Ever since the establishment of Harrow International School in 1998 our school has grown and developed into the fine international environment that we have today. Not least of all has been the development of expeditions (residential visits) and day outings. Now the envy of many other schools in the Kingdom and throughout the region, HIS’s range of experiences outside the classroom is almost second to none in depth and variety. While we are justly proud of our exemplary academic results we also believe that young people should be rounded and independent and our expeditions’ programme aims to provide our students with a wealth of experiences both within Thailand and abroad that will aid greatly in their personal development and general education. This may be accomplished through a range of outdoor educational possibilities, meeting people from diverse backgrounds, engaging in valuable community service as well as the simple but rewarding enjoyment of good times with friends and teachers in a safe yet challenging environment that takes both the very young and the Sixth Former alike out of their comfort zone. In addition, our expeditions feature strong links to class subjects turning our destinations into a giant classroom.

Expeditions at Harrow can take place at any time but principally the main visits, and the ones that are compulsory for all students, are those that take place in Expeditions’ Week in February each year before the half term break in Term 2. We are proud to offer expeditions of varying lengths that show a clear progression of activities and expectations from Year 1 with its sleep-over on the school grounds where six year olds may be staying away from home for the first time to life changing adventures in other parts of the world where our privileged Sixth Formers may choose to go. No matter what level your child is in at Harrow they are guaranteed to have an expedition that will be challenging and memorable and excellent value for money. For a full list of venues and other details for Expeditions Week please see announcements in the Harrovianonline and in other communication directly from school. Apart from trips in Expeditions’ Week other trips take place on a voluntary basis throughout the year such as a ski-ing visit to Europe at Easter, trekking in Nepal and walking up Mount Kinabalu.

As Expeditions and Outings Coordinator and a 25 year resident of the Kingdom, it is my responsibility to ensure the safety of all trips that leave the school gates. This is accomplished through a network of meetings and personal contact as well as liaison with internal trip leaders and fully accredited outside third party providers. All expeditions and outings are fully risk assessed and suitably insured. Parents and guardians can rest assured that at HIS we take the issue of safety on and off campus with the utmost seriousness and professionalism working to achieve the highest standards of safety possible. Our extensive expedition’s policy is under constant review and is always readily available to parents. Meetings are always held to provide information to parents and our letters and contacts through the weekly school magazine are unmatched.

Booklets issued to relevant year groups will give you all the information relating to your child’s expedition each year at Harrow. Should you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact me at school in the Thai Studies office on the third floor of Secondary (x1232) or on 085 322 5961.

Sincerely,

Mr Gerry Carter (Expeditions and Outings’ Coordinator).