Sports days in the heat being cancelled

[LovelyBath77]

Kind of wish ours was. It's meant to be really hot this week and it will be at 1.30pm. Poor kids.

Some really valid points here. It might be worth checking with schools for next year's event, the following :

A) have they risk assessed the day? This should be normal practice, irrespective of the heat, as its an event which is both 'compulsory' and invites non staff or pupils onto its grounds, and has an element of risk
B) with specific regard to the heat, have they then assessed what the school can do, and what they have advised visitors (ie parents etc) to do, to reasonably practicably protect from the elements (including, if reasonably practicable) shelters, water stations, spare sun hats etc
C) what their protocols are in the event of ill health as a result of the elements
D) when they will review the assessment in light of anything untoward occurring (or anyway).

These are just the BASICS of what I would expect to see from a risk assessment on such an event. And yes, both H&S and schools are my working life... Deep joy!!

HTH!!

Ps I forgot to add I'm off to DS's sports day today, armed with fold up chair, own sun hat, water and a damn good book!!

How is it snow flakey? If your child has ever suffered severe heat stroke you will realise how scary it can be. My DD has had ambulances called out due to it, even though we were only out for 15 mins, water, shade, hat and cream were used at 5pm. Every year my DD suffers. She is far from being a snowflake! And I really don't mollycoddle my girls. I am so so glad my school have postponed it.
If your child was blue lighted to hospital because the school decided they were to keep sports day on I am sure you would be not accusing your child of being precious and be actually quite concerned!

So he mostly sits and throws his bottle around or licks the grass

I'm sorry @Sophisticatedsarcasm I know you corrected yourself, but this made my morning

We all make our own entertainment!

Ours has been rescheduled and it’s not till 9 July!! It will be chucking it down by then 🤣🤣

Schools are damned if they do and damned if they don't

My Daughter had hers in the heat, they all sat in the shade, wore hats and were sun screened up. Not one of the children were poorly. I had taken time off in advance. The races lasted a matter of minutes, and there would be a break in between for different classes. Gosh, in my day (I sound like a dinosaur!), you HAD to do it. There was none of this cottonwool stuff 😄

But the point is mollysmammy there is no shade in many, many school sports' days. It's nothing to do with "cotton wool". People in countries with this heat every day aren't stupid enough to be out in it at the hottest time. It's not a competition of who can withstand the shittest temperatures.

My Daughter had hers in the heat, they all sat in the shade

How would it have gone if there was no shade for anyone?

Obviously it would be a very poor decision for a school to run sports day in temperatures around 30 degrees. A 9.30 am start makes sense. Sports day earlier in the year might be more sensible. However back to my hobby horse. MN hates sports day whatever the conditions.

Just looked at Wikipedia's definition of Sports Day...

"Sports days, sometimes referred to as field days, are events staged by many schools and offices in which people take part in competitive sporting activities, often with the aim of winning trophies or prizes. Though they are often held at the beginning of summer, they are staged in the autumn or spring seasons, especially in countries where the summer is very harsh. Schools stage many sports days in which children participate in the sporting events. It is usually held in elementary schools, or grades Kindergarten-8th Grade."

I was curious - as our US school system doesn't really do a sports day. They do a field day but it's not particularly competitive - more about having fun, playing games, painting faces, water balloons, etc.

I never realised that our bodies acclimatised to an area so dramatically, was so perplexing to read that events are being cancelled at 28 degrees.

I’m from a hot country where it’s not really considered scorching unless it’s over 38. My DC’s school had sports day in mid autumn, but it was still 27 that day, perfect weather!

But we’re used to it, so there’s sunscreen, broad brimmed hats, loose but covering clothing, bottles of water travel with children, breaks in the shade as standard. We were still hot and sweating but as I said, we’re used to it. I burn very easily so I’m always using light scarves to cover up. Kids events are normally cancelled when it’s over 37, or training moved to nights.

I feel for you all though, and if schools aren’t taking the proper precautions to protect the kids from the sun I probably wouldn’t let mine go either.

I wish posters would stop saying it's fine if you sit in the shade. Most of us are complaining there is no shade

yabu
if it's very warm our school will shorten races, add in dodge ball with water balloons etc, but not cancel.
they wouldn't be able to reschedule (shared playing fields)

Lol I know magic. Cancel the gazebo cheque OP!

My son's was cancelled yesterday, which was fine with me. He can't cope with heat and they have little shade. I am annoyed that they can't seem to reschedule it, though. Priorities!

Big drama last summer when our school held sports day on the hottest day After parents complained before hand about the lack of shade/water
Big complaints after when children had sunburn and sunstroke

This year we had sports morning

I’m a bit annoyed they didn’t cancel or change my son’s sports day. He did sports day from 9.20-3.20 excluding lunchtime this Tuesday. That’s a long time in the sun with no shade and he is very fair (ginger). Despite sun hat, water and taking sun cream with him he came home burnt and threw up that night at home.

Gosh,its not that hot! Anyone would think it was the Sahara.Kids are so molly coddled these days.I walked 4 miles to school in the snow,and the heat.Regardless.We dont have extreme here fgs.

I live in the Middle East. Sports day is in winter but still typically 25-28 degrees. We carry on regardless.

Schools which have cancelled will have risk assessed and found that they are unable to put in place sufficient control strategies to reduce the risk sufficiently.

The decision to cancel won't have been taken lightly. Who wants to spend an afternoon cooped up in a hot classroom with a class full of children who are disappointed that they are doing lessons instead of sports day?

Ours went ahead today.

The position on the field was changed so the children could sit in the shade.

Children all cane out with water bottles and went in at “half time” to refill them.

Parasols were provided for the parents to sit under if they wished

Water was provided for the parents

So all very sensibly done!

Kids are so molly coddled these days

guess who hasn’t bothered RTFT as to all the many reasons it’s a sensible idea.

Besides we had sports day postponed when I was at primary school