The death of 12-year-old Jessica Lawson while swimming in a lake during a school trip to France has reignited concerns about the safety of such excursions. The pupil from Wolfreton School in Hull is the latest child to die on a school trip, though such tragedies remain rare in the UK.
According to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, an average of one child per year dies on school trips in the UK. Steve Lenartowicz, chairman of the Outdoor Education Advisers Panel, emphasised the need to balance risks against benefits. 'That is still one too many, but there are 114 who die in road transport accidents, 24 die in fires, and we've got to balance the benefits against the risks,' he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
John Kileen from the National Association of Head Teachers acknowledged that while extensive risk assessments are conducted, accidents can still happen. 'It's something that you hope will never happen, you hope that the plans you put in place will protect the young people but, as all parents know, accidents happen,' he said.
Mr Kileen warned that some schools might now shy away from trips, but described this as a 'retrograde step'. He noted that tens of thousands of children participate in school excursions each year, which can provide life-changing opportunities. 'They do it because they want to develop the whole child and in some cases this might be the only opportunity for these young people to take part in that sort of activity,' he added.
Previous tragic incidents include the 2015 death of Jamal Ottun during a rugby tour in Canada, and the 2011 mauling of Eton student Horatio Chapple by a polar bear in the Arctic. Despite these rare events, experts stress the educational and developmental benefits of school trips, urging that they should not be abandoned.
