Who is BU - School or DH

[Ownerofmultiplechimps]

Ds school have said must bring own drinks every day & cannot use cups/taps etc due to Covid restrictions. I forgot to put ds drink in his bag so he’s gone 8hrs without a drink (is fine, had a drink before & as soon as home). Ds did ask but teachers said no as above.

DH is furious, thinks they should not have said no or at least called me/us to drop off his water in a socially distant manner (bottle was in the fridge & I’ve been WFH in office all day so didn’t notice).

School response was just quoting instructions.

I think as a one off, my fault & no harm done just leave it but DH disagrees.

[Fuebomba0]

@AhNowTed

Yet another school bashing thread.

Agreed, schools have more important things to deal with rn

[ComeOnBabyPopMyBubble]

@Ownerofmultiplechimps have you talked to the school yourself? Given your DH was "furious" I wonder 1.how he talked to the school and 2.how much of what he said went in.


If it were me , I'd do drop off tomorrow, apologise for forgetting and ask if it will happen again to please give you a call and go from there.

[WorraLiberty]

@Davincitoad

He won’t die. So much anger once again at schools. Teachers just passing on what they have been told.

No-one has mentioned death you drama llama!

And the teacher's not to blame. The OP is asking if the school is being unreasonable.

And for the sake of a few disposable cups, they obviously are.

[MynephewR]

I agree with your DH. I'd be really angry if that happened to one of my DC's. Fair enough it was your fault for forgetting but letting a 7yo go a full day at school without so much as a sip of water is awful on the teacher's part.

[Hercwasonaroll]

Definitely have a quick word with the school. It's not OK for him to not drink all day at 7.

[ComeOnBabyPopMyBubble]

They failed in their duty of care.

What about the two parents that forgot to pack the drink, didn't realise all day or notice the water bottle in the fridge?

[SunbathingDragon]

I think your DH’s anger is because he got it wrong and he meant your child went without water for so long.

I agree that the schools have got more than enough to do but think they should have phoned.

[SeasonFinale]

I am with DH

[Passmethecrisps]

Does this not depend on how much of an issue the staff were led to believe it was?

If the conversation went like this

Child “oh dear! I have forgotten my bottle. Could I have a cup please?”
Teacher “oh sorry. We can’t give you any cups because of Covid. Will you be ok?”
Child “I’ll be fine, thank you.”

I can see my 7 year old brushing this off completely and insisting that it was no hassle. She would probably also go and Leo some water out of her hands from the sink sensible or otherwise.

It would be great if the staff had tried a bit harder to support but in a busy day, if he genuinely suggested he was ok, they will have moved on. A call home would be great but I can imagine MANY parents still expecting the school to fix what was their issue.

This is a good point though - an empty bottle in the school bag all the time from now on for me!

[wildthingsinthenight]

School being very unreasonable not to call you.

[Ownerofmultiplechimps]

@ComeOnBabyPopMyBubble he’s in the keyworker childcare provision so 8-4.

Thing is if he’d forgotten lunch they would have asked me to drop something off so could have called (am down the road so would have been there in minutes)

[LovelyIssues]

To be fair to hour DH I wouldn't be furious but disappointed. It's too long to go without a drink. I would have totally expected a phone call and would have dropped a drink off

[VashtaNerada]

As a teacher I’ve been asking a TA to get a glass of water for anyone who forgets their bottle. That said, I’ve had moments where there’s no TA and I’ve intended to ask someone to go later and then I’ve forgotten and the child has reminded me. It could be more along those lines. I can’t imagine they’re genuinely not allowed to get a cup of water and then wash it in warm soapy water afterwards.

[crazychemist]

Did he tell them? I think I’d expect a 7 year old to tell a teacher he didn’t have any water and ask for help. I wouldn’t expect them necessarily to check each child. So did he say something, or did it just get missed?

[Couchbettato]

Isn't water a human right?

[Hippocampe]

I'm with your dh. They basically punished your son for your "mistake". (A simple one that all of us have/will do once in a while) I do understand the importance of every child remembering their specific equipment for the day, but in this one instance they could, and should have found an alternative solution for your son. Even if it meant calling home and getting you to bring his drink to the school. Better than him being thirsty all day, and actually giving you chance to rectify the situation you were unaware off. I equally would have been absolutely furious if this were my child. Mistakes happen, and to not even call you to let you know he didn't have his drink, and to give you the opportunity to ensure your child has a drink, is inexcusable imo.

[MaconVillagesisgoodchardonnay]

I actually think it's outrageous they denied him water for a full school day and I'm genuinely incredulous anyone on this thread is defending the school.

I'm with your DH - what a shower of shit.

[IndecentFeminist]

I'm very surprised, we have kids forgetting bottles regularly and we give them a beaker with their name on for the day. It's not hard!

Poor boy. You're both right tbh.

[guineapig1]

I’d be furious too - both with myself for forgetting the water and with the school for refusing water and not either providing a plastic cup or calling me. The no tap covid restriction is pure madness. How do they wash their hands?! Common sense seems to have gone out of the window!

[rc22]

@OoohTheStatsDontLie The issue with that (because I've been there) is that as soon as parents and kids realise disposable cups are available, more and more water bottles begin to be forgotten!!

I agree with others, a phonecall home to see if a drink could be brought in would have been a good idea.

[Ownerofmultiplechimps]

@ComeOnBabyPopMyBubble dh sent an email as ds didn’t mention it till in the car when he asked how his day was. IMO he wasn’t particularly angry in his tone & I wonder if it’s the response that’s made him worse.

Also for clarity, dh isn’t at fault, I am and fully accept its my fault. Dh leaves for work at 5 so lunches/drop offs are all me. I start work as soon as home & genuinely didn’t notice the bottle.

[bananaskinsnomnom]

That seems to be a slight overkill of the rules in my opinion - I work in a school, likewise all children have to provide their own drinks and lunch and snacks.

But first off, of course they can fill there bottle up if they want from the drinking tap!
And second, when one of mine lost their bottle somewhere and was thirsty, I found them a cup from the staff room which had been through the dishwasher and let them use it, and put it back through the dish washer after. I was then given some disposable cups (all of us were) just in case.

It seems just a stretch too far to me. Maybe I broke the rules. Hopefully not

[CeibaTree]

I would be pretty pissed off, especially as you say they would have called if he'd forgotten lunch - so it's not like calling you would have been an extraordinary thing to do. Not sure where you are OP, but it was a pretty hot day today where I am. If I'd gone without water for that long I'd have a dehydration headache for sure.

[Ownerofmultiplechimps]

@crazychemist he did ask & was told no by a TA & a couple of teachers