To think these teachers should be sacked?

[JosephineCD]

www.telegraph.co.uk/education/primaryeducation/9359632/Teachers-tell-pupils-not-to-offer-seats-to-disabled-passengers-for-safety-reasons.html

Teachers ordered children not to stand up on a train in order to give their seats to a disabled lady and an elderly war veteran. Is it any wonder that kids are leaving school completely fucked up when they have teachers like this? They need to be sacked. There's no excuse for this.

what a completely hyperbolic, reactionary and- may I speak freely - twattish post.

rubbish.

Oh, and this subject came up a few months' ago in AIBU, and someone claimed that a teacher could face disciplinary action for allowing an adult stranger to sit next to a child, in place of a classmate.

No, as already explained, a child standing due to lack of seats, is DIFFERENT from a child sitting 'safely' & then ordered from seat by teacher to accommodate imaginary septuagenarian war vet, assuming both are catapulted down carriage by sudden braking.

The 'lack of seats' victim is unfortunate, the 'turfed out of seat by teacher in charge' victim can righteously sue the arse off the school & get the teacher disciplined.

It is a bit daft. But the teachers aren't the ones to blame here.

& the ultimate consequence of this sort of bollocks = fewer trips. No teacher has to organise one; we do it because they're educational & fun, if hard work.

that was re: Edith Weston on block bookings

Can I also point out THE TEACHER DIDN'T KNOW!!!

The teacher knew both passengers were older people - if the teacher has eyes. Why the hell should someone have to give their medical history to a complete stranger in order to get a seat?

What would the teacher do if there were not enough seats free for all the children?

Certainly on London public transport the carriages are clearly labelled as reserved for a school party so it may be the disabled person got on to that carriage by mstake- but the teacher's job and livlihood are on the line if a pupil falls and a parent sues.Often disabled people may not seem to be disabled so it is very difficult to know- if they had booked the carriage in advance which is normal practice it may have not occurred to them.
Let's be honest people on london transport are not remown for being chivalrous giving up their seats for anyone so I doubt this one instance would' teach' the kids a bad lesson- they learn that easy enough from their parents- many of them.

It has been pointed out earlier,sashh, that a child who can't get a seat is covered by the risk assessment (reasonable precautions) but a child TOLD to stand isn't (deliberate placing of child in potential harm).
It is health and safety, you HAVE to do the risk assessment first and you have to stick to it.

If my DS had been on there, he would have got a row for not offering his seat from me, and he knows it!

Either way, the child is standing, and the risk is the same. And the teacher's responsibility exactly the same as deciding say between two children squabbling for the last seat.

Probably better never to take children without guaranteed seat reservations, or by invariably using coaches.

Pity. But if teachers cannot take resomsibility for which children stand, then none can.

I would have thought the risk of injury would be greater for an elderly person that a child. It is tricky to take so many kids on public transport all at once. I was once at a bus stop behind 50+ kids after a concert at the Royal Albert Hall. This was about 4.30 on a weekday and thgere were several schools all trying to get home at thge same time.

OP- you need to learn the difference between political correctness and health and safety. Perhaps a teacher could help you. Stewart Lee would have a field day on this thread.

If my child broke thier arm because they stood up to offer thier seat to an elderly person, I would not sue the teachers.

An older person braking a bone can be devestating to thier lives, in some cases, a broken bone or nasty fall can be the begining of the end.

If my healthy robust little child took a fall for a frail old person I wouldnt be HAPPY about it - but I wouldnt rail agaisnt anyone for it.

Yes but the actual newspaper story is a load of unverified bollocks.

If my child broke thier arm because they stood up to offer thier seat to an elderly person, I would not sue the teachers.

Well done.
Unfortunately, a prohibitive number of parents would. Which is the issue.

I would have thought the risk of injury would be greater for an elderly person that a child.

Do you think that would stand up in a courtroom?
"This teacher chose to risk my child's safety in order to aid that of a third party. Fair enough."
I don't think that the world works like that.

Making a child stand up on a train is not an unreasonable risk to safety IMO.

The thing is Josephine that falling over isn't the only risk to a child on a busy tube train. Teachers have to consider a wide range of risks when planning trips not just the risk of a child falling over and hurting themselves.

Making a child stand up on a train is not an unreasonable risk to safety IMO.

Perhaps not, but it is an unnecessary one, if seats are available. And, as has been stated repeatedly, making them stand up again after seating them is an action that directly increases their risk of harm.

How do we know the child who was asked to give up his seat wasn't himself in some way disabled?!

It's unfortunate that this lady wasn't able to sit down, but as others have said, I'm sure there would've been other non-child passengers who could've more readily offered a seat.

The teachers shouldn't be sacked, it's not usually a term of employment that you must arrange seats to be vacated for elderly or disabled users of public transport.

What would these teachers have done if there weren't enough seats and some DC had to stand?

"What would these teachers have done if there weren't enough seats and some DC had to stand?"

exactly we just dont know very much at all from this article though do we.

how do we know the school had not booked out the whole carriage or that they did not have assistance from a tube worker to ensure a whole carriage was made availible to them.

posted too soon. that has already been answered, from a risk assesment point of view anyway, by several posters on this thread.

I've had public transport journeys while pg, with young DC and with people with physical disabilities.

I know many fellow passengers are not as always as considerate as one would hope to find.

I have also experiences on such journey perfect able bodied late 50-60 year olds who ignore other passengers who can move much easier and in some cases empty seats to insist that family member with mobility issue - including a bloody cast so not invisible -move to less appropriate seats or stand, or young DC must stand even when I or another adult has given up our seat and mutter whole journey even when they have been given a seat. When I was pg I ended up playing musical chairs as such a woman insisted I give my seat up - ignoring another adult offering so I did and then sat in other adults seat. They are often incapable of saying thank you either.

It's not common but I had it more than once and I know friends who use public transport have as well. Its like they have a sense of entitlement and or are looking for a fight.

Reading the article it not clear which situation it was.

When I get to a certain age, if I become a woman capable of caring enough about a bloke eating a banana to put this crap in my local paper, please just shoot me.