OUTRAGED families who shelled out nearly �1,300 to send their children on the trip of a lifetime have been told a year down the line that it has been cancelled – after the travel company changed the details at the last minute.

Year 10 pupils at The Kings of Wessex School in Cheddar booked the ski holiday to Colorado in America with Skibound in January 2010.

Many of the 59 students had already stocked up on ski gear and lessons, as well as exchanging pounds for dollars, in preparation for the trip next month.

But the school was told earlier this month that the company would not honour the booking because of availability and the cost of flights.

The company instead offered to send the youngsters to Sunday River on the east coast of America – where there is little guarantee of natural snow in April.

Pupils and their families were told last Friday that the school had taken the difficult decision to cancel the trip.

Judy Body, the mum of 15-year-old pupil Chris, said: “Everyone is disappointed by this, and I personally feel that they have been treated shoddily by Skibound.

“Many of the kids have already shelled out for skiing lessons.

“My son Chris was given various bits for Christmas and spent some of his money on goggles and we had spent around �200.”

She has been told that the company is offering a full refund, but only �8 per pupil in compensation.

Judy, who lives in Biddisham, added: “It’s such a small amount of money and I believe the school is still in talks with Skibound.”

A spokesman for the school said: “We are extremely disappointed in the way in which Skibound has failed to honour our booking and its response to the situation.

“Skibound has badly let down our young people, and we share their immense disappointment.”

A spokesman for Skibound said the trip was cancelled for a number of reasons, including rises in prices such as fuel and taxes, and the size of the party had ‘presented problems’.

She said the alternative option offered was an ‘upgrade’ to the Colorado trip, which included extra goodwill gestures and the resort had the ‘most technically advanced snowmaking system in the east’.