The New South Wales Department of Education and Training (NSW DET, 2009) implemented a revised Excursions Policy on 28 May, 2009, to outline the requirements for the management of excursions by all New South Wales schools and units of the Department (NSW Department of Education and Training, 2009).
This document clearly outlines the objectives of the policy, the applicability, the procedures and responsibilities to be followed in the organisation of school excursions and the context of excursions in the New South Wales school curriculum (NSW DET, 2009).
Some examples for which the policy document would have an impact are; a parent advises the school their child cannot attend the excursion due to the cost involved; a teacher delegates responsibility to a parent while on an excursion; or a student has an allergic reaction while on an excursion.
Planning an excursion needs to take into account the relevant curriculum, the financial and material resources of the school and the needs of the individual students. By extending a student’s learning to include excursions the student is given a deeper sense of understanding of the learning material (Policy Objective 1.1).
By providing their students with quality learning experiences, a teacher seeks to enhance their future education.
All students within their particular learning group must be given equal opportunities to participate in school excursions. Schools cannot discriminate against a student by denying them the same opportunities as others (Policy Objective 1.2).
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The Department of Education is obligated under Common Law and the New South Wales Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 to keep students safe while they are at school (Work Cover New South Wales, 2000).
Supervising teachers are obligated to report any and all potentially harmful situations that may impact upon the health and safety of the students in their care (NSW Department of Community Services).
This also applies to excursions which are conducted external to the school site. The Duty of Care owed to students by teachers and the State is a responsibility to take satisfactory steps to guard students from hazards that are plausibly anticipated and cannot be assigned to others (Policy Objective 1.3; 1.4).
A Risk Assessment Plan must be carried out for all activities in which students participate, in accordance with established policies and procedures (Policy Objective 1.5; 1.6).
The potential dangers of each activity need to be identified, the degree of risk considered and means of managing or removing the risk determined. Foreseeable risks include student needs; allowances for students with a disability; supervision; child protection matters; the nature of the activity; environmental issues; and travel and transport (Policy Objective 1.8).
Consideration must also be given to the age, maturity, ability and development of the students attending the excursion.
When organising an excursion a teacher must obtain signed permission forms from parents and caregivers, as well as medical information forms. The parents should be informed of the activities that take place during the excursion, any possible hazards, the measures that have been taken to allow for these risks and the behaviour expected of their child while on the excursion (Policy Objective 1.7, 1.9).
The policy has an impact on everyone involved in an excursion, students, teachers, parents, schools and the department of education.
Scenarios upon which the policy document would have an impact
1. A parent advises the school their child cannot attend the excursion due the cost involved.
Where financial hardship is understood to be the reason for a student’s nonparticipation, the Principal should discuss with the parent/caregiver options including financial support that will ensure that all students have access to these educational experiences (Objective 1.2. Excursions are inclusive, and all students within the specific learning group are to be given the opportunity to participate).
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Student fails to return the permission slip for the upcoming excursion and the teacher reminds the students they must return the slip to advise if they can attend or not. When the student finally returns the permission slip, the parent advised they cannot attend due to the cost involved.
As the excursion policy ensures all students are given equal opportunity to participate in the excursion (Objective 1.2).
The teacher advises the Principal of the circumstance in which the student is unable to attend the excursion. The Principal can assist with the costs and offer the parents to pay off the excursion. If the family does not accept this offer the school could pay for the excursion from the funding for financial hardship from the Department of Education (New South Wales Department of Education and Training) and is up to the discretion of the Principal to offer this to families within this category.
To ensure that there is no undue financial burden imposed upon individual members or families, the School can assist by advising families as far ahead as possible and in particular overnight excursions with the opportunity for parents / caregiver to pay off the excursion.
2. While on a school excursion a student has an allergic reaction.
The teacher first seeks medical treatment for the student (Objective 1.3 Duty of Care) and checks the medical notes for each student (Objective 1.7 Signed consent forms granting permission for students to participate in excursion and a medical information form are to be obtained from the parents or caregivers).
The parents of the student in question have not noted any allergies and not provided any medication. The teacher calls the school to confirm the student’s medical history and finds the school is unaware of any allergies.
The student’s parents are called and they advise the teacher their child has an allergic reaction to peanuts and has medication for the condition. The parents failed to provide the teacher accompanying their child on the excursion the necessary medication and the parents also failed the school in providing the necessary medical history for the child. The parents cannot hold the teacher or the school responsible for the delay in medical treatment for the student. The parents themselves may be subject to investigation by the Department of Community Services for failing to act in the best interests of their child (Department of Community Services NSW).
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Following the incident, the Principal must report the actions of the teacher to the Department of Education in accordance with the Incident Reporting Policy (New South Wales Department of Education and Training), and in accordance with the Excursion policy (Objective 5.3 Principals are to report controversial issues or incidents occurring while staff and students are on excursions).
3. A teacher asks a parent to supervise a group of students while on an excursion. While the parent is supervising, a student falls and hurts there wrist.
The teacher in question has failed to fulfil their Duty of Care to their students by asking another individual to assume responsibility for the welfare of the student (Objective 1.3 A duty of care is owed to students in the school environment and while on excursions).
This teacher is accountable for the supervision of the students for the duration of the excursion. This task cannot be delegated to another person (Objective 4.3 The Department’s duty of care owed to students for the duration of the excursion cannot be delegated from the school to parents, caregivers, volunteers or employees of external organisations).
The parents of the injured student may seek legal advice. They may be entitled to sue the Department of Education for failing to provide a duty of care for their child. In this event the teacher in question may face allegations of misconduct (Section 93C Teaching Service Act 1980).
The Principal of the school is negligent for not ensuring that the teacher/student ratio was adequately addressed. Allocation of sufficient staff numbers to supervise the group should have been made upon confirmation of the number of students that would be attending the excursion. The Principal must report the incidents that took place during the excursion in accordance with the policy (Objective 5.3 Principals are to report controversial issues or incidents occurring while staff and students are on excursions).
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In conclusion, excursions offer students the opportunity to participate in education related experiences outside the normal school environment. While there is recognition of the advantages of these experiences, it is important that all safety issues are carefully considered when organizing such an excursion. When determining initial arrangements, it is important to consider the cost to the students and to ensure that no student is disadvantaged through an inability to meet the financial requirements.
A teacher’s duty of care towards students exists wherever there is a teacher-student relationship. If a foreseeable injury occurs as a result of a breach of this duty of care, a teacher may be sued for negligence. In having a policy that applies to all New South Wales schools the need for each school to formulate individual excursion policies is eliminated. If each school were to have their own excursion policy there is a risk that the policy may not meet the legal requirements of the State. The State policy is, in essence, designed to protect the Department of Education, as well as the Principal and the supervising teachers from legal liability should a school be subject to legal action related to an excursion.
Reference List
Excursion Policy (2009).
New South Wales Department of Education and Training, New South Wales Government. Retrieved 20 September 2010, from https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/policies/student_admin/excursions/excursion_pol/PD20040010.shtml
NSW Occupational Health and Safety Act (2000).
WorkCover NSW. Retrieved 20 September 2010, from http://www.workcover.nsw.gov.au
Protecting Children, New South Wales Department of Community Service. Retrieved 22 September 2010, from
Teaching Service Act (1980).
Retrieved 20 September 2010, from http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/tsa1980154/
The Child Protection (Prohibited Employment) Act NSW (1998).
NSW Commission for Children and Young People. Retrieved 20 September 2010, from http://www.kids.nsw.gov.au
