School trips are not an added extra!
Young People speak up (again). Are we ready to act yet?
Tuesday, 8th Sept 2026
Teresa Baggaley, Head of Learning & Development at Curious Minds
At Curious Minds, we believe every child and young person should have access to rich, meaningful cultural experiences. This belief sits at the heart of our Curiosity Outside the Classroom: School Trips and Visits Training Programme, which helps schools create high-quality cultural learning opportunities beyond the classroom. Increasingly, research is showing just how important these experiences are, with growing evidence of their impact on learning, wellbeing, engagement and future aspirations.
Recent findings from the OxWell Student Survey, which is one of the UK’s largest studies exploring young people’s wellbeing, offers a powerful reminder that learning beyond the classroom isn’t just enriching… it’s essential. It found that 58% of pupils identify school trips as the single biggest factor in helping them feel engaged with their school community, ahead of celebration events, clubs and sports activities. That finding alone challenges a longstanding assumption about trips being a ‘nice to have’ rather than an integral part of how belonging and engagement are built in schools, and how a broad, balanced and meaningful curriculum is delivered. What sits behind this survey is not simply enjoyment but belonging.
Trips create shared experiences, build relationships up and down the school, and offer different ways for young people to participate in school life.
Teresa Baggaley
Alongside this, national research from the Great British School Trip initiative shows that when learning happens on a trip, wellbeing and engagement can increase by around 60%, with attention rising by 80%, alongside significant gains in curiosity and confidence. Taken together, this evidence points to something deeper: learning beyond the classroom doesn’t just enhance education, it changes the very conditions in which learning happens...
At Curious Minds, this reinforces what we see through our training programme Curiosity Outside the Classroom: School Trips and Visits, as well as through initiatives such as the Cultural Citizens programme. If these moments are where the magic happens, where young people feel most connected, inspired and engaged, then they cannot remain an added extra or a privilege for a few. School Trips must be a core entitlement for every young person and recognised as an essential part of education, not an optional extra.
This approach is echoed through the Clore Duffield Foundation’s School Trips Grant, where we deliver the Curiosity Outside the Classroom: School Trips & Visits training to participating schools. While the fund addresses financial, capacity and access barriers to trips, our role is to ensure those experiences are meaningful, and support teachers to design visits that are engaging and full of wonder, curiosity and awe. We know that access is only part of the story, impact depends on how those experiences are shaped.
The challenge now is not whether school trips matter, but whether we are prepared to act on what the evidence and young people themselves are telling us.
Teresa Baggaley
If belonging underpins success, and trips are one of its strongest drivers, then learning beyond the classroom is no longer an “added extra.” It is a vital part of an education system that truly works for every child.
The message from young people is clear.
The evidence is strong.
The challenge is: are we ready to respond?
If so, please get in touch as we would love to work with you to design meaningful, high-quality school trips for your pupils.
Could our training be a good fit for your school?
Our Curiosity Outside the Classroom training equips any school staff with the skills, confidence and knowledge to plan, advocate for and deliver brilliant trips and visits that extend and enrich creative learning. You can now access two course modules for free online, so you can get a feel for the course content.
