To report DC school for rats?

[LurpakIstheOnlyButter]

DC go to local primary. The school itself is fantastic, really happy with quality of teaching etc, OFSTEAD rating is good. The children also go to the after school club on the premises, also fantastic.

However......today as I collected from after school club as we opened the door to leave, a HUGE rat ran across from directly next to the door and into the kids playground. When I say huge, it was almost a foot long. This thing was the Range Rover of rats.

I calmly went back in and mentioned it to staff, who were not at all surprised. The caretaker was also present and said that they lived near the bins which had recently had lids put on. Before, they would run out of the bins when he was putting rubbish in. Now they have no food they are all over the school grounds.

DD11 remarked that in English they were watching rats run on the grass banking on the edge of the playground. DD6 started to panic, not helped by caretaker when she asked if the rat was in the little playground bin - he stuck his arm in the bin and started to scream. She made me carry her to the car and got upset at bedtime asking if rats would eat her shoes!

I am not one for being precious. I know rats are everywhere. But I can't believe that no one bats an eye about truck sized rats running around a primary school.

I think there are definitely health implications here, this is not acceptable and something should be done. I plan to speak to the head but AIBU to report school to environmental health/council?

LadyDeadpool

You do know they'd eat your babies?

And I just Googled that to check. So it must be true.

Poor little rats are just cleaning up after the kids and popping out in the vague hope someone will say thank you and instead they get all this hate. How can you look at those cute little noses and be cross? I have naned the ones that live in our communal bins and I'm pretty sure weils comes from ingesting water the rats have weed in, so just tell your DC not to drink from puddles/lick the floor and they'll be fine.

Sensibly though, I know most people aren't weird about rats like I am. they can't put poison down while the kids are at school and traps on their own are not all that effective if you have giant super rats, plus traps can't be left while school is open and by the sounds of it these rats are foraging during the day. Normal traps would really hurt curious little fingers that poked it and humane traps sadly don't work as the rats come back. Mention it to the head, then if there are still rats after Easter report it.

They might be out in the day but they don't sleep all night. Set the traps at night and empty them in the morning. Put them away in the day.

This brand is great.

I'm a teacher. Our school has rats/mice - I've seen both outside under the porta-cabins and mice inside. I go mental if I catch any students eating anywhere near my classroom but it doesn't stop them, and of course dropped food, an old building... The caretakers trap them and bait with poison most holidays.

they can't put poison down while the kids are at school and traps on their own are not all that effective if you have giant super rats

Yes they can. The poison is contained in boxes, like the one in the photo. All the kids need to know is if they see a dead rat, tell a member of staff and don't touch it.

We are dealing with mice in our house at the moment. Found two in the same trap this morning - one was croaked, the other one was caught under him......I am still shuddering. On my 3rd black coffee!!!!

And yes OP, I would report that.

We have those black box traps at our school but there are still rats occasionally. It's the squirrels that are the main problem, raiding bins and making a mess everywhere

I'd let them know but they're probably already aware?
In my secondary school we used to see rats running about, we also had rat traps (like the bait station pictured above) everywhere.
I don't see them as anymore of a nuisance than foxes, squirrels and seagulls.

Can it?!

Update.

I rang the school this morning and asked to speak to the head. Head was out so spoke instead to deputy. (But I did not shoot the deputy )

Apparently pest control are involved.....to what extent I am unsure, but deputy says she thinks it's just a "Lone Ranger".

AFAIK rats do not live in packs of one. Not best impressed, but we will see what happens I guess.

Rats are incredibly intelligent - if they see something new like a poison trap, they will send in a "nominated" low status individual to test it and watch what happens.

The only way to get rid of them really is to block up any holes with wire wool and remove their food sources so they decide to go somewhere better.

If they've put lids on the bins recently, the rats are probably running around looking for new food sources. They were almost certainly always there - they're just out more obviously because they're hungry at the moment.

I usually use the lockable black bait boxes for my sites, as they are specifically designed to be safe for the general public.

I would suspect that if all food sources are removed over the Easter holidays then the population will drop dramatically as they die/move on to better pickings.

Oh, and I understand from some of my pest control contractors that there is an increasing amount of resistance to a lot of the poisons being used, which is making rat control even harder.

I'll lend you my 2 cats. They are excellent rat catchers and they have experience of catching them from the school next door to our house.

For me it's the fact they breed like mad, the kinky little Devils. Just had to deal with a very tedious gas man, so now wondering how rats get it on. Do you think they go for doggy style?

Report them, but I doubt anything will happen. Our council don't give 2 craps when you report rats.

One of our cats loves to catch rats. She brings them in, let's them go and leaves my H to catch them!!

You should try working on a university campus. They are everywhere! They congregate anywhere there's people and food. Provided they're not indoors I wouldn't be too concerned.