To go to the toilet at work?

OP

Did you make it very very clear that due to your bowel issues you would be caught short at times and have to rush to the toilet mid lesson

And therefore leave during a lesson and leave the children without you to care for them which is your job

Regardless of other TAs / support staff being in the room

Teachers can not leave a room of pupils whilst they go to the loo. They absolutely can not

Pupils at schools are not allowed to go to the toilet during lessons unless they have a special card to show

Obviously this is embarrassing and affects girls on their periods who are excruciatingly embarrassed as teens to say they're leaking

OP is an adult so should be able to communicate their need for using the toilet better especially as OP work is looking after and advocating for minors.

OP needs to speak up

Apparently bladder issues are very common amongst teachers and nurses due to limited access to the toilet.
I too had a kidney infection when I was still teaching and now suffer with an overactive bladder though not teaching anymore.
The problem I found in school (infants) was that you cannot leave the children unsupervised and if you have no TA and the class next door is at PE or on a trip, there can literally be no one to cover you.
One school I worked at got around this by allowing you to text the office who would then send someone to cover you.
Could this be an option OP?

But what misunderstanding can there be?

Adult working with children goes to the toilet while adequate staff ratio maintained.

It’s ridiculous that it warrants any further explanation.

Before getting all heavy-handed I would request a quick meeting with her first and say that due to the bowel surgery you mentioned in your interview you do have toilet needs and you hadn’t realised this would be an issue. She’ll know that you have a right to reasonable adjustments and will no doubt (hopefully) be mortified.

I know a former teacher who ended up with severe kidney damage due to not drinking enough so that she didn’t have to use the toilet very often. It’s completely unacceptable to expect anyone to not have access to a toilet when they need to use one.

It's disgusting. When working in a nursery I stopped drinking water before and during work because of the way toilet breaks were viewed.

There's a real culture around it in nursery and school settings. The "best" workers are the ones that don't go to the bathroom full stop.

I have horrendous periods and it was really, really bad. The comments and the looks if I went to the bathroom more than once on a shift.

YANBU OP and she is on shakey ground, especially with your condition...but this is definitely a wider issue throughout the industry.

Bowel or no bowel no one should be told (student or staff) they can’t go to the toilet. I’m sick of schools ruling on loo breaks!

I think I know this school! Can you give clue as to where in the uk you are please to see if am right.

You need to communicate all of your issues better without getting embarrassed by it

I cannot believe that an adult is telling another adult when they can and cannot use the toilet. When did this become ok? I'd have told her where she can poke it, but then I don't work in a school with self important SLT.

Just remind them - use the phrase ‘reasonable adjustment’ and ‘medical need’, that should be enough to make her remember she doesn’t want to go down that road… no need to fully disclose, if she insists just say you’re keen for an occupational health appointment.

Your union rep should arrange an appointment with occ health so it can be added to your work contract. They may have to evidence your GP notes. It’s horrible to have to do this but once it’s done should be easier x

While this issue may fall under "reasonable adjustment", I’m a little bemused what’s expected of healthy staff? Are they expected not to go to the toilet?!

are toilet policies even a thing or is there an expectation that toilets can be accessed at need - noting that duties may need to be handed over briefly in some situations.

@Bornnotbourne I think this is disgraceful. Even if you didn't have a medical issue being policed on going to the toilet is disgraceful. Holding it in can cause all kinds of health issues. Given your additional medical issue I think you should definitely complain via your union rep to make sure this doesn't happen again. If the kids had been left unsupervised that would obviously be an issue, but given they weren't I can't see any grounds for such a ridiculous warning.

This here

This - not everyone is going to infer from such a disclosure that it means you have medical need to go to the toilet urgently and must be able to. I'd talk to the headteacher before resorting to bringing in the union.

This is good

That rather depends on you not teaching in isolated areas and not being subject to micromanaging superiors. Some of us weren't so fortunate. And of course even with teenagers there might be an incident that would have you in trouble if you'd left them unattended.

I don’t think the interview disclosure re a career gap will necessarily equate to them understanding that you needing the toilet at certain times. You should say “I need the toilet at X time, due to my health condition. I always make sure there is cover.” There is no ambiguity then. If they still give you a hard time then bring in the union.

Do they actually KNOW that when you need to go you need to go, because of a disability?

I'd keep it low key, email your line manager with a summary of what happened, an overview of your condition and the surgery you had plus your requirements for reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act. Then copy it to your union friend.

They may just not have made that connection.

How they respond will inform what you do next.

I have worked in secondary schools all my life and I have always been able to nip to the loo. You get non contact time. The teacher next door, a TA or someone is usually able to keep an eye. Also teenagers can be left in a classroom if necessary. They aren’t toddlers. Obviously, if you are the type of teacher who never lets them go to the loo then you can’t, but I have always been more of a ‘we are getting through this together’ type of teacher.

I had this when I was a TA (secondary). Told I could only go during break, then put on break duty every day at break, lunch and after school. It was one of the reasons I left.

That is one of the worst dusability discrimination incudents I have heard. What kind of human being are they, just dreadful.

This, be quite firm. Join tge NEU if you haven't already. Keep notes (who, When, what, where).