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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be shocked by the leavers jumpers

270 replies

Itsmytreehouse · 01/06/2022 14:48

My dd is leaving primary school this July and we have been sent a link to order leaver jumpers.
The design has their school name and year on the front in large letters and on the back their teachers name and class mates names (including surname) with hand written messages of good luck printed all over.
I might be over reacting but I’m seeing it as a safeguarding concern that these kids will be wearing them around showing their name and school in public. (They’ve been asked to wear them to school for all next term as part of their leavers production outfit)
Should I point this out to the school or forget about it?

OP posts:
Original poster
Itsmytreehouse · 01/06/2022 15:17

Thank you 12yearsinazkaban exactly the worry that was in my head when I saw the photos of the hoodie. The pta designed and printed them, no one had a say as it’s the first I’ve heard about them so I'm sure other parents will be concerned by the excess info on them too. Im sure there are many parents who wouldn’t care but I find it odd 29 other kids will be wearing hoodies with my Dd name on there which could be seen by people I’d rather didn’t know what school she attends/attended.

OP posts:
neverbeenskiing · 01/06/2022 15:17

For something to be a safeguarding issue a child needs to be at risk of harm. I'm a DSL so work with lots of vulnerable families and can only think of a couple of very specific (and unlikely) scenarios where a child wearing a hoodie with their own/another child's full name on could possibly result in them coming to harm and if this was the case the school would be aware. We have, very rarely, had children in school whose last name has been changed for their own protection, but if this was the case then their new name would be the one printed on the jumper.

Highlyquestionablehoumous · 01/06/2022 15:18

12yearsinazkaban · 01/06/2022 15:11

People who can identify a safeguarding risk?
people who have fell victim to an abuser or preditor because they had access to information to forge trustworthiness?
people who have had to see and deal with the consequences of what happens when a paedophile rapes or sexually assaults a child?

yes those people exist. And yes they can become concerned when their child's personal information is paraded around on a platter.

All it takes is
"hi little boy, my son John Smith goes to your school, do you know him? Let's go find out if he wants to go to mcdonalds with you. get in the car"

very easy when school name, class, teachers name and the names of all of your school chums are on your hoodie

Show quote history

To be fair, if a child has made it to the end of Year 6 and doesn't know not to get in a car with a complete stranger then something has gone wrong somewhere.

But generally I agree that surnames don't need to be on the hoodie. They don't really add anything anyway.

MintyMoocow · 01/06/2022 15:20

What exactly is the risk here please? I am totally failing to understand?

Iloveychildrenandmydoggie · 01/06/2022 15:21

Mariposista · 01/06/2022 15:14

Don't be THAT parent. Leavers merchandise is extremely tacky, but the kids love it. By year 6 they are old enough to be taught about stranger danger, and saying NO if someone says come on little Johnny, I know your mum, come with me. They are nearly 12, not 5.

This ! I genuinely have never heard of a leavers hoodie being blamed on a child abduction!!! What are these parents going to do to keep sane when their child is in town with friends,getting bus to school etc !

Meredusoleil · 01/06/2022 15:22

Abbreviated school name ie the letters that make up the parts in acronym form and first names only. Of all the children in the year group ie 90-120.

Would not be happy with full names, teacher's name and full name of school personally. And I say that as both a teacher and a parent!

JustLyra · 01/06/2022 15:23

The surnames shouldn’t be on them. I’ve worked in almost 20 schools and never known any to have surnames.

Greatoutdoors · 01/06/2022 15:23

Most kids have the name of the school on their everyday jumpers don’t they? If not the uniform is a dead giveaway.

Besides, in a couple of weeks they won’t attend there anymore.

JustLyra · 01/06/2022 15:26

Abduction isn’t the risk.

Theres no way a child in foster care’s name should be printed, in full, on anything that’s going to identify their school to anyone that a child wearing a hoodie wandering in public is going to see.

it’s a tiny risk, but it’s the exact same reason some kids can never be in photos in the local paper, or have their full name printed in anything school related online.

It should be first names only.

mernie · 01/06/2022 15:27

I'd never heard of leavers hoodies.

But first name surname shouldn't be displayed for safeguarding purposes, surely? That's what schools seem to do, leave off surnames when public mentions, etc, occur.

LeeMucklowesCurtains · 01/06/2022 15:28

What do you think could happen?

Someone is going to stand behind them for ages, somehow find their name in small writing in a jumper, and then what?

Ds has had two, year 6 and year 11 and if all the things I could lose sleep over, they don’t even make the end of the list.

LeeMucklowesCurtains · 01/06/2022 15:29

I mean, it’s not small writing exactly, but would anyone really notice? When was the last time you noticed anyone’s clothing?

RyanAirVeteran · 01/06/2022 15:30

Oh dear God I have heard everything.

BigWoollyJumpers · 01/06/2022 15:31

Seems normal to me. DC's primary ones, had the full names in tiny script within the year of leaving, and wrapped around, you would be hard pressed to see the names clearly unless you knew them. School logo on the front. They then had whatever name in big type above the year - literally they could put anything, their nickname or pseudonym. Myself and another mum, who were the class reps for that year, also got them! I'm still wearing mine, it's really cosy for slobbing about.

fairgame84 · 01/06/2022 15:31

Savedbythebell1 · 01/06/2022 15:14

It's definitely a safeguarding risk. Teachers aren't even allowed to throw away a piece of paper with a kids name on it because of GDPR and safeguarding.
Also, leavers jumpers have not been a thing in primary school until recently. It's another example of consumerism and it's so bad for the environment. Won't all these hoodies end up in a landfill within two years?!

I had a leavers jumper in 1996 so definitely not a recent thing.

neverbeenskiing · 01/06/2022 15:32

hi little boy, my son John Smith goes to your school, do you know him? Let's go find out if he wants to go to mcdonalds with you. get in the car

I understand where you're coming from but I think this is a bit of a stretch. By your logic if the hoodie just had first names on surely they could just say "my son John is in your class...etc". I don't think the last name would make a child more or less likely to get in the car. A child of that age would either know not to get in the car with a stranger and have the capacity to understand that risk or they wouldn't. Either way it's a pretty high risk strategy on the part of the perpetrator, whar if the child has met John's Dad? That's why the vast majority of paedophiles abuse children who are well known to them, the risk of detection is lower because they already have the child's trust and don't have to resort to these kinds of strategies.

LeeMucklowesCurtains · 01/06/2022 15:32

JustLyra · 01/06/2022 15:26

Abduction isn’t the risk.

Theres no way a child in foster care’s name should be printed, in full, on anything that’s going to identify their school to anyone that a child wearing a hoodie wandering in public is going to see.

it’s a tiny risk, but it’s the exact same reason some kids can never be in photos in the local paper, or have their full name printed in anything school related online.

It should be first names only.

But the parents and carers of those children wouldn’t give permission for their names to be on one, just like they don’t give permission for photos.

And they aren’t compulsory, you have to order and pay for one.

The schools aren’t just printing them for everyone.

WonderingWanda · 01/06/2022 15:32

Ours were first name only in the year bit ans initials on by the schools request. Point that out if it's not too late. Just say 'Other schools do first names only for safeguarding purposes' and see if anyone agrees.

AliBaliBears · 01/06/2022 15:34

DO be that parent!

I have never seen any with surnames before. I think that is a massive safe-guarding risk for vulnerable children, including those in care.

ArmWrestlingWithChasNDave · 01/06/2022 15:35

'Safeguarding' has to be up there with 'GDPR' and 'mortified' for the words most abused on Mumsnet.

Ducksurprise · 01/06/2022 15:35

I have never known hoodies with surnames on before.
If you repost and put aibu to think full names should not be on leaver hoodies I think the voting would be different.

Yanbu

neverbeenskiing · 01/06/2022 15:36

Theres no way a child in foster care’s name should be printed, in full, on anything that’s going to identify their school to anyone that a child wearing a hoodie wandering in public is going to see.

Bit of a generalisation. There are all kinds of circumstances that lead to a child being in Foster care. I can think of several kids off the top of my head that I've worked with who this wouldn't apply to because the only person who is a risk to them is already fully aware of their name and what school they go to. Being in Foster care doesn't automatically mean they're in hiding.

Staynow · 01/06/2022 15:37

Wow you do know that anybody can see your child walking down the street, playing in the park or playing at the beach - and even take a picture of them if they want. They can listen out to you calling their name, follow you home so they know where you live, follow you to school......the list is endless.

Really if a child is going to go off with a stranger then that person knowing their school is neither here nor there. They're as likely to be tempted by a free McDonalds as they are by someone adding in that their child goes to the same school.

I got in a car with a stranger aged 7, I was walking home from school, I didn't know why my mum hadn't picked me up and it started pouring with rain. He didn't know my name, what school I went to or anything he just offered me a lift home and I took it because I was too shy to say no and I was tired of walking along the side of the busy road in the pouring rain. I knew I shouldn't have but was past caring and did anyway. He then took me home fortunately as luckily there are lots of good people in the world.

What you need to do if you seriously think this is a risk to your child is educate them.

Ihatethenewlook · 01/06/2022 15:37

🍪have my first biscuit

AliBaliBears · 01/06/2022 15:37

While I wouldn't expect the average parent to be thinking along those lines, I would absolutely expect professionals working in a school to realise the potential risk of disclosing full name and school to the public without parental agreement. The risk of it leading to an adverse event may be tiny bit that adverse event itself could be massive.