Year 4 Residential Trip to St Briavels Castle

26th March 2026

Year 4 Residential Trip to St Briavels Castle

Dear Parents/Carers,
We are delighted to inform parents that we are intending to take the Year 4 children on a one-night residential visit to St Briavels Castle, Lydney, Gloucestershire, from Thursday 16th July to Friday 17th July 2026.

The castle is a Grade 1 listed ancient monument, a rich piece of history and an inspiring location. We will be transported back in time to the Medieval world of King John and the Magna Carta within this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

We would like to take as many of our year 4 children as possible. If you are unsure about your child taking part in the trip, due to either financial concerns or possibly about how they may cope with being away from home, please telephone the school office team or your child’s class teacher as soon as possible to discuss this further.

The estimated cost of the trip will be approximately £120 per child, based on 40 children attending, however, the final cost will be dependent on the actual number of children attending. This cost will include coach fares, insurance, accommodation, food and drink and activities.

If your child wishes to attend this trip, we are asking for a non-refundable deposit of £30 payable via MCAS by next Thursday 2nd April 2026. If you do NOT wish for your child to attend this trip, please email the office team on office@uva.clf.uk as soon as possible.

We understand the remaining balance is a large amount of money and we offer the opportunity to pay by instalments between April and June. Based on the current estimated cost the instalments are listed below. The final instalment will be adjusted once final numbers are confirmed.
£30.00 due by 2nd April 2026 (this is a non-refundable deposit)
£30.00 due by 30th April 2026 (total of £60.00 must be paid by 30th April)
£30.00 due by 30th May 2026 (total of £90 must be paid by 30th May)
£30.00 due by 30th June 2026 (£120 must be paid by 30th June)
If you choose to pay by instalments and do not keep up with the payment plan above, your child’s place on the trip may be withdrawn and any monies paid will not be refunded.
You have the option to make payment in full, however this must be paid by 30th April 2026 to secure your child’s place.
If your child is entitled to benefit related free school meal, the cost of the accommodation & food will be met by the school. You will need to pay the remaining amount for your child, but we anticipate this will be no more than 50% of the total cost. Therefore, the deposit payment due by 2nd April will be £15.00.
If you wish to discuss your personal circumstances in more detail, please contact the school office team and we will make the necessary arrangements for you to speak to someone.
We will be holding a Parent Meeting for those whose children wish to attend on Tuesday 28th April 2026 at 3:15pm-3:45pm in the hall.
We hope this will be a thoroughly enjoyable trip for the children and we are looking forward to it.
Kind Regards
The Year 3/4 Team