School trips: Are you happy sending your child?

Many parents will be hesitant about sending their children on school trips following a recent coach crash in France.

A 15-year-old girl from Largs in Scotland was killed and five other people were seriously injured after the coach they were travelling in overturned on a motorway in Central France.

Long-distance journeys similar to the one taken by the schoolchildren from Ayrshire are governed by regulations.

These include compulsory breaks for drivers as well as the fitting of seatbelts.

Coaches also have to carry a tachograph - which is similar to a black box on an aircraft, monitoring speed and distance travelled.

Are you happy to send your child on school trips? What can be done to improve safety? Should coach passengers be compelled to wear seatbelts?

This debate is now closed. Read a selection of your comments below.

---

Your reaction

I don't think I am asking too much to know how my child will be transported

Terri, England

When my child comes home with letters about school trips, I always write back to the school asking for the age of the coach, the company and whether the coach complies with R66 regulations, sadly my questions are rarely answered in full so I end up taking my child on the trip myself. I don't think I am asking too much to know how my child will be transported, I'm just being a caring parent.
Terri, England

As a teacher I too have my concerns about school trips. I have been involved in several trips abroad, including one I organised myself. One of my biggest concerns has been the quality of transport, and yet every time my fears have been unfounded. I have always found the drivers to be caring knowledgeable people in whom I had complete confidence. Coaches have also been excellent with seat belts provided for all passengers. So please parents, do not be frightened to let your children take part in trips - the benefits are so great. After all, we are all at risk every moment of our lives from one thing or another, and dreadful as the recent events are think of the millions of children over the years that have benefited from school trips.
Philip, England

You can't prevent accidents from happening

Dave, England

I've heard recently of schools banning rugby for fear of injury. Life is dangerous, you can't prevent accidents from happening , so you have a choice to either enjoy and benefit and take a risk, or stay out of harm's way and not experience anything. Given the choice I'd rather take the risk, indeed my son went on a school trip yesterday, and I just paid for another.
Dave, England

It's sad that some children who go on school trips fail to return home safely. Nowhere is safe, but when it comes to children, extra care must be taken by teachers ad carers while they are solely in their responsible.
VN, UK

Safety is of course important but a hysterical reaction is not helpful. Knee-jerk reactions and suffocating rules will minimise fun and put up costs. I used to be driven insane when I went on school skiing trips. Myself and two other pupils were superb skiers but for insurance reasons the teachers could not let us stray from their sight - we had to slowly follow the group of first day skiers down the hill, for a whole week. Local cub and scout groups cannot offer the same trips and activities purely because of the amount of legislation and insurance that is required to do something as simple as muck about in a canoe. No wonder kids play with Playstations for fun these days and are all pale and fat!
Brian S, Scotland

Yes, of course coach passengers should have to wear seatbelts. The laws of physics and their sometimes catastrophic consequences apply regardless of the type of vehicle you're travelling in. Regarding fare paying passengers on long haul road journeys abroad, there might be a case for implementing a test of competence - examining driver knowledge of foreign road systems, signs and other national transport procedures - for drivers of PSVs such as coaches, if such a system isn't already in place.
Chris B, England

I don't have children yet but when I was at school I went on many trips abroad. I think there is only so much you can do safety wise. The schools do their best to find reputable companies and in the end accidents do happen. I also know from experience that driving on European motorways can be extremely dangerous. But what can you do? Deny your child the wonderful experience of travelling abroad with friends and their first experiences of independence?
Colette Steven, Italy

Sadly road accidents happen all the time, and there's no evidence to suggest that school trips are any more dangerous than any other holiday, or ordinary journey. The benefits if going away on trips can be huge, so I hope parents won't stop their children going away - there are risks everywhere in life and we can't just all stay in bed all day every day just because it's safer.
Jon Cooper, UK