To think many schools have rats, cockroaches and other vermin?

[Nimbostratus100]

just asking general experiences, really. I've taught in both rat infested classrooms, and cockroach infested classrooms. I am just wondering how common this is. I think in the last 10 years, we have dealt with 4 vermin infestations in schools, and I suspect many smaller ones are ignored. One neighbouring school was closed for the day for pest control , but we were not.

And before this becomes private v state! private schools have these problems too!

Yes it wouldn't surprise me at all

I work in a Victorian building ( not school/education) infested. Cockroaches and rats. We are used to it!

I've worked in 7 state schools and visited many more regularly as part of my current role and I've never seen or heard about vermin problems. I don't doubt they're around due to the amount of food and rubbish and the fact children aren't the tidiest people, but it's never actually something I've been aware of. I've certainly never experienced a school closing for pest control.

Yup. Everywhere. Famously live in my cupboard, also below the stage, in the kitchen and in the girls' toilets. Proper fuck off sized rats.

Mice certainly, we also had a colony of rats in a woodpile awaiting removal but none inside the school! Lots of flies though!

I've worked in a few schools and one definitely had mice or rats in the photocopier room. That room stunk. Silverfish amazingly common too.

We have mice and ridiculous numbers of silverfish in my building. I've never seen a rat or a cockroach but it wouldn't surprise me. I've taken to setting humane mouse traps in my lab and relocating them to the other side of the playing field* because when I complained to the site manager he just laughed As punishment, I make him remove the ones that fall into trays and boxes and die

*I know it's not far enough, but I'm not driving to release them and they'd have to go past two other blocks to get back to me so I cross my fingers that they'll stop off on the way and become someone else's problem

rats love hanging out under mobile classrooms / prefab buildings- anything that is raised above ground level. from friends that work in schools rats and mice seem to be an issue, silverfish anywhere that is damp.

We have had recurrent mice in my school building, I’ve had them run over my feet when opening a cupboard and had resources chewed to shreds. Never seen a rat or evidence of them inside but have seen them out in the playground on winter evenings when it’s getting dark so wouldn’t be surprised if they were making their way inside as well.

Never seen cockroaches but we do get literally thousands of ants including flying ants in one row of classrooms every summer which they don’t seem able to rid.

They need to broaden their education and attend a wider variety of lessons

School near my parents had maggots dropping through the roof of the canteen last week. Bleurgh.

Squirrels!!!

Running across the false roof, peeing on the ceiling tiles.

One famously put its nose through a ceiling tile, then scurried down the ‘tree’ in the corner of the room which was part of a display for Jack and the beanstalk.

Children screaming everywhere.

My demountable classroom a couple of years back had a family of foxes living underneath it-it stunk. The carpet had fleas in it as well-it was a horrible place to work.