Pupils 'miss out on school trips'

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The report into the benefits of learning outside the classroom found that school trips increased pupils' achievement, enjoyment and involvement in a subject.

But while many are overcoming barriers such as health and safety, financial or workload issues, others say they are discouraged by them.

The report noted that one 16-year-old boy said of geography fieldwork: "Health and safety is one of the main issues. It's impossible to take large groups anywhere really interesting, so coursework is limited to local areas and small-scale studies."

It also said that primary schools are increasingly relying on outside commercial organisations to arrange residential school trips "because of concerns about health and safety and the high workload for staff, especially in small schools."

It said that "the Government recognises that concerns about health and safety, and fears of litigation in the event of accident or injury, can be barriers to taking young people out of the classroom."

The report was compiled using information from visits to 27 schools whose curriculum provision had been classed as outstanding or improving, from 13 specialist organisations and discussions with five local authorities.

On the issue of workload, the report found that some teachers are put off by the "hassle" of organising trips. It said: "Staff want to take their pupils out of school but can find the workload, especially the preparation, excessive."

But it added that all of the schools in the survey had "found ways of reducing the workload and had built these into their practice."

Overall, inspectors found that while class visits to places such as museums, stately homes, nature reserves and even foreign countries can be worthwhile, not all schools are reaping the benefits because learning outside the classroom was not fully tied into activities within the classroom.