Planning guide

School trip risk assessments: what a proportionate one looks like

How to write a sensible, proportionate risk assessment for a school trip, and how to check a provider through the LOtC Quality Badge and adventure activities licensing.

Proportionate, not exhaustive

A risk assessment for a school trip is a plan for keeping pupils safe, not a form to fill in for its own sake. HSE says schools should take a proportionate and sensible approach, and that the focus should be on how the real risks of a visit are managed, not on paperwork. DfE guidance on educational visits says the same: plans should be proportionate and sensible and focus on managing genuine risks.

In practice, that means a trip to a local museum needs far less planning than a weekend of coasteering. Many schools treat routine local visits as covered by a generic assessment that is reviewed once a year, and keep detailed, specific assessments for higher-risk or unusual trips. Check what your employer's policy says.

What a good risk assessment covers

Many employers and the OEAP National Guidance use a simple structure to think about a visit: the staff, the activities, the group and the environment. Working through each one helps you find the risks that actually matter for your trip.

Staffing: who is going, their experience, and what happens if a member of staff is taken ill or has to leave with a pupil.
Activities: what pupils will be doing, and which parts the venue leads and which parts your staff lead.
The group: ages, behaviour, medical needs, SEND, and anyone who needs one-to-one support.
The environment: public or private site, roads, water, weather, crowds, and the journey itself.
Emergency arrangements: first aid, a missing pupil procedure, how you contact school and parents, and a named contact at school.
Control measures: the specific, realistic steps you will take, and who is responsible for each one.

Using the venue's own risk assessment

Most established venues will send you their risk assessment on request. Use it. It tells you how the venue manages its own site and sessions, so you do not need to repeat that work. Your assessment should then focus on the gaps: your journey, your group's particular needs, free time, meal breaks and the points where supervision passes between venue staff and your staff.

Be clear about handover. DfE guidance highlights the importance of checking providers carefully, especially where they will be taking over supervision of pupils. Agree in advance who is responsible for pupils at each point in the day.

The LOtC Quality Badge

The Learning Outside the Classroom (LOtC) Quality Badge is run by the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom. It assesses both the quality of a provider's educational offer and its risk management. Assessment is carried out by specialist awarding bodies depending on the type of provider.

Current DfE guidance says that where a provider does not hold the badge, the school should check the provider's suitability itself, including its risk assessments and control measures. The badge does not replace your own planning, but it saves you a lot of checking. You can search for badge holders on the LOtC website.

Adventure activities and AALA licensing

In England, Wales and Scotland, the Adventure Activities Licensing Regulations 2004 require some providers to hold a licence. HSE is the licensing authority, and the scheme is still in place. A licence is needed by providers who offer certain activities to under-18s in return for payment. The activities in scope are caving, climbing (including abseiling, scrambling and canyoning, but not on purpose-built climbing walls or abseil towers), trekking in remote moorland or terrain above 600 metres, and watersports on the sea, tidal waters or large or non-placid inland waters.

Some things are outside the scheme. A school providing activities solely to its own pupils does not need a licence, though your employer will still expect the staff leading them to be competent. Activities such as high ropes courses are not covered by licensing at all, so you check those through the provider's own documentation, accreditation and your risk assessment.

Ask the provider for their AALA licence details and check them on the HSE AALA pages.
Check that the licence covers the specific activity and the centre you are using.
Do not add licensable activities on the day. DfE guidance says staff must not decide to add such activities during the trip.

Who signs it off

The visit leader usually writes the assessment, the EVC checks it, and the headteacher approves the visit. Higher-risk visits, residentials and trips abroad may need further approval from governors, the trust or the local authority's outdoor education adviser. Your employer's policy sets out who signs what.

Finally, share the key points with every adult on the trip. A risk assessment only works if the people on the ground know what is in it.

Questions

Do I need a new risk assessment for every trip?

Not necessarily. Many employers allow routine local visits to be covered by a generic assessment reviewed regularly, with specific assessments for higher-risk trips. Follow your employer's policy.

Is the venue's risk assessment enough on its own?

No. It covers the venue's site and activities, but your assessment should cover your group, the journey, supervision and handover between venue staff and school staff.

Does a climbing wall need an AALA licence?

No. Purpose-built climbing walls and abseiling towers are outside the licensing scheme. You still need to check the provider's safety arrangements and staff competence.

Sources and further reading

This guide is general information for UK schools, not legal advice. Always follow your employer's and local authority's policies. Last reviewed October 2026.