OUT OF CLASSROOM EDUCATION

That this House recognises that out-of-classroom education is key to a child's current and future understanding of the environment; notes with concern that there are real and practical barriers to out-of-classroom activity which hinder schools and teachers in undertaking education away from the safety of the classroom; further notes that these include the cost to school and pupil, teachers' workload, health and safety concerns and the real fear of litigation against schools in the event of an accident; regrets that these barriers have led to a reduction, which still continues, in school trips to nature reserves, countryside parks and museums; therefore welcomes the creation of the Real World Learning campaign, a partnership of a number of charities and commercial providers including RSPB, Field Studies Council, National Trust, Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and 3D Education and Adventure, all of which use their facilities to educate schoolchildren and adults about wildlife, the countryside and the environment, and urges the Government to support the aims of the campaign by making out-of-classroom learning an integral part of every child's education.