All pupils in Scotland's secondary schools would receive a potentially "life changing" residential week of outdoor education under proposals to be debated in Holyrood later this year.

Conservative MSP Liz Smith introduced her bill ahead of recess in June with the legislation expected to be examined and voted on by the Scottish Parliament's education committee by December.

Ms Smith, who is the Scottish Conservative's finance spokeswoman and a former teacher, said that residential outdoor education "when young people can be away for a week in an environment very far removed from their own, can be life-changing."

She added: "I want to ensure that the outdoor education opportunities I was fortunate enough to enjoy will still be there for generations to come.

"Adventurous new experiences in the outdoors develop young people with a lifelong connection and concern for the natural environment, self-esteem, self-reliance, confidence, resilience and an understanding of how to deal with new challenges and manage risk. It also helps young people to know what it means to be part of a team, to learn leadership skills and the importance of valuing friendship."

Scottish Conservative MSP Liz Smith (Image: PA)

In introducing her bill she cited a decline in the number of outdoor education centres and concern that budget constraints mean that many young people do not have access to residential outdoor education as previous generations.

Ms Smith was also concerned about the ongoing effect of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the physical and mental wellbeing of young people.

Under her Schools (Residential Outdoor Education) (Scotland) Bill all pupils aged from 12 to 16 in state and grant-aided schools will have the chance to experience at least four nights and five days of residential outdoor education during their school career. The bill does not include pupils at fee paying schools.

The bill would seek to make it a statutory obligation for funding to be provided for the experience at a specialist residential facility such as an outdoor centre, youth hostel, camp or sailing boat.

Activities could involve hill walking, climbing, kayaking, raft building, learning about nature and the outdoors, and could also include curricular subjects such as biology and geography.

Currently, schools do not have to provide residential outdoor education. Some schools do provide it for pupils, but many do not, especially for children and young people in deprived areas where costs can be a burden. The cost of these trips can mean schools cannot provide them.

The bill's financial memorandum estimates that the policy would cost around £20m to £32m a year based on between 55,000 and 65,000 pupils doing the courses each year.

However, noting the potential costs to the public purse, Ms Smith says she has asked the Scottish Government to consider a public trust model to assist with funding.

This is a legal arrangement where the trust manages assets and money for the benefit of a particular group of people within the general public in this case for young people to experience outdoor education.

The trustees are appointed by government and are subject to strict rules and regulations.

She said given the constraints on Scottish Government and local authority funding, a public trust model could be used to provide additional funds.

Ms Smith said she had already received considerable cross party support for the bill and was hopeful that if it passed through all its parliamentary stages in Holyrood, the scheme could be in place for Scottish pupils as early as 2026.

She added: "The Scottish Government has been exceptionally helpful in its engagement to date. Ministers will decide in due course whether to give it its full backing but I am very optimistic about the support for the bill."

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government has engaged with Ms Smith on the bill and will confirm its position in due course. We have been clear that any bill must be affordable in the currently challenging financial context.”