New for 2020
We’re very pleased to introduce our Helping Hands school expeditions – school trips designed to teach your students about the world around them, helping them to become better global citizens.
What?
Our Helping Hands school expeditions are much like our other school trips, in that we’ll work closely with you to tailor make an itinerary that suits your group’s requirements and your learning objectives.
But, importantly, they all also offer some form of social responsibility activity that will allow you and your group to give back in some way to the local communities and environment you visit.
Examples of some of the opportunities that our Helping Hands school expeditions offer include volunteering at wildlife sanctuaries, teaching local children and helping to renovate local schools.
You’ll also be able to visit other local projects to find out more about what they’re doing – one example is a café in India that’s run by acid attack victims, helping their rehabilitation and promoting awareness of these awful crimes.
How?
Our Helping Hands school expeditions will ensure that local communities benefit from our school trips as much as our school groups do.
That’s why we work with suppliers who share the same values as us and are committed to giving back to the local community.
For example, one of our partners provides educational scholarships for disadvantaged youths to become professional tour guides. Another sources all their gifts from a rural women’s initiative.
Where?
We offer our Helping Hands school expeditions in many exciting destinations, including India, Thailand and Borneo. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for further information on our destinations.
Why?
Our Helping Hands school expeditions offer you the opportunity to offer your students an unforgettable experience of the real world around them and the unique experience of making more meaningful connections with local people, learning more about the cultural, social, economic and environmental issues that affect them.
The experiences we can offer will provide your students with a focus for the tour that will inspire and motivate them to look at their own lives and actions in a more meaningful way, eventually helping them to become better global citizens.
What do our groups say?
The Bemrose School recently enjoyed a school expedition to India. Here’s what they had to say:
Why did you choose a school expedition to India?
The main objectives of this trip were to allow students the opportunity to experience a completely different culture for themselves, and to open their eyes to the world around them, making them appreciate what they have.
We also wanted to build their self-esteem by working together as a group to raise the funds to go on the trip.
We chose India as it had such a lot to offer for the students to experience.
What were some of the highlights?
We visited a café run by acid attack victims and listened to their life stories.
It was unbelievable hearing how they’d been through such an awful ordeal but had managed to carry on. It was also incredible to hear how they all support each other.
We also met with former railway children and visited a centre set up for homeless children. The centre provides a place for the homeless children to go in the daytime. The children then have the chance to interact with each other and learn new skills.
We went to a bear sanctuary that rescues dancing bears and educates families in an effort to put a stop to bears being exploited.
And we spent a morning in a local primary school. It was very different to school in the UK as they had no desks and sat on the floor. They even sat on the floor to eat their dinner. We took clothing and stationary to donate to the children.
What were the benefits for students?
The students I took are all from deprived backgrounds. Two had suffered the loss of a parent recently and some had a diagnosis of autism. So, life for them hasn’t been easy.
However, going on a trip like this has opened their eyes and made them realise that, yes, it’s been hard for them, but there are so many people who are much worse off than themselves.
It was a chance for them to see that there is a big wide world out there and if they work hard they can travel and see it.
The students fundraised to go on the trip, so it also taught them new skills and helped to raise their self-esteem.
It also helped them to become more involved in their own community, as they put on various events in the local community to raise the money.
Interested in arranging your own Helping Hands school expedition?
