LONDON, Jun 12 2015 – A West Yorkshire state school has been slammed by parents for asking them to fork out £1,650 for a trip to Barbados.
Parents of pupils at Horsforth School in Leeds took to social media to complain about the school PE department’s plans, which they called ‘disgraceful’ and ‘disgusting’.
In the past, the school, a ‘science specialist’ academy, has run similar sports trips to Italy and Spain.
HR director Lauren Robinson at the 1,400-pupil school stressed that the Caribbean trip was not compulsory.
The price of the holiday, for pupils in years 8, 9 and 10, includes seven nights half-board at the Butterfly Beach Hotel in the south of the island, a catamaran cruise and a special sports tour kit.
Pupils would play in three fixtures with local teams and enjoy ‘traditional evening entertainment.
The school said: “The cost of the Barbados trip is high but is balanced by a much larger number of more affordable events, from residential exchanges and study visits to single day trips and school based events.
Parents took to Facebook to air their views, with one writing: “Personally I’m appalled and think it’s really unfair to put this pressure on parents of either finding that sort of money or saying no to their child.”
