NSW government school excursions run under one policy: “Excursions and variations of routine” (PD-2005-0290-04). It makes a risk assessment plan mandatory for every planned excursion, with transport an express input. It requires organisers to check licensing and insurance and, for buses, to confirm licensed passenger capacity and that heavy vehicles are registered appropriately. It sets no numeric supervision ratios for K-12. This checklist sequences the transport work backwards from your approval deadline, so the paperwork arrives before it rather than after.
The document that governs this
PD-2005-0290-04, version 01.1.0 dated 6 May 2025, is the operative policy. The older PD/2004/0010 was consolidated into it on 30 January 2025 and no longer stands, which matters because a lot of school templates still cite the old number.
Four things it says that affect transport directly:
- A risk assessment plan is mandatory for every planned excursion, and transport is an express input to it. The transport section is not an afterthought to the venue risk assessment; it is part of it.
- You must check licensing and insurance. For buses, that includes confirming licensed passenger capacity and that heavy vehicles are registered appropriately.
- Seatbelt-fitted vehicles are a preference “where practical”. They are not a requirement. Ask for them, plan around them, and do not tell your principal the policy mandates them.
- There are no numeric supervision ratios for K-12. The principal determines staffing, using average class sizes as a guide. Numeric ratios exist only for public preschools.
That last point deserves a flag. Sector blogs routinely quote figures like one adult per ten primary students as though they were Department policy. They are not, and a permission note or risk assessment that cites an invented ratio is citing something that does not exist. If a form needs a number, it comes from your principal’s determination for this excursion, documented in the risk assessment.
Planning against the NSW school calendar
Two dates constrain you: your school’s own approval deadline, and the term boundary. The second is wider than it looks, because school development days are staff-only and excursions cannot fall on them, so the unusable window at each end of term is longer than the published holiday dates suggest.
NSW government school term dates, Eastern division:
| Term | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Term 1 | Mon 2 Feb to Thu 2 Apr | Wed 3 Feb to Fri 9 Apr |
| Term 2 | Wed 22 Apr to Fri 3 Jul | Thu 29 Apr to Fri 2 Jul |
| Term 3 | Tue 21 Jul to Fri 25 Sep | Tue 20 Jul to Fri 24 Sep |
| Term 4 | Tue 13 Oct to Thu 17 Dec | Tue 12 Oct to Mon 20 Dec |
Western division schools differ in Term 1 only: students start Monday 9 February in 2026 and Wednesday 10 February in 2027. Catholic systemic and independent schools set their own dates. Check the Department’s calendar pages before you commit, because these are the kind of dates that move.
One booking consequence. Published lead times are two to four weeks for most jobs and four to eight weeks in peak periods, and school excursion season is explicitly one of those peaks. Early Term 4 and the run into December compete with every other group in Sydney for the same vehicles.
The countdown
The term before: fix the shape
- [ ] Excursion approved in principle by the principal
- [ ] Date checked against the term calendar and against school development days
- [ ] Approximate student numbers, plus supervising staff, plus any parent helpers travelling
- [ ] Destination confirmed, including whether it takes groups and whether it has coach access
- [ ] Accessibility needs identified early, so an appropriate vehicle can be allocated
Numbers here are approximate on purpose. You need them accurate enough to land on a vehicle class, not accurate enough for a roll.
Eight to six weeks out: verify the operator
This is the block that satisfies the policy requirement, and it is worth doing before you book rather than after.
- [ ] Written quote requested with pick-up suburb, date and approximate group size. It comes back within two business hours with the vehicle named
- [ ] Certificate of Accreditation requested. NSW bus operator accreditation is administered by Transport for NSW, and there is no public register you can check, so requesting the certificate is the verification route rather than a formality. Sydney Buses & Coaches holds NSW accreditation number 43397 and makes the certificate available for tender and procurement paperwork
- [ ] Licensed passenger capacity confirmed in writing for the specific vehicle allocated, which is what the policy asks for
- [ ] Insurance position confirmed. Vehicle insurance is included in the quoted rate; ask for whatever evidence your school’s process requires
- [ ] Driver credentials confirmed. A Bus Driver Authority issued by Transport for NSW is required to drive a public passenger bus or coach seating 13 or more. Drivers here also hold a current Working With Children Check, and check numbers can be supplied to the school office before the day
- [ ] Seatbelt-fitted vehicle requested where practical, and the answer recorded in the risk assessment either way
Six to four weeks out: approvals and money
- [ ] Transport section written into the risk assessment plan
- [ ] Supervision determined by the principal and documented. No ratio quoted from anywhere else
- [ ] Cost per student calculated from the quote. Divide the quoted total by students travelling, and work the figure from the published hourly rates and minimum hire periods so the number in the permission note is defensible
- [ ] P&C or budget approval obtained if the excursion is subsidised
- [ ] Booking confirmed with the deposit set out in the quote
- [ ] Purchase order number given to the operator, so it appears on the invoice from the start
Four to two weeks out: the detail
- [ ] Permission notes issued, with the departure and return times stated
- [ ] Pick-up point confirmed at the school, checked for coach access and turning room
- [ ] Destination asked, in writing, where a coach sets down and where it waits during the visit
- [ ] Stop sequence confirmed, including any lunch or comfort stop
- [ ] Medical and dietary information collected, including anything that affects seating or boarding
- [ ] Wet weather variation agreed and written down
One week out: lock it
- [ ] Final student numbers confirmed to the operator
- [ ] Staff and helper numbers confirmed, and counted in the seat total
- [ ] Class or group lists prepared for the head count method you will use
- [ ] Run sheet sent to the operator: assemble time, departure time, stop sequence, hard arrival time, return time
- [ ] Day-of contact named, with a mobile that will be on and answered. Not the coordinator, if the coordinator will be supervising a group
- [ ] Behaviour and belt expectations included in the pre-excursion briefing
Twenty-four hours out
- [ ] Driver name, mobile and vehicle registration received and saved, and forwarded to the office
- [ ] Vehicle registration and licensed capacity recorded in the excursion file
- [ ] Weather checked and the wet plan confirmed
- [ ] Front office told who is travelling and who to call
On the morning
- [ ] Head count taken as students board, not once seated
- [ ] Count reconciled against the list, and the number said aloud to the driver
- [ ] Belts on before departure. Where seatbelts are fitted, wearing them is mandatory in NSW for passengers aged 16 and over, and the sensible instruction for a school group is that everyone wears one regardless of age
- [ ] Count again before every departure from every stop, including the return
What goes in the excursion file
Keep these together. If anything is queried afterwards, this is the file that answers it.
- Approved risk assessment plan, including the transport section
- Written quote, with the vehicle named
- Booking confirmation
- Operator’s Certificate of Accreditation, or the record of the request
- Licensed passenger capacity for the allocated vehicle
- Insurance evidence to the standard your school requires
- Driver credential confirmation, including check numbers where supplied
- Permission notes returned
- Final student and staff list
- Run sheet as sent to the operator
- The 24-hour driver details message
- Any variation agreed on the day, and who agreed it
The three things most often missed
The destination’s coach access. Schools plan the venue and assume the coach follows. Some Sydney venues publish a coach position, most do not, and “we will sort it on the day” from a venue is not an answer. Ask where a coach sets down, where it waits during the visit, and what the height restriction is on the approach. A full-size coach exceeds 2.8 metres in height.
The morning school zone. Departure at 8.45am from a school gate means departing through 40 km/h school zones. Most zones operate 8:00 to 9:30am and 2:30 to 4:00pm on notified school days, the sign always governs, and they operate on school development days too. Build it into the schedule rather than discovering it on the road.
The return time, honestly set. A return time built on optimism collides with two hard limits: the school day, and the driver’s day. Charter work sits inside the heavy vehicle fatigue regime, so a driver cannot simply stay later because the venue ran over. Book the finish you actually need.
Frequently asked questions
What supervision ratio does NSW require for excursions?
None is published for K-12. PD-2005-0290-04 sets no numeric supervision ratios, and the principal determines staffing using average class sizes as a guide. Numeric ratios exist only for public preschools. Any figure you have seen quoted as Department policy is not from the policy.
Does the Department require seatbelts on excursion coaches?
It prefers seatbelt-fitted vehicles where practical. That is a preference, not a requirement. Request one, record the answer in the risk assessment, and where belts are fitted instruct the group to wear them.
How do I verify an operator’s accreditation?
Ask for the Certificate of Accreditation. There is no public register of NSW bus operator accreditation, so the certificate is the verification route. Record the accreditation number in the excursion file.
Do school excursion drivers need a Working With Children Check?
Drivers on dedicated school or child transport are within the child-related work category. Whether a general charter carrying a mixed group is captured depends on the nature of the service, so the useful step is to ask the operator directly and get the position in writing. Drivers here hold a current Working With Children Check and check numbers can be supplied to the school office before the day.
How far ahead should a school book excursion transport?
Two to four weeks covers most jobs, but school excursion season is a published peak period where four to eight weeks is the realistic window. Term 4 in particular competes with every other group booking in Sydney.
A student uses a wheelchair. What do we need to do?
Raise it at quote stage, not later. Wheelchair-equipped vehicles with hoists are available and have to be allocated in advance, and boarding order is worth agreeing with the driver before the group comes out. Start with vehicles with wheelchair hoists.
Next step
Work the checklist as far as the eight-week block, then send what you have. Pick-up suburb, date and approximate numbers is enough for a written quote with the vehicle named, and the accreditation and driver documents your excursion file needs can be requested in the same email. Start with school excursion bus and coach hire or call 02 9469 6600.
Sources
- NSW Department of Education, Excursions and variations of routine (PD-2005-0290-04), https://education.nsw.gov.au/policy-library/policies/pd-2005-0290-04. Accessed 7 September 2026.
- NSW Department of Education, School calendar 2026, https://education.nsw.gov.au/schooling/calendars/2026. Accessed 7 September 2026.
- NSW Department of Education, School calendar 2027, https://education.nsw.gov.au/schooling/calendars/2027. Accessed 7 September 2026.
- Transport for NSW, School zones, https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/roadsafety/community/schools/school-zones. Accessed 7 September 2026.
- Service NSW, Apply for a Bus Driver Authority, https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/apply-for-a-bus-driver-authority. Accessed 7 September 2026.
