EVOLVE Advice Digest - latest educational visits new, guidance and updates

4 June 2026

In this week’s Digest:

National guidance updates
How to prepare for smoother visit sign-off
Are you planning visits in or near water?
Festival of Education
Funding opportunities
Book your EVC training
Free Webinars

We’d love to hear your ideas for content you’d like to see in the Digest. Email marketing@evolveadvice.co.uk with your feedback.

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Advice and guidance

New and updated National Guidance

In June 2026, OEAP National Guidance updated 4 guidance documents and added 2 new Welsh translations of guidance. The amendments are now in separate tables showing amendments to the English and Welsh versions of the guidance.

Key updates to note:

3.2g Vetting and Disclosure and Barring Service - amended following DBS eligibility changes - see our advice article for more on this.
4.4g Selecting External Providers and Facilities: Updated that all providers who hold the Quality Badge, meet the new standards for data protection.
5.1c Self Evaluation and the Ofsted Framework - Updated to reflect the new Ofsted framework for inspection.
1q Provider Statement: Updated to move data protection question to section B, as LOtC Quality Badge holders are no longer required to answer this question.

For a full list of new and updated guidance, and details of the changes, click the button below.

OEAP NATIONAL GUIDANCE UPDATES

Visit planning and approvals - be prepared

Now’s the time to check your upcoming visits and make sure you’re on track with your planing and approvals so that you are ready to go without any last-minute pressure.
Tips from our advisers:

Allow 4 week for sign off on your overseas, adventurous and residential visits.
If there is important information missing e.g. provider forms your visit form will be returned with notes and request for info - please check your EVOLVE messages and inbox.
Tag the adviser when you resubmit your form so we know it’s ready for re-review.
Check that everyone in your approvals chain has done their part at the right time to avoid blockages.
If there are some details unconfirmed or info that may change e.g. specific staff attending, this can be added or amended later.

Together, we can help smooth the process for reviewing and signing off your visits from start to finish.

Are you planning visits in or near water?

Make sure everyone in your group knows how to #FloatToLive

How to float in five simple steps:

Tilt your head back with your ears submerged
Relax and try to breathe normally
Move your hands and legs to help you stay afloat
It’s OK if your legs sink, we all float differently
Once your breathing is under control, call for help or swim to safety.

Check out the RNLI Float to Live campaign, and resources from AdventureSmart UK & Ireland.

News

Book before 7 June - National Educational Visits Conference 2026

Limited spaces are still available for the National Educational Visits Conference on 11 June but don’t wait to book your space. Bookings will close on Sunday 7 June.

The National Educational Visits Conference is a must-attend event for anyone responsible for educational visits in schools. We have a great selection of speakers and workshops covering a variety of topics.

VIEW THE PROGRAMME HERE

EVOLVE Advice clients: follow the link on your EVOLVE site and use the ticket access code to secure your place at our client rate. of £114 (£95+ VAT @20%).

BOOK NOW

Festival of Education 2 & 3 July 2026

We're exhibiting at the Festival of Education on 2 and 3 July 2026 at Wellington College and would love to see you. If you're attending, visit us at Stand B15 for advice and a chat with our team.

The Festival of Education gathers educators from across the UK and beyond for two days of invaluable professional development, discussions, and networking.

Find out more: educationfest.co.uk

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Funding & Offers

More in your Loyalty Locker

For a limited time, Osprey and Hydro Flask are offering an exclusive 30% off through the Loyalty Locker, but only until the end of July, so don’t miss out!

Use your discount and browse what’s on offer, including a BPA-free water bottle from Hydro Flask or a backpack from Osprey - perfect for your visits.

Visit evolveadvice.co.uk/loyaltylocker to claim your discount. You’ll find the password on your EVOLVE home page.

Fund future educational visits – at no extra cost

EVOLVE Advice has partnered with easyfundraising to help schools raise free funding through everyday online shopping.

Sign your school up and share your easyfundraising page with your school community – parents, staff and even local businesses. Once they have signed up to support your school, whenever they shop with over 8,000 well-known brands, the brand will send your school donations.

It's free to sign up, free to use, and a great way for your community to support your school for free.

Join Jo from easyfundraising for a 30 min live webinar on how to use the online fundraising platform plus advice and tips to fundraise successfully for trips. Jo will talk about how the platform works, ways to involve your school community, and the biggest donation wins. Save your spot on 23rd September, 3:45pm by clicking here

Featured Training

Book your EVC training for the 2026-27 Academic year

Booking is now open for Initial EVC Training and EVC Revalidation Training from August 2026. Will you be taking on the role of EVC or has it been 3 years since you completed the EVC training? Now is the time to get your training booked.

New dates: 25 August, 28 August, 1 September, 4 September - perfect for INSET days.
Live courses (Northamptonshire): 30 September, 11 November

We’ve added more availability to give you the chance to complete EVC Training and Visit Leader Training before the start of the 2026-27 academic year.

View all course dates - search by date or filter by type of course.

BOOK NOW

Training & CPD

Upcoming free webinars

Here’s what’s coming next in our advice webinar series. Register now.

Educational visit emergencies – be prepared

Pharos Response specialises in supporting schools in times of crisis, including emergencies on educational visits. In this webinar, they’ll suggest practical steps you can implement to ensure you are better prepared in case of emergency.

Tuesday 22 September 2026. 12pm - 1pm BOOK HERE

Pharos Response free webinars:

School emergency contact policy – ensuring 24/7 support for off-site and out-of-hours emergencies. Thursday 25 June 1.30pm – 2.30pm REGISTER HERE

Incident trends from the past year - A breakdown of the most frequent incident types, from medical emergencies to complex logistical failures. Help protect your people and your reputation. Thursday 24 September 1.30pm - 2.40pm REGISTER HERE