School Visits

An End to the Cotton Wool Culture?

Ed Balls has signalled his intent to end the “cotton wool” culture of school trips and learning outside the classroom. The newly launched Quality Badge Scheme is a key part of this; School Visits looks at its recent launch and how it will work.

The Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) manifesto vision is that ‘every young person should experience the world beyond the classroom as an essential part of learning and personal development, whatever their age, ability or circumstances’.  A key factor in achieving this aim is through the recent launch of the Quality Badge Scheme. Expectations are that it will help cut some of the red tape and will provide a guarantee to schools that an organisation/venue is capable and suitable to offer LOtC experiences. The Quality Badge is on offer to any venue or organisation that provides this for ‘children and young people aged 0-19’.

Users: a mark of confidence

On the surface the benefits of the Quality Badge Scheme for users are clear; where issues such as suitability, relevance and safety are concerned, the assurance of a safe, appropriate environment is an appealing one and would, in theory, remove many of the obstacles facing trip organisers. The council of LOtC states that ‘Local authorities, other employers, the education workforce and parents will be able to recognise and have confidence in the Quality Badge scheme’. Such confidence may be warranted if the scheme flourishes and encourages both users and providers to embrace LOTC.

Where visitors look at providers/venues that are previously unknown to them, the scheme can act as instant recognition, meaning group leaders are less wary about the unproven and are led away from the cycle-fatigue of regular, year-after-year trips. This is likely to have a positive effect on those organisers who may struggle to convey enthusiasm for an excursion they have run on a dozen occasions before. Concerns that a new school trip might not be the right fit should be erased as the scheme promises consistency through the assessment of each provider.

Benefits for providers

What do providers stand to gain from the scheme? Besides a marketing opportunity (for which success is unlikely to be instantly measurable), there are uncertainties that the rewards will be sufficient to convince providers to put both time and money into participating in the scheme. With thousands of venues competing for the same audience, the quality badge should provide an identifier; proof that standards have been met.  The issue of time and cost depends on the provider, the two routes of application for the badge (Route one, self-assessment and Route two, External assessment) require the provider to go through a series of steps which should perfect the offer to visitors, meaning that there is some consistency across a variety of venues.

The difficulty, considering the low-key launch of the scheme, is that of the thousands of venues open to groups there are only a comparatively small number on the database so far. Considering the launch was back in October 2008, it would suggest that many providers are either unaware of the scheme or holding off during a time that is financially uncertain. The cost for a venue to go through self-assessment is £100, for those businesses in charge of ten venues or more the cost drops to £75 per venue. Bearing in mind the cost and the time required to fulfil the criteria it is not a given that potential venues will rush to join the scheme. Indeed the current economic climate may force some to postpone and others to consider if the education sector really is a primary target given the weak  pound and the greater potential business from abroad.

In view of a quiet launch, the question must be posed; are schools aware of the scheme? If the uptake is slow the scheme will struggle to maintain any credibility, particularly if the search engine currently in place does not begin to yield significant responses throughout the United Kingdom. The number of venues participating currently stands at 130* and regions such as Channel  Islands, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have only a tiny presence within the database.  However, with quality badges having only being awarded from February 2009, time will be key in knowing how far the scheme really can go.

There is a danger of a slow and ineffective uptake, which puts into question its value altogether.
On the other hand, the Quality Badge Scheme has the potential to become a popular tool for educational establishments to use on an excursion. If this became the practice of a majority of schools and colleges there is the drawback that it could de-value the scheme as  all venues wishing to take school groups would feel obliged to meet the requirements. At this point the higher standard would seem somewhat pointless and from the perspective of the user there would no longer be clear favourites. Does the scheme aim to be higher standard for some or simply a standard all venues must eventually meet?

The Quality Badge is set to last for two years and there will be ‘annual quality assurance’ visits to a selection of providers to be certain that standards are being maintained.

In conclusion

The emphasis on LOtC is likely to benefit from a scheme giving both an assurance to groups and an impetuous for providers. The potential of such a scheme running successfully and encouraging LOtC is high, the hope is that it has - and will be - communicated well enough to make a significant impact.
To search for a badge holder, apply for a quality badge, or for more information on the scheme visit www.LOtCqualitybadge.org.uk

*Figures as of 3rd April 2009