ireland and Wales: the OEAPNG FAQs;

• Scotland: Going Out There website.

2. Suitable transport is secured. School minibuses driven by non-professional drivers/school staff have specific health and safety and legislative concerns and should only be used where no other option exists, a full risk assessment is carried out, and the driver(s) are fully licensed. See NASUWT advice on minibuses. NASUWT advises against members driving school minibuses.

3. Appropriate supervision ratios are set both in terms of number and gender balance, which can be maintained if an emergency occurs.

4. Adequate supervision of pupils is maintained at all times:

   • England, Northern Ireland and Wales: OEAPNG web page Group Management and Supervision;

   • Scotland: Going Out There web page Supervision.

5. Appropriate supervisory duties for other adults are clearly defined and agreed.

6. All staff, volunteers and pupils are briefed about all aspects of the visit.

7. Effective systems for communication between adults on the visit, the children, their parents and staff back at school are in place.

8. Any other adults are appropriate in terms of maturity, competence, experience and vetting checks.

9. A clear plan of the itinerary and activities to be undertaken and their educational objectives is established.

10. All involved have a clear understanding of emergency procedures, including contingency plans for delays, as well as a late return back to school:

    1. England, Northern Ireland and Wales: OEAPNG emergency procedures advice;

    2. Scotland: Going Out There emergency procedures advice.

11. Adequate first-aid provision is available at all times.

12. All staff on the visit are given a list of group members and arrangements are in place to check pupils’ presence at regular intervals.

13. A letter to parents/carers is sent detailing the activities on the visit and enlisting their support regarding acceptable behaviour. The information should include all relevant details, including transportation, so that parents can give informed consent where required.

14. Any special educational or medical needs or disabilities of group members are known, risk assessed and any reasonable adjustments enacted.

15. Where applicable, pupils who receive free school meals have food provided.

16. Pupils whose behaviour may put others in the party at risk are fully risk assessed and if necessary excluded from the visit, i.e. where sufficient control measures cannot be put in place. Members should take specific advice from their local authority/employer before deciding to exclude a pupil.

17. All monies are collected and accounted for by school administrative/clerical staff.

18. Approval is obtained from the headteacher for the visit and the employer if required.

19. Once the visit is underway, no additional activities are considered unless they are properly risk assessed, staff are competent to lead them, relevant approval from the EVC/headteacher/employer is in place, and parental consent (where required) has been obtained.

20. Activities are stopped if the risk to the health and safety of the group in their charge is unacceptable.

Accompanying teachers should ensure they are:

1. familiar with the guidelines/policies on educational visits;

2. actively involved in the planning of the visit;

3. fully aware of the nature of the activities that the group is going to be involved in;

4. supportive of the group leader, accepting of their authority and able to follow their instructions at all times, even if the group leader is normally line managed by an accompanying teacher;

5. carrying a list naming all the pupils and adults on the visit at all times;

6. aware of which pupils have special educational or medical needs or disabilities; and

7. able to consider stopping an activity and notifying the group leader if they think the risk to the health and safety of the group in their charge is unacceptable.

Educational Visits Co-ordinator

Every school should have an Educational Visits Co-ordinator (EVC).

This does not need to be a teacher and should not be the headteacher where possible, but it should be part of the leadership group. If there is no EVC, the function rests with the headteacher.

The EVC should receive appropriate training and have experience in being a group leader. All EVCs should have access to expert advice, usually through a local authority, but this could be through the employer for academies and independent schools.

Guidance on appropriate training:

• England, Northern Ireland and Wales: Outdoor Education Advisers’ Panel (OEAP) training;

• Scotland: Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education (SAPOE training).

In addition, schools in England and Wales can access OEAP Advisors for advice.

The role of the EVC is to ensure all visits are fully and properly planned and risk assessed and comply with the employers’ policies and procedures. They should be able to give advice at all stages of the planning process.

The EVC should also ensure there is appropriate monitoring, evaluation and recording of visits.

Further information on the role of the EVC can be obtained from the OEAP and the SAPOE websites.

Checklist for headteachers/EVCs

Before a visit takes place, the headteacher and/or EVC should be satisfied the following is in place:

1. The visit is educationally justifiable and will not affect the efficient running of the school.

2. All visits guidelines/policies have been followed.

3. The visit has been approved by the relevant person, if not the headteacher, and, where applicable, the appropriate body has been notified and has authorised the visit.

4. Detailed costings of the visit have been approved.

5. The group leader is suitably trained, qualified or experienced.

6. Child protection measures.

7. A school contact has been nominated.

8. Full and comprehensive information has been provided to parents, including details of costings, modes of transport and the precise nature of activities the pupils will be involved in.

9. Where required, parental consent has been obtained in writing, along with any relevant pupil medical/allergy information.

10. Supervision of the group is appropriate in relation to gender, experience and vetting checks.

11. The mode of transport is suitable and all safety measures will be taken.

12. Appropriate cover for teachers on the visit has been organised. This should not involve the use of other teachers covering lessons.

13. An emergency procedure has been planned with well-established lines of communication, should the need arise, including the provision of a mobile telephone if requested.

Other considerations

NASUWT members are advised:

• not to give a child/children a lift in their own vehicle;

• not to place themselves in a one-to-one situation with a pupil; and

• not to administer any medication. If a child is likely to require medication during a visit, the arrangements for this need to be factored in during the planning stages.

In order to ensure the avoidance of personal liability as the ‘provider’ of the visit, NASUWT recommends that the group leader should:

• only act on behalf of the employer as the employer’s agent; and

• where using an external centre/provider, use a provider with an LOtC Quality Badge, or tour operator, local authority centre or activity provider that has an externally verified safety management system. For higher risk activities, NASUWT would strongly recommend a suitable centre/provider is used, rather than ‘DIY’ arrangements.