to want to ban scooters, trikes & heelies from school playground at start and end of the day ?

[clumsymum]

Look, I know lots of you will think I'm an old curmudgeon, but I feel like I take my life in my hands every day at pick-up time (DS runs from car into school alone in the morning).

Getting thru' the gate, and along the pathways into the small pick-up courtyard is a nightmare, with pre-schoolers careering about on scooters and tricycles, and the occasional kid tottering about on rollerblades or heelies, esp as there are also so many pushchairs about.

You hear the ocasional "be CAREFUL Callum", but most of the mums are so busy chatting they just ignore their likkle darlings belting me in the back of the ankles.

I have been run into more times than I can say, how I haven't actually fallen over is only due to a miracle. It's only a matter of time before one of the littlies gets hurt.

I am seriously thinking of raising this matter at my next governors meeting. Will I be stoned?

no i agree with you. i can't stand that noise as they come up behind you on them. and i always block their way. (evil)

Our Head Mistress doesn't allow scooters in the playground at all and I think she is right to do so.

they are all banned at ours a already

yanbu

YANBU. Banned at ours too. I think there were too many near misses and one or two that didn't miss.

good to hear that some schools have actually done this.

I felt like I was just being an old misery.

How woulod you propose this, in my shoes?

I'm afraid you may have to resort to the sub-machine gun in the handbag solution. It does get messy but it tends to do the trick.

Your head should be your first port of call. Or the school secretary.

would you ban bikes aswell? bikes with stabilisers?

going against the grain, I think YABU. Not everyone has a car to do the school run, scooters/trikers are probably the best way to mollify younger siblings on the school run. (

These were banned at my ds's school in the UK. It was especially hard for a few of us who had leg and foot injuries and were not all that stable, one knock from a scooter and we'd lose our balance. Our ankles were shredded. So the Head Teacher banned them and it was great. TotalChaos, people did use them for the school run but once they reached the school gate they would leave them there or their mums would carry them after that.

Exactly, Anorak, if you need to let your tiny scoot or tricycle to school, then I understand it, but not to let them zoom about around everyone in the playground, esp when all the kids come out of scxhool. It's mayhem.

And yes, chasingsquirrels, I would, cos it's easy to trip over those damned stabilisers, even when the bike is stationary.

Incidentally, I would worry about some of the littlies scooting/triking along the pavement at the side of the road on the school run.

God, yes, let's ban them - don't want children having fun and using energy after several hours cooped up in a classroom.

I think the clue is in the word playground.

There are planty of ways they can have fun and use energy without injuring people, lalalonglegs. Parents and teachers are responsible for safety. There is nothing wrong with applying reason and common sense to how and when the children used up energy and have fun.

There is a differnce in using bikes , scooters etc to get to school and then Not using them on school grounds.

Our school does not allow scooters and cytles etc to be used until they are out of school all for the reason that Op states.

Heelies are banned anyway and I would have thought that most school ahve banned them aswell .

Agree with Op to an extent but do say that cycling ,walking or scootering to school is the bettr option than car

i meant to pose 2 separate qu's

• ban bikes
• ban bikes with stabiliers

I agree with captain underpants, I had not got the point as being in the actual playground. But don't you say anything to all these kids who bash into you?

They are all banned at our school, much to the relief of my ankles. The kids still use them to get to school but parents take control at the gate.

No one has suggested they shouldn't be used on the way to and from school.

Only in the playground because it's too congested.

YANBU. If the pupils aren't allowed them it isn't unreasonable to ban pre-school siblings from using them as well. I can't count the number of times I've had to grind to a sudden stop whilst a tiny child tries to break the landspeed record on a trike . We have semi-organised games and skipping in the playground in the mornings to burn off some pre-class energy.

I see the point you are all (mostly) making but still about it. My kids love their scooters and so far we are lucky enough not to have them banned at school. The odd reminder has gone round to be careful/supervise with the point being made that they would otherwise reluctantly have to impose a ban. So far, so good.

I try to get my children to avoid riding them on what I call the "walk through" area by the gates, I make them walk that bit. They then ride them on the big open part of the playground (as do lots of others)- they dont ride them near the play equipment so there are areas where it is known that children/toddlers can play without fear of being run down!
I also make them walk them across roads and on narrow parts of pavement. If they go too close to other people I make them get off. They are therefore pretty sensible now. Sadly, as always, I can see that a minority are probably in the long run going to cause an injury or something and we will all lose out.

Oh, sorry Captain Underpants, you don't know me ...

The reason I take ds to school in the car is that I'm disabled, and it's just too far for me to walk. If the weathers up to it then I get out my mobility scooter and take the dogs so he (and they) get to walk to and from school, altho lots of the mums don't talk to me if I'm on the scooter, which I have never understood.

Oh, and I don't zoom my mob. scooter around in the playground .

yes YABU.

It's 1000 X more dangerous driving your car than it is riding a scooter but no one says anything about that - I understand that your disabled so have to drive, but most of us just use our cars out of convenience.

Never seen them at ours. I assume they're banned.

No clumsy mum I'm sorry that I donmt know you , all the more reason I would say that you need to speak to the school about the use of scooters , bikes etc INSIDE the school. An overall ban on their use outside school I dont think is an option.

Outside the school you will just have to rely on peoples reining in their children (whether school age or not ) and making them understand curtosity for other pavement /roadusers.

"It's 1000 X more dangerous driving your car than it is riding a scooter but no one says anything about that" .... ! ??

Blimey, I'm gobsmacked by that response.

So because driving a car can be dangerous in some circumstances, we should let the little demons hack us down from behind in the school playground.

Oh, that is SUCH clear argument .

I'm not trying to stop anyone riding out on the roads and stuff, it's in the enclosed playground area that it seems so dangerous.