Welford and Wickham Primary School
Off-Site Activities Policy
Off-site activities are those activities arranged by or under the auspices of the school which take place outside the boundaries of the school.
The Governors believe that off-site activities can complement and enhance the curriculum of the school by providing experiences which would be impossible within the school boundaries.
Staff arranging or otherwise involved in off-site activities must make themselves familiar with the regulations, advice and procedures published by Berkshire Education Authority (available from the school office). All off-site activities must take place under the terms of these regulations, advice and procedures.
All off-site activities must serve an educational purpose which is clearly related to the curriculum.
Where staff are proposing to arrange an off-site activity the approval of the Headteacher must be obtained before any commitment is made on behalf of the school. Sufficiently detailed proposals should be provided by the member of staff to allow for an informed decision to be made.
Where the activity involves a period of more than 24 hours, an overnight stay or a journey by sea or air, the Headteacher will seek the approval of the Governing Body and the Education Department before sanctioning the activity.
Wherever possible the staff planning an off-site activity should make a preliminary visit to the venue in order to familiarise themselves and make a proper assessment of its suitability, bearing in mind the age of the children, the size of the group, the time of year (and probable weather conditions) and the suitability of the facilities. The costs of such a visit may be reclaimed and should be included in the overall cost of the activity.
The costing of off-site activities should include any costs associated with the visit which would normally fall on the school e.g. transport, entrance fees, insurance, provision of any resources or equipment specific to the activity. This should include the costs related to adult helpers.
The Headteacher will appoint a party leader to be responsible for running the activity. This will normally be a teacher employed at the school.
An activity should normally have sufficient adults taking part to provide a minimum ratio of one adult to twenty children with a minimum of two adults. This is a minimum requirement, and should not automatically be taken as providing appropriate supervision.
Transport arrangements should provide a seat for each member of the party. It is the policy of the school to use coaches with seat/lap belts where available.
Where private cars are used for transport the party leader is responsible for ensuring that the insurance of each driver covers such journeys.
The parents of children taking part in an off-site activity should be provided with appropriate information about the activity. Where the activity is taking place entirely within a normal school day it is sufficient to obtain an acknowledgement that the parents are aware of the arrangements. Where the activity extends beyond the normal school day written permission from the parent must be obtained.
Funding for off-site activities is provided mainly by parental contributions (voluntary except in the case of residential visits) with a limited subsidy from the Schools Association.
No child may be excluded from an activity because of the unwillingness or inability of the parent to make a contribution.
The timetable for the payment of contributions should allow for the Headteacher to make a decision about the financial viability of the activity in reasonable time.
All adults accompanying a party must be made aware, by the party leader, of the emergency procedures which will apply. Each adult should be provided with an emergency telephone number. This will normally be the school number, but where an activity extends beyond the normal school day the home telephone number of a designated emergency contact should be provided.
Before a party leaves school the school office should be provided with a list of everyone, children and adults, travelling with the party, together with a programme/timetable for the activity.
The safety of the party, and especially the children, is of paramount importance. During the activity the party leader must take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that safety.
Prior to an activity, if it is felt that the behaviour of an individual child is likely to compromise the safety of others or the good name of the school, the party leader should discuss with the Headteacher the possibility of excluding the child from the activity.
More detailed guidance on procedures and requirements can be obtained from the Education Department's Off-Site & Hazardous Activities File held in the school office.
Go to the Welford and Wickham Policy Index.