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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU re cycle helmet use in children cycling to school

154 replies

cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 11:23

AIBU to think if secondary schools are able to enforce an exact length of regulation school skirt, the length of ties and inspect the contents of pencil cases they should be able to enforce the bringing of a cycle helmet when parking a bike on school premises?

Not one child wears a cycle helmet at our secondary school. Apparently it is totally uncool and children are bullied if seen with one. Even cycling with one hanging their handle bars is now unacceptable and is never seen.

I believe schools have a responsibility to enforce the bringing of a helmet as some of these children are only 11 years old and it is totally unacceptable that they are too scared of the older children to protect themselves.

OP posts:
beingsunny · 09/10/2018 11:28

No advice, I'm in Australia where it's illegal for any adult or child not to wear a helmet. All the kids who ride to school wear one. It's normal here.

I doubt a school could enforce this though

Darkstar4855 · 09/10/2018 11:34

YANBU - when I cycled to school helmets were compulsory AND we had to pass our cycling proficiency test (organised by the school) before we were allowed to do it.

Darkstar4855 · 09/10/2018 11:35

Although I do think parents also have a role to play in enforcing this - I know you can’t be watching them all the time but if they’re not even arriving with a helmet slung on the handlebars then surely parents know they’re not taking it with them?

We knew growing up that if we were seen on our bikes without a helmet the bikes would be taken away, end of.

Original poster
cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 11:39

Being sunny - why do you think they cant enforce bringing a helmet? They cant enforce you wearing it enroute to school as they would not know but they can surely ensure you have a helmet with you if you park on the school premises ie when you go and in out of the school gates? Staff are observing and marking a card if they do not have correct coats, bags, shoes, ties, skirt lengths etc as they go in and out so why not check for helmets too.

OP posts:
Mistigri · 09/10/2018 11:39

How can schools enforce this though?

I'm not even sure that making it a legal requirement for children would be helpful. (It would most likely be ignored, unenforced, and would reduce bike use).

My 15 year old cycles to school and it's a constant battle to make sure he leaves the house with helmet and bike lights.

TeenTimesTwo · 09/10/2018 11:41

Our school now has cycle permits & to be allowed to bring your bike onto the school site you have to have a helmet. No helmet - permit removed.

Mistigri · 09/10/2018 11:41

And my DS usually parks his bike offsite anyway because there are not enough bike racks. No one at his school knows or cares how he gets to school, it's not their responsibility.

Original poster
cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 11:52

Darkstar - I think the helmet would be in their rucksacks as some of these parents would not let their 11/12 year olds go without one.

OP posts:
MeredithGrey1 · 09/10/2018 11:52

If staff are standing at the gates already checking ties, skirts etc then yes, I do think they should check for helmets. Much more important than a slightly short tie. If they don’t already stand at the gates (my school never did) then it would be harder to enforce.

MadMum101 · 09/10/2018 11:53

We even have this at primary school level. DS (8) now refuses to ride to school as he has to wear a helmet and they're for babiesHmm. Lots of other DC his age and younger aren't wearing them. Bloody stupid parents Angry. It's a parental responsibility not the schools. Agree it should be criminalised with an on the spot fine.

UserName31456789 · 09/10/2018 11:55

YANBU if it was compulsory the uncoolness wouldn't be an issue. I'd much rather they worried about this than the length of skirts or a tiny splash of colour on the school shoes!

Original poster
cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 11:56

Teentimes - what else does school require parents/children do to get a permit?

OP posts:
Hillarious · 09/10/2018 11:59

It would help if more adults set a good example by wearing helmets too when cycling.

There are probably around 300 kids arriving on bikes at our local secondary. Difficult to check them all once they're on the premises.

Sethis · 09/10/2018 12:04

Why is this the responsibility of the school?

Who teaches their child to ride?
Who buys the bike?
Who is responsible for maintaining the bike, once bought?
Who makes the decision on how their child is going to travel from the house to the school?
Who teaches their child about roads, safety when moving about in towns, and has the most vested interest in their child staying alive?

Blaming the school for a child not wearing a helmet is equivalent to blaming my workplace for not using my seatbelt in the car.

If your kid doesn't use a helmet, and that bothers you, don't let them ride a bike. Simple.

Coloursthatweremyjoy · 09/10/2018 12:07

This is a real shame. Around here it's rare to see children without a helmet. We live near a huge skate park though (you cant ride anything there without a helmet if you are under 18 and older riders wear them anyway). All the BMX riders wear them...nobody's calling them uncool. You see some great helmets actually.

I do think school could take a lead on this.

Satsumaeater · 09/10/2018 12:16

What is the evidence that riding a helmet makes cycling safer?

I am aware of the opposite - ie car drivers take more care around cyclists without helmets than they do around those with.

I can totally understand wearing a helmet for mountain biking. If your head connects with a tree it is not going to be pretty.

But if I fall off my bike I will do as much damage to my head as I would if I fell over walking, and I don't have to wear one walking. In fact the only time I have hit my head was slipping on ice, walking.

Drivers need to stop treating cyclists as if they don't belong on the road. That is the problem here, not kids not wearing arguably useless helmets.

Original poster
cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 12:23

I am saying that the school should take some responsibility because it is older kids making the younger ones scared to wear their helmets therefore it is something school should be involved in. I don't have a child at the school and would always insist my child wears a helmet. However if I did have a child there who was being bullied and hiding her helmet in her school bag I would see that as something school should support me to deal with as she had left home with her helmet. School manage to check each child walking through the gate has school appropriate coat and shoes on so why not a helmet too as they cycle past the member of staff on the gate. Incredible that so many people don't think this type of extreme peer pressure is an issue school should not tackle when it affects the lives of the youngest in the school.

OP posts:
RedSkyLastNight · 09/10/2018 12:26

My DS wears a helmet until he's reached the end of our road.
So he'd "pass" your test.
Doesn't make him any safer though.

It feels like you are focussing on the wrong thing - it should be illegal not to wear a helmet, then things would start changing.

Sethis · 09/10/2018 12:30

it is older kids making the younger ones scared to wear their helmets

If it's a bullying issue then treat it as a bullying issue. Schools have a responsibility to prevent bullying. However you're not going to fix bullying by mandating that all children with bikes wear helmets. It'll just reduce the numbers of children cycling.

Your child doesn't even go to the school, so I'm at a loss as to why this matters to you enough to start a thread about it, to say nothing of how much accurate and true information you have regarding the policies and strategies of a school your child doesn't attend, beyond what you get in gossip from other parents who do have kids there. If the school has a problem, they'll take action to fix it.

TeenTimesTwo · 09/10/2018 12:42

cycle I can't exactly remember as the rules are in her planner but it is something like:

  • have a cycle helmet
  • have a lock
  • no cycling on school site, and walk bike to sheds via designated path
  • lights if using in winter
We had to sign, and DD, and then someone at school.

Our rule has always been no helmet = no bike, even on grass. Especially important due to the coordination skills of our DDs!

Original poster
cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 12:46

My child is about to start there and would need to cycle there so it matters hugely to me if they are going to be bullied for wearing a helmet!!! I have spent a considerable amount of time checking the policies, watched all the children arrive at school and spoken to staff, parents and children who we know who attend the school as it is a deciding factor on the school.

OP posts:
Original poster
cyclehelmetuse · 09/10/2018 12:58

RedSky - I would change the law if I could!! Sorry you cant enforce your child wearing it. I have rules that enforce it so if anyone sees them out not wearing the helmet they know they will tell me. I have also been known to drive past on occasion and check. There would be serious consequences if they removed it at the end of the road.

OP posts:
theconstantinoplegardener · 09/10/2018 12:59

I agree with you, OP. It's up to parents to provide helmets and encourage their use, but support from the school would help to reinforce it. I think Teen's school has the right idea, although obviously it requires a member of staff to be observing the children as they arrive.

Satsuma, if you fall off your bike as a result of a collision with a vehicle, or when cycling at speed, your head is likely to hit the ground with more force than if you were simply walking.

I don't understand all these people who wonder why the OP cares about this issue when she doesn't have a child at the school. We are talking about children, with immature brains and poor risk perception. They are vulnerable. Surely it is part of being a human to feel concern for them?

DeadZed · 09/10/2018 13:00

Honestly OP, you need to focus on how he school deals with bullying rather than the wearing of helmets.
You are unliyto be able to make the school change its policy in cycle helmets but the school should have an active anti bullying policy.

DeadZed · 09/10/2018 13:01

unlikely to