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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To take legal action against school?

194 replies

SingleNow · 14/05/2012 14:24

My 4yr old ds has had yet another accident at nursery. This time he has taken a chunk out of his thumb, it is quite bad and although it was bleeding a fair amount could not be stitched as there was nothing to stitch together.

He had just gone back to school last Monday after 2 weeks off after falling head first onto a wood flower bed and having a bump from his hair line to the bridge of his nose.

This accident/incident with his thumb I feel is one too many in a short space of time.
It was his fault partly as he put his thumb in the metal plate on the door frame and walked as he walked the plate sliced a chunk off his thumb. My point is that there shouldn't have been anything as sharp as that near 3 and 4 yr olds and also the fact that staff all say the same thing. " we don't know what happened" now whilst I agree that they cannot watch every child due to the amount of pupils (26) there are 3 members of staff and it is always the same they never know how DS gets hurt.

So I have decided to take legal action AIBU???

OP posts:
CallMeAl · 14/05/2012 14:25

yeah good luck with that. Hmm

iwannabewizbit · 14/05/2012 14:26

Has your child never had an accident whilst with you?

manicbmc · 14/05/2012 14:27

You kept your child off for 2 weeks because they bumped their head? Hmm

manicinsomniac · 14/05/2012 14:27

Really?

You have an accident prone son.

Hardly their fault.

ImaginateMum · 14/05/2012 14:28

What are you hoping to achieve? If you think there are safety issues, then I would have thought that gonig to the governors, etc, with positive suggestions for change would be more useful.

SardineQueen · 14/05/2012 14:29

Dunno.

That thumb thing sounds like a nasty injury. He has actually lost part of the digit? Nasty.

However accidents do happen especially with little children.

I don't think I would be sueing anyone if I were you.

YourFanjoIsNotAHandbag · 14/05/2012 14:29

what are you suing them for, your child having an accident because he put his thumb in the door frame?
He is only 4, theres going to be plenty more accidents to come, are you going to continue to sue everyone?
you might want to tell your ds to be more careful where he puts his fingers??/

Original poster
SingleNow · 14/05/2012 14:30

He has had accidents with me yes as kids do I am aware of this.

My whole grumble here Is the lack of care within the nursery. When he did his head i was not informed until I collected him, there were previous accidents I have not been informed about.

It's not the fact he has had an accident it's the fact that there seems to be a lack of care and certainly lack of informing parents when children have accidents. :-/

OP posts:
Pipsqueak99 · 14/05/2012 14:30

Yes. YABU.
They sound like two "accidents" to me.

Exactly what specifically are you going take legal action for??

Olympia2012 · 14/05/2012 14:30

Legal action? What? How?

hackmum · 14/05/2012 14:31

You're unlikely to get far with legal action. Complain to the head, and if that doesn't get you anywhere, the governors, and then if they don't take the appropriate action (ie reviewing their h&S procedures) contact Ofsted.

BobbiFleckman · 14/05/2012 14:31

that will be a collosal waste of money for you, and very disruptive to your son when the school decide that you're too much trouble for them and ask that you find somewhere else to educate your son.
There's no negligence there. Little kids fall over.

Olympia2012 · 14/05/2012 14:31

What 'other' accidents? Is he your first child?

BeaWheesht · 14/05/2012 14:31

Why was he off for 2 weeks? Did he have a serious head injury?

Are they expecting his thumb to be permanently disfigured?

TheFlyingFishFinger · 14/05/2012 14:32

I don't think you will get anywhere with legal action. Why don't you just change nurseries?

BettySwollocksandaCrustyRack · 14/05/2012 14:32

Well if you feel that way you would be better off investing your time and effort into finding another nursery then!

When he bumped his head they obv thought it wasnt enough to warrant a call to you...kids bump their head all the time - if I got a call from school everytime ds has a mishap I'd be there all the time! As for his thumb.....maybe he wont put it in the door in future hey!

Voidka · 14/05/2012 14:33

He bumped his head and he was off for 2 weeks!

fuckarama · 14/05/2012 14:33

What legal action exactly are you intending to take?

SCOTCHandWRY · 14/05/2012 14:33

Kids have accidents of course, but these are very young kids, and all the equipment, gate locks, hinges should be designed or sited to make accidents less likely.
Both of these injuries should have been written up officially on an incident form. If they haven't been, they should be asap. Incidents like this should lead them to think about how to prevent the same thing happening again.

manicbmc · 14/05/2012 14:33

Um, as far as I'm aware, it is generally school/nursery policy to keep an eye on a child who has had a bump to the head and then inform parents/carers at pick up time so that they can look out for concussion symptoms.

Unless nursery had to go to hospital with him then why would they call?

I'd make the nursery aware of the problem with the door but to talk of legal action over an accident is a bit of an over-reaction.

Amykins · 14/05/2012 14:33

It is horrible when your child has an accident or are hurt in any way; however I don't really think that taking legal action will do any good. Hope you are ok.

Ithinkitsjustme · 14/05/2012 14:33

I'd be more likely to speak to the school and ask to see their risk assessments. Anyone could trip and bang their head on a raised flowerbed, but if the door hinge has a sharp edge on it then it needs to be addressed, either by replacing the hinge or using a hinge cover. I'd ony resort to legal action if you didn't get any satisfactory response from the school.

GiveTheAnarchistACigarette · 14/05/2012 14:35

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LtEveDallas · 14/05/2012 14:36

What on earth are you going to base your legal action on?

Because he had an accident? It was an accident, not an on-purpose

Because they don't watch him enough? If they are following goverment regulations then there are enough of them

Why do you want the legal action? Do you want money? Do you want somone sacked? Better safeguards?

Should he take legal action against you for the accidents when he was in your one to one care (I assume)

EdithWeston · 14/05/2012 14:40

What would your aim be in taking the action?

Is it likely DS is going to suffer loss of use of the thumb, directly or because of the nature of the expected scarring?

Or do you think legal action is the only way to improve standards at this school? It could prove a stressful and expensive way to have them fit hinge protectors.