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Initial letter for 2009 trip - March 2008
Dear Parent,
We are now planning the Lower/Middle School ski trip for 2009. The primary purpose of the visit is a winter sports holiday, however, the educational value, including the chance to practise German, of travelling to and spending a week in a foreign country is undeniable. The trip is open to students at present in years 7, 8 and 9 and is designed to cater for all abilities from those who have not skied before to those with several years experience.
For the last few years there has been a very large response so we have been able to organise a two trips, one during the February half term and a second trip in the first week of the Easter holiday. We have travelled with Rover European Travel for many years and have been very happy with their service, so plan to travel with them again next year. The February trip will return to Jugendgasthaus Weiderkehr in Wagrain, 50km south of Salzburg, where we have stayed on several previous trips. Wagrain is at the centre of the Salzburger Sportwelt ski area, stretching from Alpendorf to Flachau. This is a very large ski area, including 300km of piste rising to just over 2150m, with excellent beginner's slopes and ample opportunities for the more experienced skiers. At Easter we plan to use the same hotel but ski at the nearby resort of Obertauern, which boasts one of the best snow records in the alps, due in part to higher altitude skiing, with 95km of piste catering for all levels of ability particularly intermediate and beginner.
If we have limited interest, the cost of the February trip will be £710, if however we can fill both trips we have been offered a discount to bring the cost down to £665. We will require an initial deposit of £65, followed by a further £300 in May and the balance in October/November. The price includes:
If you would like your daughter or son to take part in the school ski trip please complete the tear off slip from the School Newsletter and return it together with the initial deposit of £65 to Mrs MacGregor in D205 by Thursday 20 th March (if you have any difficulty meeting this deadline please contact me personally). Please make cheques payable to Pate's Grammar School and write LS Ski trip and your child's name and form on the back. We will notify you of the final details before firm bookings are made and offer you the chance to withdraw if they differ significantly from those above. Once firm bookings are made, however, deposits should be considered non-refundable, although they may be covered by insurance in some instances. If you do have to cancel please give us as much warning as possible, enabling us to help you try to find a replacement so that most of your deposit can be returned.
If the trip is oversubscribed we will offer places on a 'first out of a hat' basis. Anyone not offered a place will be placed on a reserve list and offered a place if one becomes available. Students, who are not offered a place and apply again next year, will be given priority on the 2010 trip.
If you have any queries please contact me at: Tel: 01242 523169 ext 222 email: pateski@pates.gloucs.sch.uk
Mr S Dandy, Mr. A Houlton, (Party Leaders)
Cofirmation and offer of places on 2009 trip - April 2008
Dear Parent
Thank you for expressing your interest in next year's Lower School Ski trip. Once again there has been a large response to the initial letter, so we have provisionally booked two trips. We have allocated places by drawing names at random and we are glad to be able to offer you a place on one of the trips (see attached form). Details of both trips are described on the ski trip website www.pates-grammar.star.co.uk or by following links from the school website www.pates.gloucs.sch.uk . Once a place has been accepted, we are happy if students want to swap with someone on the other trip. To facilitate this we will display a full list of offers and another list of people seeking a swap on the notice boards outside B205 and D205.
Assuming sufficient people accept their offers to allow us to run both trips, the cost of each trip will be £665. This includes all travel, accommodation, meals (except on the journey), hire of ski equipment, ski instruction, lift pass, insurance and most of the evening entertainments. Spending money, hire of ski clothing and dry slope lessons are not included. The second deposit of £300 is due by the end of June and the final balance of about £300 should be paid by the end of October (reminders will be announced in Lower School assemblies and posted on the notice board outside B205 and the website).
We will hold an information evening for parents and skiers in October/November to explain the arrangements for the trip, give a short talk and show a few slides to give you an idea of what to expect. We will also demonstrate the clothing that is necessary and where it can be bought or hired and make some suggestions for appropriate Christmas presents. Staff will be available to answer questions about arrangements, clothing and equipment. We have a stock of ski jackets & salopettes for hire for much less than the cost of hiring from elsewhere; so if you wish to keep the cost down try on and reserve items before Christmas. Spending money should be exchanged for Euros (we have found that £40-£70 has been sufficient in the past) and handed in for safe keeping in the party bank about a week before the trip departs. It is necessary to retain €5-10 to spend en route.
We have found in the past that a course of lessons on the dry slope at Matson is valuable, but definitely not essential, to beginners because it gives them a flying start, enabling them to take full advantage of their time on the snow. We will try to arrange courses of lessons for those who have no skiing experience, hopefully before Christmas. Each course consists of five one-hour lessons with a qualified instructor and beginners will be taught to put on and control their skis and how to use the draglift. The cost for the five lessons including equipment hire and transport will be approximately £30. We will need to book lessons this term and will assume that all 1 st time skiers will attend unless you let us know that your son/daughter does not wish to take part.
Please confirm your decision to take part in the ski trip on the attached form and return it to Mrs MacGregor in D205 as soon as possible but by Thursday 24 th April 2008 , so that we can confirm the provisional bookings. Deposits should then be considered non-refundable, although they may be covered by insurance in some instances. If you do have to cancel please give us as much warning as possible, as it may be possible for us to help you find a replacement, so that most of your deposit can be returned.
Please keep this letter for reference and do not hesitate to contact us at school if you have any questions [email: pateski@pates.gloucs.sch.uk Tel: 01242 523169 ext222]. Further information about the trips will be posted on the ski trip website www.pates-grammar.star.co.uk or by following links from the school website www.pates.gloucs.sch.uk
Mr. S Dandy & A Houlton (Party Leaders)
Printable version of REPLY SLIP
Invitation to parents' evening + Dry slope lessons for 1st time skiers - Sept 2008
Dear Parent
We are pleased to invite parents and skiers to an evening meeting where we will distribute an information sheet, give a short talk explaining the arrangements for the trips and show a few slides to give you an idea of what to expect. Although the evening is primarily aimed at those who have not skied with us before, all participants in the trip are welcome. The ski clothing that you need to obtain will be demonstrated and we will suggest some items, such as gloves and goggles, that you may wish to purchase as Christmas presents. A representative of Ski West will be present at the evening to display their range of clothing and distribute their brochure. Staff will be available to answer any questions about arrangements, clothing and equipment. The meeting will be held on Wednesday November 5 thin the school hall, starting at 7pm (we hope to finish about 9pm). If you have attended one of our meetings in the past and know the ropes or are unable to attend, please make sure you receive the information sheet that will be distributed at the meeting or can be collected later from Mrs Coppola in D205.
Beginners’ dry slope lessons and Personal details forms:
We have found in the past that a short course of lessons on the dry slope at Matson is invaluable to beginners as it gives them a flying start, enabling them to take full advantage of their time on the snow. We have booked a series of five one hour lessons at the Gloucester dry ski for all students who have not skied before. The lessons will take place after school on Wednesdays 15 th, 22 nd Oct and 5 th, 12th and 19 th November. The cost of the series of 5 lessons, including transport and equipment hire, will be £35. If you wish to participate, please complete the slip below and send it together with a cheque, made payable to PGS and with your child’s name and form on the back, to Mrs Coppola in D205. Transport will leave after school and return between 6.45 & 7.00pm. Pupils should change at school and take bags and clothes with them as the buildings will not be open on our return. Ski gloves and long sleeves are compulsory, as it is easy to hurt fingers on the plastic matting. Suitable clothing for the dry slope is a loose top (waterproof if raining), one pair of long, thick socks and loose trousers/track suit bottoms that can be rolled up or worn over the ski boots (tight jeans are not suitable).
If all the students new to sking do not book places on the course there may be a few places available on the minibus for those who have skied before and wish to practise without an instructor. Participants must behave responsibly and be able to perform basic parallel turns and use the draglift.
Permission slips for dry slope lessons and ‘Personal details’ forms should be returned to Mrs Coppola by the end of September.
Ski Equipment and Clothing:
Hire of skis, ski boots and poles is included in the cost of the trip. If you do not possess your own ski clothing and cannot borrow it, we recommend that you hire purpose-designed ski trousers on or after the parents’ evening. Some suggestions as to where to hire/buy ski clothing are included on the web page. If your budget is tight, we now have a good selection of ski jackets & salopettes for hire at a very reasonable cost (£5). See Mr. Houlton in B209 to find out if we have clothes in your size.
Passport forms:
To avoid problems due to lost passports we include all participants, who are eligable, on a collective passport. This requires a form to be completed by a parent or guardian [if your child was born outside the UK a different version of the form is reuired, which can be obtained from Mrs Coppola or downloaded from the ski trip website]. Completed passport forms should be returned by the end of October.
Final payment and Spending money:
The last instalment of £300 is due by the end of October and should be given to Mrs Coppola in D205 (please include child’s name and form on the back of the cheque). For security reasons we like to look after the students’ pocket money in a ‘party bank’. Deposits to the party bank should be made in Euros at least a week before the trip. We recommend children carry the Euro equivalent of about £10 with them for the journey and pay £40 to £70 into the party bank.
European Health Insurance Card:
E111 forms have been replaced by the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which are valid for several years. The easiest way to obtain your free card is either to apply online at https://www.ehic.org.uk/Internet/home.do or by telephoning 0845 606 2030. All participants will require a card which should be handed to Mrs Coppola before the end of January.
Website and e-mail:
You can keep up to date by visiting the ‘PateSki notice board’ at www.pates-grammar.star.co.uk or via the link on the extra curricular section of the school website at www.pates.gloucs.sch.uk . If necessary you can contact me by email pateski@pates.gloucs.sch.uk
Mr. S Dandy & A Houlton (Party Leaders)
Printable version of Dry slope permission slip
Printable version of Personal Details form
Printable version of Passport form (born in UK)
Printable version of Passport form (born outside UK)
Changes to February trip - Jan. 2009
Dear Parent
I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings but, after over fifteen years of travelling with Rover European Travel, this is the first time I have had to contact parents about a change of arrangements.
Change of departure and return times:
The February trip is now due to depart about midday on Saturday 14 th and return during the afternoon of Sunday 22 nd February (more precise timings will have to wait until the final details letter, distributed about a fortnight before departure). This allows very limited time to recover before school starts on the Monday but please make every effort to persuade your children to attend on the first day of the new session. The change of dates has been caused by added pressure on the ferry companies due largely to the decision that all English schools should have the same half term this year rather than the demand being spread over at least two weeks.
Currency surcharge:
Rover European calculated the price of the trip when the exchange rate was 80p to the Euro. Late last term when the Euro reached 89p we were told there would be a surcharge but the Euro has now plummeted to 99p so the surcharge has had to be increased to £97 per person. Rover have agreed to absorb 40% themselves but that means I still have to ask you to pay an additional £58.20. Cheques should be made payable to PGS and sent to Mrs Coppola in D205 by Monday 19 th January (please include child’s name and form on the back of the cheque).
Spending money:
For security reasons we like to look after the students’ pocket money in a ‘party bank’. Deposits to the party bank should be made to Mrs Coppola in Euros at least a week before the trip. As the pound has fallen so much against the Euro we have amended our recommendations; we now recommend children carry the Euro equivalent of about £15 with them for the journey and pay further £50 to £75 worth of Euros into the party bank.
European Health Insurance Card:
EHI cards should be handed to Mrs Coppola before the end of January. The easiest way to obtain your free card is either to apply online at https://www.ehic.org.uk/Internet/home.do or by telephoning 0845 606 2030.
Ski Equipment and Clothing:
Hire of skis, ski boots and poles is included in the cost of the trip but not clothing. If your budget is tight, we now have a good selection of ski jackets & salopettes for hire at a very reasonable cost (£5). See Mr. Houlton in B209 to find out if we have clothes in your size.
Contact details:
If you will be away from home while we are away we will need your contact details in writing before we travel but please give us as much warning as possible so you can be placed at the end of the contact tree.
Website and e-mail:
You can keep up to date by visiting the ‘PateSki notice board’ at www.pates-grammar.star.co.uk or via the links page of the school website at www.pates.gloucs.sch.uk . If necessary you can contact me by email pateski@pates.gloucs.sch.uk
Mr. A Houlton & Mr. S Dandy (Party Leaders)
Final Details (Feb) - due Feb 2009
Final Details (April) - due May 2009