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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think they havnt followed procdures properly??

23 replies

guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 16:21

Ok i dont think im being unreasonable at all but i feel the need for opinions ...here goes

My 5 year old ds had an accident at school this week. An accident which was in no way his fault and will leave him with a scar on his face - not a huge one but big enough on his beautiful face :(

I went into school yesterday because i wanted to know exactly what happend. Head teacher was lovely, Explained he didnt know how it happened because no one saw ..etc etc ...however he did not have an accident book for me to see or sign? When i asked him he claimed they will "sort it" and send it off???

Is this right? Should i have been shown this? Also should i be asking to see a risk assesment on the peice of equiptment that fell on him?

Im not trying to make a huge fuss but this is the second accident thats happened to him in the short time he has been there that will scar his face.

Thank you

OP posts:
depob · 18/11/2011 16:37

YANBU. A school with no accident book??? Something seriously wrong with their H&S policies and procedures.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 16:39

When i asked about the accident book because i know i should have to sign something he said i didnt need to see/do anything with it he would send it in or whatever they do. I just wonder if it hadnt been filled in ..not one teacher saw what happened apparently ..yet two children told me the exact same story on different occasions....now i want to go back in and say something about risk assesments and the accident book but i hate making a fuss :/

OP posts:
PomBearAtTheGatesOfDoom · 18/11/2011 16:39

We get a "blue slip" for an injury in school, and particularly for a head injury, with what happened, when, and what if any treatment was given. That's for minor things of course, for anything serious then we would be called at the time.
My kids have had five of the bloody things in the past fortnight, between three of them Confused

ginmakesitallok · 18/11/2011 16:41

why would YOU have to sign the accident book ? Confused

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 16:43

Gin -to acknowledge the accident ..to be provided with written information about the incident perhaps?? ...I got called to meet them at the hospital before taking him to see the plastic surgery people at the bigger hospital.

OP posts:
curlycreations · 18/11/2011 16:48

i work in a hospital and we dont have accident books anymore its all done online -relatives though we are honest and open about the accident -if they wanted to see the report i think they would have to request in the same way as you have to request to see your own medical records-

Flisspaps · 18/11/2011 16:56

First Aid was one of my 'areas' in the secondary school I worked in (the rules about what is necessary won't be different in a primary)

Because your son has gone to hospital, then the HT will actually be referring to forms the school has to send off to the Health and Safety Executive which are far more detailed than a general accident book, and will have to be stored by the school anyway - it might be that the incident has gone straight onto the HSE form rather than duplicating the information on the form and in the general accident book.

If the HT is not the school first aider, it may be that the form has already been completed and sent off and he didn't realise it - I used to fill ours out online and send it straight in, HT didn't see it before it went off. He only ever asked about them if the parent raised a query about it months down the line (usually when they'd been in touch with a solicitor re compensation)

We never, ever asked parents to sign the accident book, nor did any of them ever ask to see it. As a CM though, it's considered best practice to ask parents to sign the accident book and to give them a copy of the information.

Hope your DS is OK, I'd check again on Monday and ask for a copy of the HSE form - if they have filled this out online then they can access a copy of it and print it out there and then, otherwise they should have stored a paper copy and again, should be able to provide you with that.

Wellthen · 18/11/2011 16:57

I think with the accident book you're jumping to conclusions - the school may not have a policy to say you sign it (I've only ever been in schools where the person who saw/reported signed).

Risk assessments - if you want to know, ask. They may think it strange but it doesn't take long to dig out a policy so I dont think you get the 'fussy parent' reaction.

If this accident happened because of neglect of any type then of course it needs to be followed up and its upsetting that its on his face poor lad. But please remember accidents do happen and not always through any fault. I taught a girl who slipped in the classroom one morning (perhaps walking at little faster than she should have been) and banged her head on the corner of the table which cause a deep cut the width of a pound coin. There are tables in every class room in the world surely, this could happen to any child! Upsettting, but no ones fault. And no the corners weren't sharp.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 17:04

Thanks for replies

Of course accidents happen and sometimes through no fault of anyones . I cant go into any more details about what happened because it is too much info for her but i didnt realise that if it was a hospital job then the parent doesnt need to sign anything so thank you for that info.

I just dont want him to have another scar thats all.

Thanks again

OP posts:
Memoo · 18/11/2011 17:16

We never had an accident book as such at our school just a form to fill in that got sent off. Certainly didnt have to get parents to sign anything.

halcyondays · 18/11/2011 17:24

Surely they must have some idea what happened? They must have some idea of where he was and what he was doing at the time.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 18:28

Oh well yes they know that something fell onto him ..but no one knows how it fell as it was a big thing or why it fell....

OP posts:
clam · 18/11/2011 18:37

Sorry but it sounds to me as if they're covering their arses and fobbing you off.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 18:50

This is what im afraid of clam ...being overly nice and keeping me sweet but in the dark and my poor boy is going to live with a scar forever. :(

OP posts:
NatashaBee · 18/11/2011 19:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

clam · 18/11/2011 19:26

Well, the damage is done, so far as his injury is concerned. Not much the school can do about that, but they can and should take all steps to prevent such a thing happening to anyone else.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 19:52

Yes thanks natasha i have got some stuff that should help once the stitches are off........Clam thats all i want ,but i need to see it happening ..without being a pain in their ass....

Thanks again for all advice

OP posts:
halcyondays · 18/11/2011 20:10

I know you don't want to go into details but do you think it was an avoidable accident that couldn't have been anticipated or have the school been negligent in leaving something lying around which fell on him? Perhaps they are being cagey because they know it shouldn't have happened and if they admit this in you might try to sue the school.

WaftyCrank · 18/11/2011 20:20

DS is 4 and started school in September. He's had 18 accident letters home already! He's so clumsy but they are just grazes, bumped heads etc.

I think I'd feel the same as you in your situation, they do sound like they were maybe trying to hide something.

I hope your DS is ok.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 20:32

Well i think they have just been a bit complacent ...no one has made anything deliberatly hurt him but there was too many children in a small space around an object that then fell on him as a result ...ive more or less said what i know happened ...but this has been told to me by children not adults ...albeit two seperate children at seperate times so im inclined to believe them

Wafty 18 :o gee whizz ....my ds's classroom is a health and safety nightmare!!

OP posts:
Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 20:33

oops the wrong smiley then Shock was meant to be not :o

OP posts:
marriedinwhite · 18/11/2011 20:34

Oh dear, I'm sorry your son had an accident and might have a scar on his face. Hopefully it will fade in time but if it doesn't it will become part of his innate being. Accidents can only be prevented if you wrap the children in cotton wool and that is no way to teach them how to avoid really dangerous things later on.

My DS broke his arm twice falling off a climbing frame - once in my care, once in DH's. He broke his ankle at school - and they didn't realise - they went into panic mode when I told them and I had to go in and calm the situation down and bought the dinner ladies presents because I knew they felt rotten that he was more hurt than anyone thought. I think it's really important that children take risks and I needed them on side to look after the ds whilst he was on crutches. My dd ended up in a wheelchair for 12 weeks because she fell of her bicycle on my mother's drive.

Both the dc have cut their foreheads open when I have been in charge - the scars have faded! God this makes us seem accident prone. DH once kicked a ball at a dead tree and a wasps nest swarmed and ds (aged 2-3/4 got five stings). They didn't stop playing football and we realised DH was prone to anaphylactic shock. He still remembers the orange lolly I bought him to take his mind off it.

OP - please don't over stress about this, dc have accidents, dc mend, the people in charge of them will be feeling foul and an accident book can't have prevented the accident. We are all human beings and we all make mistakes or take our eyes off the ball for a few seconds - your ds is walking, talking, seeing and hearing. He is a little bit more experienced about cause and effect.

My ds is 16 now - he has a black eye, a massive bruise on his upper arm, the skin off his shins, and gouges down his back. In fact a bloody mess! He loves rugby! I can't watch but his teeth are insured! I don't think any of it goes in an accident book.

It's a terrible shock to see them hurt and marked. Our DS2 died in my arms shortly after he was born. I would have given anything for him to grow up to get a few battle scars to evidence he had lived a little.

I'm the first critique of teachers generally but they don't go to work to ensure our dc are injured and probably they feel as bad as you do about your ds's accident. He'll be fine, you'll be fine. Don't sour the relationship with those who might be important to him for the next seven years over an accident book.

Original poster
guzzlepuzzle · 18/11/2011 20:54

Thank you married in white and sorry for the loss of your ds2-

those words are true.

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