Meet your 2024 School Travel Awards host… Annabel Croft

Why is it so important to get children outside of the classroom?

I’m a big advocate for how important it is to get children outside and experiencing things so they can feel the energy or the motivation of something live. It might be a theatre show, music, arts or drama, anything that gets children away from their normal environment. I don’t think there is anything more motivating for children to experience.

I think any time you can get kids outside the school classroom environment to experience something, it can open all sorts of channels in their mind. We never know what makes a human being tick or what makes them happy. But we do know that if you expose them to lots of experiences, then they’re going to find things that create new passions.

Do you remember any of your own educational visits?

I did a school trip to Wimbledon and I have never, ever forgotten it. The one thing I really remember is getting stuck outside as my ticket didn’t work, but I got inside in the end! It was this massive school trip that I really appreciated. The school mistress taking all these kids to Wimbledon, and of course it was a very motivating factor for me personally.

Was that your first taster of tennis?

No, I had been playing since the age of nine, which in today’s standards would be very late, but I first picked up a racket on a family holiday in Spain and the Wimbledon trip came a few years later, but I remember it being wonderful – the atmosphere, the people and the whole sight of Wimbledon is just so incredibly special. There’s a real energy around the place and it’s something you can’t describe unless you’ve actually been there, so to go as a child is quite special.

Did you ever envisage that you would end up playing there one day?

I think that’s probably where my love of Wimbledon started as it made me think that I would love to play. I enjoyed this sport, and it definitely sowed seeds for me. I did two Wimbledon trips as a kid, once with my uncle and once with my school and I feel very lucky as not many kids get to enjoy that experience. Those visits were very motivating factors for me and looking back, probably changed the course of my life. 

Why is it important to reward the best of the best at the School Travel Awards ceremony?

When you go off to work and do your job every day, it can start to feel like a bit of a treadmill. Everybody wants to feel like they are valued and what they do is important and has an impact on other people. For example, I have a tennis academy that I used to run with my husband. Someone else helps me run it now, but I always make time to appreciate their efforts, and it’s the same here, rewarding people for their hard work is vitally important.

Looking at it from a parent’s point of view, did you see the benefit in your own children of spending time away from the classroom?

Yes, definitely! The school they went to was big on outdoor activities. They would have speakers come in from all walks of life who would take the class into an outdoor environment and teach them about their personal stories. It might be someone who has been taken hostage, or a surgeon, but my kids still talk about it very clearly. Again, it was because it took them away from their normal environment. I can remember them visiting historic buildings and spending plenty of time on visits which was hugely important.

I feel very strongly about critical thinking, and I think it’s important to try and take children outside of their normal environment and not to be captured by phones or AI tools, so they can be outside and think outside the box.

You’ve obviously spent a lot of years working in television, what stands out for you?

One of the most impactful programmes I ever did was about homelessness, where I slept on the streets with people who were without a home. It was a documentary trying to highlight the homelessness to the community and make people understand their situation a little better. It was one of the most interesting things I have ever done!

I also really enjoyed Treasure Hunt as it took me to all kinds of amazing places that we have to offer in the UK. We always want to go on holiday abroad and we don’t realise what we have on offer at home. I was about 21 when I did it and it really opened up my eyes to the amazing places and history we have here. Obviously Strictly Come Dancing was also another huge thing to be a part of.

Tell us a little bit about your Strictly experience

It was honestly an unbelievable experience. It was life changing and I think it’s going to be hard to top that as I loved every minute of it. I really miss getting up and going dancing every day as it was so good for your body, soul and mind – I think about it daily.