TOO few schools take children on outdoor activities because of high costs and fears of being sued, according to the schools watchdog Ofsted.

Canoeing, rock climbing and field trips help children to develop teamwork, leadership and their ability to communicate with each other, said David Bell, the chief inspector of schools in England.

However, Mr Bell said that many pupils were missing out because schools considered that the risk of legal action and the costs of outdoor activities outweighed the benefits.

He said: “The extra-curricular nature of much outdoor education, the cost of sending pupils on residential courses, and limits on the numbers that can be taken often leads to a ‘first-come first-served’ basis for selection. As a result many students who would like to take part are not able to.

“Furthermore, despite the general recognition of the value of outdoor education and residential experiences, some schools remain unconvinced of the benefits when weighed against the pressures on curriculum time, lack of specialist expertise and fear of litigation.”

In July, 39 schoolgirls from London were rescued from the summit of Meall a’Bhuachaille in the Cairngorm Mountains near Aviemore, after getting lost in the mist.

The teacher in charge was criticised for taking the teenagers up the 2,500ft mountain in the Scottish Highlands without adequate provisions or waterproof clothing.

Last year Paul Ellis, a teacher, was jailed for a year for failing to prevent the death of Max Palmer, 10, who was swept away in a river near Glenridding in Cumbria while on a school trip. Max was accompanying his mother Patricia, a special support assistant at Fleetwood High School, in Lancashire, when he drowned at a plunge pool in May 2002.

In spite of high-profile cases, Mr Bell said that the number of accident claims registered in 2003-04 had fallen by 60,000.

He said: “The benefits of outdoor education are far too important to forfeit, and by far outweigh the risks of an accident occurring. If teachers follow recognised safety procedures and guidance they have nothing to fear from the law.”

The Professional Association of Teachers (PAT) welcomed Ofsted’s report and its support for school trips.

However, Jim O’Neill, a former PAT chairman and supply teacher from Hinckley in Leicestershire, was sceptical about the assurances to teachers over litigation.

He said: “It is all well and good for David Bell to say, ‘If teachers follow recognised safety procedures and guidance they have nothing to fear from the law’ if that were the reality.

“No matter how much preparation is done, accidents will occur and the teacher involved then has to carry the guilt and worry of uncertainty and possible litigation.”

Between May 1986 and July 2004, the Adventure Activities Licensing Authority calculated that at least 51 children and five teachers had died on school trips in Britain and abroad. Yesterday, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) introduced a three-hour course to help to cut the number of serious injuries and accidents on school trips.

Juliet Barratt, RoSPA’s head of safety education and a geography teacher for six years, said she developed the course because she had received no health and safety training.

“It is well documented in safety education circles that risk assessment is not an area that many teachers feel confident in,” she said. “Having the knowledge to carry out a risk assessment properly is an essential tool with which all teachers should be equipped.”

But Chris Keates, acting general secretary of the National Association of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers, said that the NASUWT was equally concerned about the cost of activities.

She said: “Sadly, it is often the children who would most benefit whose parents are least able to make the necessary financial contribution.”

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