What is the most cost-effective solution when it comes to organising transport for geography field trips?

If there is one activity that helps students raise their geography grades at GCSE and A Level it is the field trip. If there is one activity that raises grades even further it is the second field trip.

Unfortunately field trips are often curtailed for a reason that has nothing to do with geography, but is to do with the limited accessibility of field trip transport.

However, perhaps surprisingly, there is a straightforward cost-effective solution to this: the leasing of a minibus.

Leasing a minibus with Benchmark can very often work out to be cheaper than hiring a coach for each field trip or, indeed, buying a minibus outright (especially if one takes into account the re-sale value of a school bus at the end of its working life).

It is an arrangement which makes it possible for schools to fund the minibus through a small payment each month, which has the added benefit of improved budgeting and cash flow forecasting.

And in some cases, where trips are paid for by contributions from parents and the PTA, it is possible to allocate a part of those payments towards the cost of the minibus – reducing the funds being deducted from the school’s capital account.

In other cases the minibus can be funded through small monthly deductions from various departments’ income. If half a dozen departments agree to fund the bus, and the PTA agrees to put in a monthly amount as well, the funding problem can be completely resolved.

What’s more, a full maintenance programme is included so, no matter the outcome of the vehicle’s services and MOTs, the cost of repairs won’t affect the lease price.

You can find more information on our website or give us a call on 01753 859944.