Cat amongst the pigeons time. I agree with the comments about discrimination. However, as an ex-teacher and veteran of many school trips both at home and abroad, I would like the point of view of staff to be taken into consideration. Staff on trips are effectively working 24/7 and are to some extent working solely as volunteers. They have to be confident that they can cope with any emergency should one arise and that if one or two staff are coping with a possible hospitalization, for example, that there are enough remaining staff to look after the remaining students. This puts incredible pressure on teachers and increasingly staff will not go on trips at all. My last head had a realistic view and said that staff would not be required to take anyone away if they felt that they were compromising themselves at all. In 30+ years I only ever refused to take one student and that was on the grounds of behaviour. I have dealt with many medically related conditions and incidents on trips over the years but the responsibility placed on individual teachers is huge. I hope that a suitable compromise can be reached.
