Toilets at childs school

[Ourdaughtersmatter]

Hi there, I was wondering if any of you amazing women would be able to help me with addressing an issue my daughter and her friends are having at school in regards to unisex toilets. The girls are avoiding drinking fluids so they can avoid using the toilets as they're covered in male urine. I have contacted the school principal who hasn't even responded. Should I contact them again or escalate it to the education department?

I am in Australia, not the UK. Any ideas on what to say to them? Appreciate any advice you may have.

Contact health services for advice? (IE make it more widely known) follow the complaints procedure of the school.

I'd point out that the un has stressed the importance of single sex toilets for girls in developing countries, so that girls can go to school. Why is it that girls in developed countries are being denied what's considered a basic human right for girls in Third World countries?

Ask your daughter and her friends to complain about it multiple times every day.

Isn't it law for them to be able to access single sex facilities from aged 8?

Sorry just seen this is Australia

If the toilets aren't clean I would complain. I wouldn't mention 'male urine' as it is impossible to tell who pee'd on the seat.

The solution may end up being separate toilets, but I wouldn't start there if the problem is the toilets aren't clean. I would expect them all to be reminded about wiping the seats perhaps posters or whatever.

Also has your dd checked the toilets every day? Possibly someone is being dramatic and they are all getting carried away.

And for building resilience i would teach dd to wipe the seat with a thick bit of loo roll, hover then thoroughly wash hands as I have rarely been to a female public toilet where I haven't had to wipe the seat.

Can you go and talk to the school principal in person? Much harder to ignore you if you're right in front of them.

You could get together with the parents of your daughter's friends and all go and talk to the principal together.

Does the school have governers like UK schools? If so, contact them as well.

@Oldcrone, I will try and make an appt to see the Principal I was looking for some feminist resources really as back up. If anyone can put me in the right direction, it would be much appreciated. :-)

@Outanabout and Blackeyedgruesome that's a great point. I will raise
that.

@Tigercubscout I have, but being girls they're not looking to 'make waves' and have just avoided drinking water throughout the day than confront the school. I have spoken to one of the teachers in relation to this issue but he was also unhelpful. Told me to let her know she could ask him to use the staff room toilets... which I thought was odd.

@LL83 Everything you said was the opposite of what I want my daughter to learn. She is not lying (I have seen proof), and it is not her job to clean up after boys/men.

Hahaha raise your daughter to be a proper woman by teaching her it's her job to clean up male piss 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂🙄

I'd be concerned about dehydration - avoiding fluids so to avoid having to go to the loo in a hot country must have an impact. Are there any studies looking at the links between learning/concentration and dehydration? I'll look it up.

And yes male urine smells different to female urine so you can tell which sex if responsible but I would want to clean up anyone else's wee in order to have one myself, in my own home or in a school or public toilet.

patch.com/virginia/ashburn/bp--dehydration-its-impact-on-learning

Maybe the girls should take up the teachers offer of using the staff toilets - every day the whole female student population queuing up outside the staff toilets!
But yes, my daughter would be the same and just avoid using the toilets at all.
Maybe suggest they spread the word about complaining - they each complain once a month - if all the girls did that there would still be around 10 complaints a day.

OP, Untameable shrews in Aus might be able to point you to some feminist legal resources that you can use? UK sources will be based around UK and EU law but you may have some Australian legal points that you can make to your school if there is sex discrimination.

"male urine smells different to female urine"

Not seriously suggesting this but a dirty protest might get their attention quicker and more effectively than written complaints

I agree with BlackeyedGruesome. Take it further to get a response. Involve health services. A letter from your gp warning the school about the likely affects sustained dehydration would have on their patient. Get the papers involved. Quote the UN. Give them a lesson on the history of women only loos.

We need a revival of the Ladies Sanitary Association which was set up in 1850 to campaign for public toilets for Women. These unisex toilets have set us back nearly 200 years! F*cking idiots.

But it is not a girls v boys issue. There will be clean boys there too and they likely dont enjoy the dirty toilets either.

If you want to argue for girls only toilet reason would be private space. Not boys are dirty. Likely is more often boys who make the mess but you dont know that.

Most school toilets are not nice. Toilets at my school were filthy and it was single sex toilet so no boys there.

Of course she knows it's the boys. If previously clean toilets start smelling when they are turned unisex, what is more likely, that the girls have suddenly started passing on the floor or that it's boys?

Damn you prudish autocorrect - pissing on the floor.

LL83

Believe us it's a girls v boys issue. I've cleaned a lot of public toilets over the years and I can tell you that the men's is repetitively piss soaked (how/why do they get it EVERYWHERE?) and the women's is usually a breeze to clean.

Countess

the girls have suddenly started passing on the floor Hahaha! I thought you were referring to my suggestion of a dirty protest getting the job done!

I think the issue is people, especially boys have to be taught to use the toilet correctly, it isn't fair on the cleaner (Male or female) either. Or the clean boys who have to pee in there.

LL83

Totally agree with this one. Male entitlement to making a mess and not cleaning up after themselves is learnt behaviour. And, for the record I also agree that there are lots of boys and men who do act responsibly in this way.

Male piss smells worse. Fact.

Same for all mammals.

Thank you for the really helpful suggestions everyone, it is much appreciated. Also, the link looks really interesting, I will have a read tonight. Lol at not knowing males pee is worse, I almost suffocate when my partner takes his morning wee if I'm in the vicinity. Think tomcats haha. And there are boys who are uncomfortable using the toilets because of the piss, but they're able to stand and wee, they don't have to sit for a wee.

Not sure what regulations exist in Australia, but in the UK they're clear: over 8 years old and you must have single sex toilets AND wash basins.

Here's some research from a small women's group in Wales highlighting downsides of mixed sex toilet blocks to girls:

www.walesonline.co.uk/news/education/pupils-missing-school-because-dont-15839558