Current Security Concerns and School Travel

The LEA has had several calls from colleagues in schools who are concerned about the current security issues and the state of affairs with regard to possible war with Iraq. Parents of pupils who are travelling with school organised trips are concerned about possible threats to the security of the party in light of current developments.

The LEA would like to offer the following advice to help schools and parents facing these concerns.

Schools should use the following information source:

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

The Government, through this department, produces advice and guidance regarding travel to various destinations. This guidance takes account of current and perceived security risks with the advice of security and intelligence services supporting it. This can be found at:

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office

King Charles Street

London

SW1A 2AH

http://www.fco.gov.uk Tele: 0870 606 0290

This website breaks down advice into:

Ø Country Advice

Ø Travellers’ Tips

Ø Advice of Other Governments

Ø Risk of Terrorism

The LEA supports advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and would urge schools concerned to look at their advice. There is currently no specific advice issued to travellers intending to visit any European destinations.

Insurance and Withdrawal from Trips

Parents may wish to withdraw their child from a trip despite advice to the contrary from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office which states that there are no particular security concerns. It must be pointed out that parents withdrawing their child in this manner may well find that monies paid to tour operators or companies are not covered by insurance and that they would forfeit all monies. Schools should refer parents to the appropriate booking terms and conditions. Schools may have some flexibility where funds are collected and dealt with solely by the school.

Unauthorised Absence:

If a trip is directly supporting the delivery of the National Curriculum and a parent withdraws their child despite advice to the contrary then this will need to be recorded as an unauthorised absence. Pupils may not be withdrawn from the National Curriculum. Schools may not have the capacity to deal with one or two children only back at school so cannot affect the duty of care required. This would be unreasonable to expect as the child should be part of the trip. The expectation of providing a similar experience back at school for the pupil(s) is also unreasonable in this situation and advice would be that the parents would be required to keep the child at home and the absence recorded as unauthorised.

If schools have the flexibility to cater for the pupil(s) back at school then they should use professional judgement. Could the pupil(s) be integrated into another class(es) temporarily while the trip takes place? This would mean no unauthorised absence and that the pupil’s health, safety and welfare can be met. Parents would have to accept that although work could be set, the school could not provide a comparable experience to those who actually depart on the trip.