One in ten parents working overtime to fund school trips

New research from Zurich Municipal has found that an increasing number of parents are struggling to fund the cost of school trips for their children.

Over one in ten (13%) revealed they have had to work overtime to meet the cost of the away day or residential trips, with a similar number (9%) admitting they have taken to selling possessions on second-hand sites such as Vinted or eBay to cover the cost. Some 8% of children said they resorted to using their pocket money or fundraising to pay for their school trip.

The findings reflect the ongoing squeeze on finances for parents, with 35% citing the cost of living as the biggest challenge and a further 24% blaming high utility bills.

The One Poll survey found almost one in ten (8%) said their child had not been able to go on their recent school trip because it is too expensive, 15% admit to going without so they can afford to send their child on an educational excursion.

The research for the public sector insurer found the cost of a day school trip is now £30 on average, while residential trips, which have grown in popularity over recent years, cost £412 on average.

Unsurprisingly, not being able to afford to send their children on school trips left more than a quarter of parents surveyed (29%) feeling guilty.

Schools are conscious of the financial pressure that parents are facing and are stretching their budgets to help foot some, or all, of the cost of educational trips. For instance, over one in five parents (22%) say their child’s school has either covered the full cost of the trip, subsidised it or even taken part in fundraising activities to ensure pupils don’t miss out. It is a trend confirmed by national charity Parentkind, a network of PTA fundraisers in the UK.

Jason Elsom, CEO at Parentkind, said “School trips are an important milestone in children’s lives and something that many of us look back on and reminisce about as we get older. But these trips are becoming more expensive and unfortunately many parents are struggling to afford them.

“Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) work tirelessly all year round to raise money for their school. A new trend we’ve seen emerge over the last year is the number of PTAs now stepping up to cover the cost of these extracurricular activities.

“Schools struggle with budgets at the best of times and it is important we do what we can to make sure children don’t lose out on school trips.”

Almost four out of ten (39%) parents scramble to fund school trips as they believe they are a critical part of their child’s education with half of parents (49%) saying that children learn lots when they go on a school trip.

However, it’s the key life skills that children learn on excursions that parents value the most. For instance, children learn to be adventurous and try new things (61%), be independent (59%) and become more confident (57%) on trips.

According to analysis of the public sector insurer’s claims data, cancellation or lost deposits account for almost two thirds (65%) of claims, making it the most common claim schools make on their school trip insurance policies. Unfortunately, almost one in ten (9%) parents surveyed say they didn’t receive a full refund when their child’s trip was cancelled at the last minute as the school’s insurer didn’t cover it.

Furthermore, the average cost of a cancelled school trip claim in 2024 was £2,123. Perhaps proving it’s more important than ever that schools have adequate cover in place to protect both their budgets and parent’s money should they need to cancel a trip at short notice.

Natalie Bate, Head of Education at Zurich Municipal, said “These trips are a key milestone in a child’s education and often open children up to experiences they wouldn’t necessarily have with their parent or guardian outside of school.

“School trips should conjure up happy memories, but the truth of the matter is that they’re now often steeped with guilt or embarrassment as parents struggle to find the money to pay for their children to attend.

“It’s great to see schools and PTAs stepping in to help fund these all-important trips so that children don’t miss out, but it’s more important than ever that schools have protection in place in case trips need to be cancelled for any reason.”