Fond memories of School trips

From packed lunches, teachers in their own clothes and making faces at the back of the bus…

Two-thirds (66 percent) of modern parents polled in a recent survey have fond memories of school trips of their youth – yet 64 percent have struggled to pay for their child to attend a school outing in recent years, with the average annual expense for a trip now reaching £203 per child.

The survey also found that 63 percent of parents believe school outings and trips away, positively impact their children’s mental well-being, according to the poll of 2,000 parents with school-aged children, by Hyundai.

Looking back at their own fond memories, scoffing your packed lunch on the bus (20 percent), sharing a Walkman earphone with a friend (20 percent), sing-alongs (31 percent), and giggling because the teachers were in casual clothes (30 percent) came high in the list. Other things parents think back to with a smile, include sitting next to a crush (13 percent), getting a clipboard and a pen (12 percent), grumpy coach drivers (13 percent), and making faces at other cars out of the coach window (19 percent) – as well as stopping for service station sweets (19 percent) and playing games of Top Trumps (8 percent).

So, it’s no surprise that two-thirds (67 percent) of mums and dads feel guilty when their child misses out, due to financial constraints when 60 percent believe that financial struggles place their children at a clear disadvantage.

With these ongoing financial challenges weighing heavily on families, Hyundai, now in its third year of the ‘Great British School Trip‘ programme, discovered that nearly half of parents (49 percent) are concerned about the long-term impact that missing out on these experiences may have on their child.

Ashley Andrew, President of Hyundai Motor & Genesis UK:

“These findings highlight the financial challenges many families are facing, making it harder to access school trips. While parents are eager to provide these opportunities, rising costs are increasingly putting them out of reach.

“Through our Great British School Trip programme, we’ve already supported 146,882 children, and in response to these findings, we’re reopening bursary applications to help even more families. This reaffirms our commitment to ensuring as many children as possible can benefit from the invaluable experience of school trips, regardless of financial circumstances.”

Parents acknowledge that school excursions are now more frequent than when they were younger, but they also recognise a significant rise in costs. In fact, 57 percent of parents believe that the cost of school trips has increased dramatically.

As a result, 33 percent of parents feel that schools should scale back on trips to ensure that every child, regardless of their family’s financial situation, has the opportunity to participate.

Hyundai’s Great British School Trip has already supported 146,882 children over three years of the programme and is reopening its bursary applications. To find out more about the programme and how you can get involved, please visit:

School Trips Top Memories

1. Back of the bus antics       53%
2. Leaving on the coach at the crack of dawn     43%
3. Buying souvenirs like key rings or fridge magnets   38%
4. Everyone singing along       31%
5. Giggling because your teachers were in casual clothes   30%
6. Having a small purse of “spending money”    29%
7. Visiting the gift shop       28%
8. The teacher sitting at the font of the bus    21%
9. Sharing a Walkman earphone with a friend    20%
10. Scoffing your packed lunch      20%
11. Stopping at the services and buying sweets    19%
12. Making faces at the cars behind you     19%
13. Fighting for the back seat      18%
14. Sitting next to your crush      13%
15. A bag of chips at the seaside      13%
16. Grumpy coach drivers       13%
17. Being given a clipboard and pen      12%
18. Playing top trumps       8%
19. Swapping panini cards       7%
20. Plastic wallets        7%