Education group membership

A group of school boys crowd and write on round a large piece of blank white paper — Schoolchildren working on a group project | © National Trust Images/David Levenson

Education group membership is specially designed to allow education groups free entry to most places cared for by the National Trust. This type of membership is for not-for-profit groups or home educators whose members, pupils or students are in full-time education.

Benefits of education group memberships

Education group members receive free entry to National Trust places during published opening times. Where extra education activities are offered by a place, additional charges may apply.

You will also receive:

the National Trust Handbook, full of information about the places we look after
the National Trust Magazine three times a year, packed with inspiration, interviews and news
free planning and preparation visits for group leaders – these preliminary visits should be booked in advance

Applying for education group membership

Please contact our Supporter Services Centre, who will be happy to help you.

Telephone: 0344 800 1895 (local rates apply)
Email us: enquiries@nationaltrust.org.uk

Eligibility

The National Trust reserves the right to make the final decision on whether a group is eligible for EGM or not.

Private schools are eligible for EGM if established as a not-for-profit organisation.

For academies made up of multiple schools or institutions, each school should hold its own EGM.

We're pleased to extend EGM to home-educating families so that home-educated children have access to the same discounted entry as traditional schools. To distinguish between this membership category and our standard family membership, home-educating families using their EGM can visit in normal school hours during school term time only.

Commercial companies that offer outdoor activities to children/young people at our sites are not eligible to hold EGM as they are for profit and EGM is designed for the groups themselves.

Costs and payment

Subscriptions cover one year from the date of joining.

Number on roll	Rate (inclusive of VAT)
Home educating family	£58.35
Under 50 pupils	£58.35
51–100 pupils	£93.35
101–200 pupils	£110.90
201–500 pupils	£116.90
Over 500 pupils	£140
Tertiary field study	£175

Payment for EGM must currently be made through the Supporter Services Centre via an approved debit or credit card, cheque, BACS or bank transfer. We can't issue invoices for EGM at the moment and it's not possible to apply for EGM at our places.

For each subscription paid, education group members receive one membership card for their school or organisation. If the school or organisation regularly runs multiple trips to different properties at the same time, each visiting group would require their own EGM card. Subsequent EGM cards can be purchased at the same price as the first card. Each membership would have its own start and end date.

EGM doesn't automatically renew and currently can't be renewed before the group's existing EGM expires. When the EGM expires (one year after purchase) the group can choose to contact the Supporter Services Centre to re-apply for EGM.

How to book a visit with an EGM card

All school group visits should be booked at least seven days in advance to make sure that the place has capacity to welcome the group and meet their needs. Some places may need more than seven days' notice, so please contact them at the earliest opportunity. Staff have the right to refuse admission for non-booked EGM groups.

The group should make direct contact with the place they're planning to visit. You can find contact information online and in the National Trust Handbook.

Group leaders can make a free, preparatory visit to a place for planning purposes. You must book these visits in advance, and any accompanying adults or children are subject to normal admission rates.

Additional educational services and activities

Many places have additional charges for offers beyond entry, such as access to self-led resources or facilitated sessions. This is different to paying for the education group’s membership.

At the moment, payment for educational services and activities can be taken via a till at the place on the date of the visit via cash, card or cheque (depending on the capability at the specific place). Please check with the place at the time of booking.

If necessary, if the group has a registered account with the National Trust, an invoice may be raised by the place for any additional activities or educational services if the group leader isn't able to pay on the day.

Pre-visit information for group organisers and teachers

If needed, National Trust places will send booked in EGM groups:

property specific risk assessments which relate to their visit
a link to our Safeguarding Statement
details of the terms and conditions of their membership (if applicable), including group supervision ratios

Group organisers are also responsible for:

securing the right permissions from parents or guardians etc.
making sure their group follows health and safety procedures during the visit
providing evidence that they have public liability insurance with a minimum £5m indemnity limit in place for when they visit. There's a minimum of £10m for highest risk activities such as coasteering or air ballooning.

Groups can provide evidence by sharing a letter from their insurance provider or broker stating that sufficient cover is in place. Please share this with the place you're visiting, preferably at the time of booking a visit. The letter doesn't have to be addressed specifically to the National Trust and can be a ‘To whom it may concern’ letter. This doesn’t apply to home-educating families when parents are visiting solely with their own children.

Verbal confirmation of insurance won't be accepted as evidence of cover.

Terms and conditions

- Education group membership (EGM) is available to not-for-profit educational groups whose members, pupils or students are in full-time education. The National Trust reserves the right to make the final decision on whether a group falls within this definition.
- EGM is also available for home-educating families, who are entitled to use their education group membership during normal school hours in term time only.
- Commercial companies that offer outdoor activities to children or young people at the places in our care aren't eligible to hold EGM as they're for profit and EGM is designed for the groups themselves.
- All visits must be booked in advance directly with the place (with at least seven days’ notice). A small number of the places in our care may require booking further in advance of seven days due to capacity and resource, so we advise booking as far ahead as possible.
- EGM doesn't include admission to places with reciprocal entry agreements, such as English Heritage (including Stonehenge and Housesteads Fort) or National Trust for Scotland.
- Group leaders should present a valid education group membership card(s) when visiting to guarantee entry and avoid normal admission fees being charged.
- Group leaders may make a free, preparatory visit to a place for planning purposes. These visits must be booked in advance and any accompanying adults or children are subject to normal admission rates.
- For legal protection, all education groups must provide evidence that they have public liability insurance with a minimum £5m indemnity limit in place for when they visit. This can be evidenced by the group sharing a letter from their insurance provider or broker stating that sufficient cover is in place. This should be shared with the place the group is visiting. This letter doesn't have to be addressed specifically to the National Trust and can be a ‘To whom it may concern’ letter. This evidence should be provided at the time of booking a visit. This doesn’t apply to home-educating families when parents are visiting solely with their own children.
- For the highest risk activities, such as coasteering or air ballooning, a minimum £10m indemnity limit must be in place.
- Education group members must show the original membership card. Photocopies of the card aren't acceptable.
- Education group membership entitles the holder to free admission only and not to free use of the National Trust’s educational services – where extra education activities are offered by a place, additional charges may apply and must be made directly to the place that is being visited.
- At present, businesses and other organisations are unable to purchase EGM on behalf of educational groups.
Group supervision ratios

As stipulated in our safeguarding code, we recommend having at least two adults present when working with or supervising children and young people to support any needs, such as going to the toilet or accidental group separation. In addition to the below ratios, add at least one adult:
- 4–8 years: one adult to eight children
- 9–12 years: one adult to ten children
- 13–18 years: one adult to fifteen children
Places have added discretion to increase the ratios based on any additional risk at the site, such as if the place has a body of or fast-flowing water.