F 7 · Transport
Transport is a recurring problem, for adults and schools. This issue has been raised repeatedly: transport costs have been described as ‘probably the biggest challenge to access’ and ‘the big issue for schools’.
The cost of coaches is prohibitive for many schools operating on limited budgets: visits tend to cost around £200 each. Inevitably, the problem is more severe for schools serving deprived areas, where there is some unwillingness to call on parents to make contributions to the cost of the day, and in any case parents are often unable to contribute. The problem is particularly acute in rural areas of England and Wales and in Scotland, where schools often have to undertake long journeys to reach historic sites.
There are some solutions, but to date these have tended to emerge primarily from individual initiatives. In the past many LEAs negotiated with bus companies for reduced costs for schools outside peak hours, but this approach has almost disappeared. Support for schools from Government and LEAs to provide incentives and pressure on bus companies at the time of negotiating their contact would be helpful.
Sponsorship has made a modest contribution and comes from a wide range of sources. British Petroleum has paid for transport for several schools. At Wallington Hall in Northumberland, funding for school transport was provided by Safeway in 2001. Vouchers for schools were given out at checkpoints in Morpeth and Ponteland. The National Farmers’ Union Country Trust also helps pay for transport to Wallington. At Dyrham Park, a National Trust property in Gloucestershire, the Friends of Dyrham sponsor buses from Bristol.
Some historic sites address the problem head on by providing free transport. This is the case at Loch Lomond National Park (which funds transport costs) and at Houghton Hall in Norfolk, where the owner of the house, and the Countryside Alliance, pay for transport for schools.
Adult users
It is not only schools for whom transport is a problem. For non-car users, visits to historic buildings outside cities are almost impossible (in contrast to the nineteenth century, when cheap transport by charabanc to such places at Chatsworth was the norm). Poorer parents may find it difficult to take children to historic sites on their own initiative, while older people may not drive, and students and the unemployed are unlikely to be able to afford cars.
Without a resolution of this problem, the opportunities, at least for formal heritage education, to expand must remain limited, however brilliant the opportunities on offer.
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'If we are serious about expanding knowledge and enthusiasm for all the exciting areas covered by the term “heritage”, then we need to start competing with the shopping malls, the theme parks, the electronic games and even Florida for the time and attention of a much wider proportion of the population.'
Dawn Goodfellow, Chief Executive, Countryside Foundation for Education
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