Is it legal for a teacher to deny a child access to a toilet?

[NotTheMrMenAgain]

I have a friend whose DC, age 13, recently soiled themselves in class because the teacher repeatedly refused to allow them to go to the toilet (and were fairly dismissive about it, by the sound of it). It wasn't a small mishap - the rest of the class were dismissed and my friend called to collect DC.
Understandably, DC is mortified and horrified and my friend very upset and angry. There's been a verbal apology from the head of year to my friend, who said how upset the teacher involved was - but no apology from the teacher to the DC - the teacher had since ignored the child/incident.
AIBU to think this simply isn't good enough? My heart goes out to the poor kid, who knows what kind of mark it will leave and what sort of bullying/mockery it will set them up for.
Is it against a child's basic rights to deny them access to a toilet? It seems like cruelty to me. It this a common policy at secondary school? Apparently they aren't allowed to pop to the loo in between classes, only at break/lunch. When I was a teenager my periods were heavy and I wouldn't have made it til break without an accident!

In all the schools I've worked in, the guidance has said no leaving the class to use the toilet. In each of those schools, teachers have used their discretion, being particularly lenient at the start of year 7. Accidents really are very rare. They do happen though. A child wet himself in my lab once. He hadn't asked to go to the toilet. He was surprised and a bit distressed, although fortunately it wasn't noticeable to other children. He wrote me a note telling me, and I "kept him behind".

Reading this thread has made me wonder whether I've got undiagnosed bowel issues because I get about 10 minutes warning I need to use the loo and then I absolutely have to go. I thought this was quite normal - is it not?

I can completely see that of course teachers must use their discretion and that sometimes they will get it wrong.

However the consequences of a child soiling themselves in class are immense. I honestly feel as if I would never have got over this if it happened to me. Because of that I personally would tell my children to just walk out against the teacher's wishes if they thought that was the alternative.

What is even worse for me, is that the teacher in the OP hasn't even had the guts to say to the child "I am so sorry, I got it wrong".

No, OneFlew, it isn't. It must interfere with your life really badly. What do you do if you are in the car? Or out shopping and not near an available toilet? It must be very difficult and I'd have thought that would have alerted you to the fact that other people don't have the same problem.
Trifle'S comments are not cruel or unempathic. They are realistic. She has repeatedly said she uses discretion. In my previous school there was a 'no toilet in lessons' policy. On one occasion I did use discretion (knowing I'd be in trouble if the pupil were to be seen by senior management) and the Head returned the child to class having found them in the way to the toilet. She also gave me a row about it.
Like Trifle I have never had a child soil themselves in class (either sort) nor have I heard of it happening in colleagues classes. I have been teaching full time since 1989 in a variety of schools, so that's thousands and thousands of pupil hours.

And then I asked 'Would it be OK for me to go during a lesson if I was desperate'. Oh no they said, who would look after us

You have some really weird teens in your class mum

At our school during lessons it is at the discretion of the teacher. There is plenty of time between lessons and at lunch/break. As adults we have to wait until these times and secondary school is very much trying to prepare children for adult life
If there is any medical condition that means a child cannot wait then those children are issued with their own "toilet pass" and can go whenever they need.
I'm sorry this happened though, it must've been very humiliating

Same one flew- I now know that I can't drink coffee or eat more than two pieces of fruit without an overwhelming urge to use the toilet very soon.

I will make a Gp appointment forthwith and tell them that it doesn't actually restrict my life, but teachers on the internet said it doesn't and shouldn't happen so I need to have treatment please.

Jobs where you're not allowed to go to the toilet....fuck off goady fuckers.

unicorns it does restrict your life - you can't have coffee or fruit. Typically, people can have both without needing to rush to the loo.

The teacher definately needs to apologise to the kid, can't believe they wouldn't have done so at the time, how heartless! It doesn't make sense to have a revolving door policy for toilets as that would be abused but one kid who asks repeatedly should ofcourse be allowed out. If the teacher knows they are about to have dihorea or period flood or puke up at any second they would run to the toilet themselves, surely they are aware a kid needs to do the same on occassion. I could easily bleed through biggest tampon plus thickest pad in half an hr as a preteen/teen I often stayed off sick rather than have teachers question me in front of the class about why I needed to go to the toilet so much

Asking repeatedly doesn't tell you that the need is genuine. They may just be trying to wear you down! Children sometimes arrange to go to the toilets to meet their friends from other classes. Toilets are vandalised on a weekly basis. I had 7 12 year olds ask out in one hour last week. Where they all about to have accidents I wonder?

I suspect that an experienced teacher, like @TrifleorBust knows from firsthand experience that the likelihood of children messing around, given half a chance, is massive, whereas the chance of a child with no medical,issues soiling themselves if not allowed to go to the loo, is very small.

In a school where the children are allowed to go to the loo whenever they want, how are teachers supposed to teach a coherent lesson if the class is interrupted every two minutes children getting up to go to the loo? Does the teacher stop teaching each time a child leaves the room - and if so, how would they ever complete a lesson? Or do they carry on, and each child that goes out, misses a different bit of the lesson, and has to ask the teacher to go over it for them, when they get back?

I have had three teenagers, and known plenty of others, and I am pretty sure that, given carte blanche to go to the loo whenever they wanted, they'd have taken the opportunity to go out and piss around.

I think @Trifle's approach is best - say No to most of those who ask, but use discretion if necessary - and the fact that no child has ever soiled themselves in her class proves to me that her approach is sensible.

Teachers do make mistakes - they are only human - and I would hope that the example in the OP is a teacher who made a mistake rather than one being deliberately unkind - but even if it was a mistake, I do think the teacher in question owes the pupil an apology.

People are talking about being allowed to go to the toilet as a basic human right.

Kids I have taught are given breaks to exercise their basic human rights. Go to the loo, eat lunch, snacks, have a drink, talk to your mates, maybe even pop outside to have a breath of fresh air.

EDUCATION is also a basic human right. Don't come in my classroom immediately after lunch break and DEMAND to go to the loo, or throw a paddy and disrupt my lesson AND THE EDUCATION OF 29 OTHER STUDENTS just because you 'forgot' to go, or 'didn't need a wee 5 minutes ago but I'm desperate now' and throw your books across the classroom screaming about basic human rights!

A good teacher can tell if a student is making a genuine request for a loo break and can tell when a chancer is trying to take the mickey.

In a school where the children are allowed to go to the loo whenever they want, how are teachers supposed to teach a coherent lesson if the class is interrupted every two minutes children getting up to go to the loo? Does the teacher stop teaching each time a child leaves the room - and if so, how would they ever complete a lesson? Or do they carry on, and each child that goes out, misses a different bit of the lesson, and has to ask the teacher to go over it for them, when they get back?

At DD's primary it doesn't work like that. Once they realise they ARE allowed to leave the classroom to fill their water bottles or go to the loo and it isn't a major act of rebellion, the majority suddenly miraculously stop needing to

I wonder what it would be like if school lessons were organised in such a way that
a) students going to the loo didn't disrupt them
b) students weren't actually super keen to be anywhere but in the class

As in most cases, by the time you have to lock people in the room to keep them there, you've lost all the value of them being there in the first place.

Wow mum what an amazing but of research. I bet if I'd ever had an accident/bled through I'd be positively eager to admit it to you in front of my peers. Why don't you ask them if they've ever been sexually abused next? You could really revolutionise the statistics.

To the people saying just go to their children ... more often than not they cant because the toilets are locked during lessons/ changeovers. I remember 2 people in my High School who soiled themselves, and my best friend leaked through her sanitary pad in French. I just dont understand it. I get that kids might use it to go on a runner but frankly even prisoners are allowed to use a toilet when they need to.

I haven't found an English doe policy yet but Welsh guidance states that access to toilets should be available at all times during the school day.

I would be putting in a formal complain against the teacher for not having the ability to discern between real need and playing up

So on this occasion the teacher - a human being - got it wrong. Probably feels like shite. What is complaining going to do?

My sons school has a policy that pretty much says kids can go when ever they want if they fancy it they can even go play on the xboxes during lessons they don't even have to ask they just up and leave and key worker follows.

Surprisingly is very unusual for a kid to leave a class

Your son's school sounds pretty unusual, sock if there is a keyworker available in the class to follow kids around.

So on this occasion the teacher - a human being - got it wrong. Probably feels like shite. What is complaining going to do

Well at the very least from the OP's post she doesn't feel "shite" enough to apologise to the child in question so that would be a start...

And maybe some work on her technique of managing kids!

Or indeed his technique - I though I had read it was a female, but I was mistaken.

I appreciate that some pupils take the mickey and use it as an excuse to skive off; but refusing to allow someone (child or adult) to use a toilet is out of order.