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Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Secondary education

12yr old bought a bb gun on school trip!

36 replies

ashamahay · 25/05/2016 23:17

Am I right to be fuming that my 12yr old was left unsupervised in a market place long enough to buy a bb gun! I knows they done wrong and I am not excusing my childs behaviour, I asked him what they were thinking and they said loads of other children on the trip bought them. What shocks me is this was on a day trip to france and on the return to the coach the teacher had asked the children if they had anything that they felt they shouldn't have and a few kids handed in bb guns. The teacher did not supervise them around the open market and who knows how many kids bought weapons, there were also knives readily available my child tells me. I'm really concerned that there was no supervision to prevent this from happening, and why, after having evidence that weapons had been purchased did the teacher not check all students thoroughly, they went through french customs with these weapons! I was not at the school to collect my child but I have not been contacted by the school to warn that the children may have purchased weapons. So my question is what do I do now? I know my child has to shoulder alot of the blame but I am very concerned at the lack of supervision and the failure to warn parents of the possibility that they have purchased a weapon. There could well be yr 7s wondering the halls tomorrow with bb guns and knives. Advice please.

OP posts:

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mummytime · 26/05/2016 04:55

At my DCs school the children would have been excluded for a while after that, and banned from future trips. Before any trip overseas all students have to sign an agreement which sets out the behaviour expected on the trip, which includes: no alcohol, no tobacco/products, and no weapons. If you break the agreement then you have to suffer the consequences.

So it does sound like a lack of risk assessment and planning. Teacher's cannot supervise every child on a trip in a busy market, however by ensuring every child knows what is expected and the consequences, they are less likely to have issues.

SaltyMyDear · 26/05/2016 06:00

Y7s should have known better. I don't think it's the schools fault.

If you complain I expect they'll cancel this trip for future years (and possibly future trips for this year).

FuzzyWizard · 26/05/2016 06:09

They should have been given exclusions IMO. Some Headteachers are too unwilling to exclude when there are multiple children involved in serious incidents. On secondary school trips it is normal for kids to have a bit of free time for shopping etc. I'm not sure the school did anything wrong in terms of supervision although I think they have made a mistake by not excluding all of the children who bought weapons.

SlinkyVagabond · 26/05/2016 06:13

I imagine a trip if 50 kids? Part of that would be free time in small groups, with remote supervision, in some areas, IE the market. That would be in risk assessment and itinerary.If i had been on the trip I would then have examined everyone's shopping, but it was the teachers call. On return I'd report and slt decide sanctions. Our school they would be excluded from any further trips ever. (Ski trip- fireworks in our case)

MajesticSeaFlapFlap · 26/05/2016 06:17

Children of that age should be able to be trusted ti be without supervision for some of the trip. They are not toddlers, they know they are not supposed to buy that stuff. Personal responsibility and all that.
Id of excluded the lot and expected the parents to bollock them too.

Snowberry86 · 26/05/2016 06:20

Not schools fault- however they should have warned them before.

We do France trips with school regularly and always want the children about buying inappropriate items at the market. They are allowed to go off on their own for an hour in the market square so have limited supervision.

ashamahay · 26/05/2016 06:29

I think my main issue is the fact the kids were allowed to leave the coach and go home without all parents being told about it and being asked to search the kids before they hAve had time tO hide these from parents. I'm concerned there may be many taken back into school to show off.

OP posts:

Baconyum · 26/05/2016 06:32

Sorry I agree not schools fault, but a parenting issue, did your son really think this was ok?

FuzzyWizard · 26/05/2016 06:43

I'm assuming that the teachers thought all of the BB guns had been handed over to them. I think it's likely that a child said to one of the "that group bought BB guns" and as far as they were concerned they'd all been handed over. I'm quite shocked by how widespread it seems to have been.

Blu · 26/05/2016 06:49

I'm not sure all 12 year old boys think of BB guns as 'weapons', because that's not how they intend to use them.

What sort of knives ?

teacher54321 · 26/05/2016 06:51

Teenagers are devious. And if I've read your OP correctly, your son bought one and hid it from the teachers.

And you think this is the teacher's fault...

They should know better, it should be added to the risk assessment for next year and those who bought one should be punished-day exclusion possibly.

I think it's highly unlikely they will be roaming round the corridors vigilante style.

Motheroffourdragons · 26/05/2016 06:54

I get it OP, I remember some years ago when my first was in year 7, he went to France or somewhere with his year, and there were some incidents with BB guns and stuff. I can't remember now what happened at the school as a consequence - oldest is 25 - but I remember the complete shock I felt. I had had no idea there would be the opportunity to buy such things, nor had even had a conversation with my son that these were available AND a bad idea!

BoneyBackJefferson · 26/05/2016 06:58

I know my child has to shoulder alot of the blame

Try all of the blame.

ByTheWishingWell · 26/05/2016 07:07

We did this on a school trip we went on when I was 13. As a PP said, we didn't think of them as weapons, just as toys

No one was excluded over it, but the BB guns were all confiscated bar one that got missed and taken home.

ashamahay · 26/05/2016 09:03

Thanks for all your replies. I decided to go in and discuss with the lead teacher. Just to be clear I DON'T BLAME THE SCHOOL I was just shocked that france sells these items so readily to children and bloody fuming that my son didn't use his brains. I have informed the school that others purchased weapons so that hopefully parents can search and remove them from children. I agree with the previous comments that he didn't see it as a weapon and just wanted to use it as a toy. Apparently there were many local kids running around the market place with them so he thought they were ok. Had it been an english or local market Im sure the police would ensure it wouldn't happen again but im not sure on the laws in France or who I could complain to. These were school kids in full uniform so the seller would have known they were underage. Anyway lessons have/will be learnt and I will ensure my son will not be seeing a bb gun (or any weapon) as a toy in future. Still cannot believe they got them through customs!

OP posts:

namechangeparents · 26/05/2016 09:32

My son went on a school trip last year and I think something similar happened. I'm not sure if the child concerned was excluded when they came back, but I'm sure there would have been a reasonably serious sanction (not sure exclusion is the answer, they're not being disruptive in school, just need to understand they can't do that sort of thing, maybe a Friday night detention with the head is a better option).

Excluding from future trips is definitely too harsh - they're kids, they need to learn. What you do in year 7 has no bearing on how you'll behave in year 10! Although if they have a ballot system I suspect those kids find themselves out of the ballot before it even takes place...

a parenting issue, did your son really think this was ok?

not this AGAIN. Do MNers really expect kids to do what their parents say at all times?

MoonfaceAndSilky · 26/05/2016 10:36

I know my child has to shoulder alot of the blame

Try all of the blame.

So the teacher 'supervising' is not to blame, at all, for not supervising?

They are 12 year olds, they think BB guns are toys.
I think the school should have warned them, beforehand, that they were not allowed to buy anything like this. Also bags should have been searched once they knew a few of the children had bought them.

t4gnut · 26/05/2016 10:48

He's 12 - he knows what is and isn't allowed and like the others was trying it on.

I'm not sure how you were expecting a teacher to walk round the market with every child supervising what they bought.

TeenAndTween · 26/05/2016 12:13

DD's school explicitly states that items such as BB guns are not to be bought on trips abroad. This is on a behaviour agreement that parents and child both have to sign upfront. If your school doesn't currently do this I would suggest it as an improvement for future.

Baconyum · 26/05/2016 12:22

When it's an item that can cause significant harm? Yes that's a parenting issue.

Floggingmolly · 26/05/2016 12:27

He's 12. If he bought it behind the teacher's back, knowing perfectly well that he shouldn't have, then all the blame lies with him.
Save your "fuming" for him; if you spread any round the school there's a distinct possibility that he'll be banned from all future trips because he can't be trusted to follow the rules. That'll be his fault too...

Noofly · 26/05/2016 14:36

DS just turned 14 which is a bit older, I know, but he's in Taiwan right now on an exchange trip. Before he went, he was explicitly told to stay away from guns, knives, fireworks (and mopeds!) and any other dangerous items. It's up to him to act responsibly and not up to the school/host parents to keep a constant watch over him.

I'm sorry, but I think your son is fully to blame. Having said that, as a parent, if my son had bought a weapon and the school had (rightly) confiscated it from him, I would hope that the school would tell me.

HappyNevertheless · 26/05/2016 14:45

Have you seen one those guns?
Because I have never ever seen a gun like this in a market in France. (Had to google what it was too)
Knifes yes you will find them. The type that you use in a kitchen or in a garden. But NOT a weapon gun iyswim.

So I'm puzzled as to what really happened.

HappyNevertheless · 26/05/2016 14:46

Are we talking about those kind of guns?
[[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/BB_gun thete]

HappyNevertheless · 26/05/2016 14:47

Bugger link again
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/BB_gun

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