Entering school property?

[mumspiration1997]

Hi there. This is random. I live opposite a primary school which my children attend. Next door to the school is another house, the children in this house also attend the school. However, they have actually made a little entrance and use the playground and basketball court etc in the evenings and weekends? This is absolutely none of my business and I know it shouldn't but its really bugging me when myself and others have lived here for 10 years plus and wouldn't dream of jumping over gates for our kids to play when not at school?! Surely this can't be allowed. Maybe I need to get a hobby 🤔😆

I would let the school know when you go back. It’s a security and insurance risk otherwise.

That's a massive safeguarding risk! If kids can get in then kids can get out. Report.

I would get in touch with the school and report it.

If the neighbours children can get in then the school kids can get out, which is a huge safety concern.

Definitely contact the school. It's a serious security problem. If they can get in then so can others and it also means children could get out!

are schools not public property? grounds should be accessible after hours and weekends.

Ah I don't know. When I was little we lived next to a school and used to go in there when we were learning to ride our bikes!
And used to go in there when it was snowing to go sledging down the little hill!
Good times!

Of course they shouldn't. Who do you think gets the blame when someone inevitably gets hurt? There are plenty of places for children to play, it's not like it's the school playground or nothing.

My DD goes to a school with full fences round most of the property but an open school field with a fenced off small football pitch - this part is open to woods/park/road/gate that's just a wooden barrier.
So it does kind of depend on whether they are getting in to the main school part (that should be secure) or a semi-public area that anyone can get into quite easily.

Controlling access to school premises - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

how very sad, i'm in canada and school grounds are accessible.

Why is it sad? There's so many other places for children to play why would they need to use the school playground?

Schools serve a public function - education - but are still are private property. Parents/guardian pupils are granted an implied licence to enter school premises at certain times, but It is up to individual schools to define the extent of the licence and how access is granted. So no, there is no general right to access.

As others have stated, this does present a risk to pupils as it is an unobserved exit for pupils (as well as access onto premises for anyone during the school day).

Also who would pay to replace damaged or broken equipment. Unfortunately, like many others, our local area has a big problem with senseless damage and vandalism. School budgets are already stetched to the limit, can you image the huge cost implications if everyone was just allowed to play unsupervised?

Sorry should have said. They use a ladder to get over the wall which is actually still there during the school day and always bothers me. They are the type of parents who are VERY involved in the school which pisses me off all the more i think

It’s not for this family to use school property as their own. Do report them accessing the school. It’s not a public park or area.

Definitely report to the school.

It's absolutely not acceptable.

Please tell the school. Schools have big fences and gates for security. Schools should all have lock down policies in case of emergencies. Holes in the fence could potentially cause a massive safeguarding issue.

It's actually very common in Scotland. Very much not the norm in England (where I now live and teach) but that's not to say it doesn't work elsewhere. Many Scottish schools even have public rights of way through them. It's just a different mindset.

Sorry I'm drip feeding. I also forgot to mention the children and parents both climb over the fence to and fro school to save them having to walk on main road (it's alright for the rest of us)

Bugs the life out of me

That’s utterly ridiculous!!! CF!!!!

So what happens in Scotland if a child hurts themselves on school property or damages something?

It's less worry some that there isn't an actual exit OP but still you should definitely tell the school what is happening, preferably with evidence so she can't deny it.

I’d report to school and if it’s a local authority school contact them too. It’s a risk to the school children if they use same ladder to escape.

In front of all the other parents and school staff? I'm surprised no one has put a stop to it, it's a huge safety risk, and absolutely ridiculous considering they live next door.

In my country, it seems accepted we can use state school grounds in the evening or weekends. I think you might be asked to leave if you were disruptive and it wouldn't extend to the swimming pool which would be locked up. On the other hand, we have a state scheme for accidents so there is no liability for the school for accidents on their land. We were once using the tennis court at the local school at the weekend and the principal who must have been catching up on some work at the weekend gave us a cheery wave. I just couldn't get very worked up about this though.

I've worked with schools for 20+years and I can't imagine this going unnoticed or allowed in any of them. If this is true of course you should alert the Headteacher.

it's a sad reflection of the times; vandalism, litigation, and finances.
sometimes the school is closer than the park.
here the two nearest parks are very toddler orientated and the school is geared to a wider age group. the school also has some equipment for children with additional needs.
i do find the gated fenced (barbed wired in a few places i've spotted) atmosphere of the school yards i've seen to be really heartbreaking. i just can't imagine how this is good for the mental health of children or the staff that work in this type of environment.