Teachers could save hundreds of pounds on school trips by swapping coaches for trains.

Northern claims that switching to rail could lead to significant savings for schools, allowing for more educational trips each year.

This comes after the secretary of state for education, Bridget Phillipson MP, highlighted the importance of school trips at the Embassy Education Conference.

The train operator has compared the cost of popular school trip routes across its network and found that rail is often a cheaper option.

For instance, a trip from Knutsford to Chester would cost £153 by train, compared to £667 by coach.

Similarly, a journey from Stockport to Manchester would cost £85 by train, as opposed to £403 by coach.

Mark Powles, commercial and customer director at Northern, said: "Coaches are synonymous with school trips - but times change and there are significant savings that teachers can make if they will give the railway a go.

"Of course, there will be some visitor attractions that, because of their location, require a private transfer - but for those in town and city centres, rail would be a much cheaper option.

"Taking the train can also be an additional learning experience for students that don’t use public transport to get to school."

Northern has also launched a sale for group bookings, offering up to 75 per cent off the standard ticket price.

The sale, which opens on Tuesday, October 1, will run until the end of the month for travel between Sunday, October 6, and Tuesday, December 31, 2024.

Mr Powles added: "The discounts we offer to group bookings are significant – and teachers could organise many more days out for their students if they give up the coach and try us instead."

Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, with nearly 2,500 services a day to more than 500 stations across the north of England.

For more information about group travel, visit their website.