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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

Key Stage 2 - being forced to collect child from school - help

38 replies

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 17:20

I have tried to find info via google and have failed miserably.

Are there any rules/guidelines/laws stating until what age you have to collect a child from the school premises (unless there are exceptional circumstances)

Our school seems to have a completely different approach to every other school in the area and it is driving me slightly crazy to say the least.

TIA

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Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 17:21

I'm talking at the end of the school day btw not if they are ill/in trouble etc.

OP posts:

ZhenXiang · 06/09/2011 17:28

Not that I am aware of as a teacher, although walking home alone has only ever been an option for Year 5 and 6 children in all the schools I have worked in.

Those walking home always needed a permission letter from their parent handed in to their teacher or the school office before the school would allow it.

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 17:34

I'm not even talking about leaving the school premises, I want my dc to be allowed to leave the classroom and meet me elsewhere on the premises....

I tell you this is the most molly coddling school in existance.

Do you think I can write and say that I will no longer be collecting my year 4 and 5 child from the door? I am supposed to collect 3 children from 3 different "sides" of the building all at the same time I kid you not....

Not to mention the chaos because everyone else is having to do the same

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meditrina · 06/09/2011 17:35

No formal lower limit AFAIK, but usually heavily discouraged in younger children. It would be difficult to set a blanket ruling - doesn't allow for variables like nature of journey, presence of siblings etc.

Our school required a permission letter from parent, which was endorsed by the head, and children with permission to go home alone had to sign out daily - making it very clear to all parties which children did what, and that they had indeed left the school premises.

It was unusual for children below yr 4 to go alone, but common by yr 6.

FagButt · 06/09/2011 17:36

sounds ridiculous! Why on earth can they not walk to the door where you pick up your youngest?

The world has gone mad and I feel your pain

meditrina · 06/09/2011 17:40

Sorry randommess I hadn't seen your last when I posted my last!

What you describe sounds crazy - the number of parents/carers/others milling around a number of locations in the school sounds like pretty nightmare congestion. How did they do it before? And do you have a PTA who could point out the ridiculousness (and suggest a better way) on behalf of ALL parents?

CustardCake · 06/09/2011 17:41

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 17:41

Well they are year 4 and 5 so I guess I will put it in writing and suggest if they have an issue that my children can sign out and that I understand that means their duty of care ends when the bell goes.

Sadly walking home alone isn't an option due to location of school, I just want them to be allowed to leave the classroom and we can meet elsewhere near the youngest ones room (year 2) or near the scooter/bike rack.

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MummyDoIt · 06/09/2011 17:41

That sounds ludicrous. At our school, some Y6 children walk home alone, particularly towards the end of the school year to prepare them for secondary school. KS1 children are sent out to their parents, ie the teacher has to be able to see the parent before the child is allowed out of the door. KS2 children leave by themselves and meet their parents in the playground or at the school gates. Seems to work fine!

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 17:43

It is a new primary, former infant, they are including the year 6 in this as well

The pavements are crammed pack with parents and children trying to go opposite ways have to pass classroom doors that open outwards. Oh and if you are late to collect more than a few minutes then your child is sent to reception to sit and wait. I have had to do several circuits of the school before now!

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OddBoots · 06/09/2011 17:50

Do they all finish at the same time? Around here YR finishes at 3.20pm, KS1 at 3.25pm and KS2 at 3.30pm for this kind of reason.

eaglewings · 06/09/2011 17:56

Local school has only reception and year 1 collected from class, all others are brought by teacher or TA to playground where they check parent or other named person collects until year 4.

Has there been a case of a child being abducted at your school? Is it huge? Why are they being so precious??

Hulababy · 06/09/2011 17:58

DD is in juniors (Y5) and in a seperate building to the infants. Infants have to be collected. However, the juniors come out of school without a teacher and are not handed over to parents, so they could arrive/leave by themselves from Y3. In DD's class however they have all been collected, primarily as most, fif not all, live too far from school to walk themselves - most go by car.

I collect a friend's DDs from their school - one in infants, one in juniors. Buildings are on the same site but different buildings. the junior children are allowed to walk down to meet parents at infants. TBH they can go home by themselves in juniors, from y3, afaik. there is certainly nothing to stop them as they can go to infants and then from there where they want anyway.

I work at an infant school up to Y2 and all children have to be collected. The junior school is next door and children can arrive/go home by themselves from Y3.

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 18:00

Yes they all finish at the same time.

Nope no abduction, not huge was 6 classes as an infants currently 9 classes will go down to 7. In fact the school and grounds are tiny which is part of the problem there just isn't room. 2 different playgrounds as well.

I think the Head is bowing under pressure fromt he precious parents tbh.

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twotesttickles · 06/09/2011 18:12

Could they not do a tag team thing and take one kid to the next's classroom and then you collect at least two at once?

My DC start tomorrow and frankly, they are pretty laid back 'get here when you can if you have multiple children to pick up, don't fret we're here till 4 anyway' is what they told me.

I do sympathise though. Is there any facility for another parent to pick up from another room and you pick up their kids?

HarrietJones · 06/09/2011 18:16

You hVe to pick up from classroom not external door? Weird!

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 18:18

I have sent an email, saying I will not be collecting them from the door any longer. I shall leave the ball in their court to tell me how they an insist that I do

I have made it clear that they are not walking home on their own so I can't see under what grounds they can report me to social services or such like.

I didn't sign up to agreements as these years didn't exist when they joined

Hopefully it will encourage the HT to insist that parents let their dc take on some self responsbility.

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Ihavewelliesbuttheyrenotgreen · 06/09/2011 18:19

I used to volunteer and a Summer playscheme a few years ago and the rule there was under 8s had to be handed over to a parent/carer. Over 8s were free to go at the end of the day and we were not responsible for them once they left our care. I think this rule came from some kind of legislation but I'm not 100% sure. Obviously most of the over 8s went straight to a parent/carer, some met up with them at another area of the site and some of the older ones walked home themselves.

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 18:19

The are external doors, each classroom has it's own external outward opening door. School is a big square, hall in the middle classrooms around the outside hence them being on 3 different sides, with a narrow flooded pavement around the outside...

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twotesttickles · 06/09/2011 18:21

Actually it's a bit of a fire risk having the corridors crowded with parents. Why can't they release year groups to the doors with count outs (ie 60 children leave classroom, 60 are counted leaving the main door and leave the parents outside. Obviously this doesn't work for four year olds but would for anyone over six I bet. As long as anyone who can't see a parent is pulled back it'd be fine.

SecretSquirrell · 06/09/2011 18:22

No, I'd not have that.

My six and eight year olds walk home alone a fair bit. And to school.

DeWe · 06/09/2011 18:23

In juniors round here it's entirely up to you. You can collect them from their classroom, you can leave them to walk home on their own. Most people do a midway and meet either at the school gate or there's an area a lot of people wait a short (5min) walk away. But from year 3 there are no restrictions.

livinonaprayer · 06/09/2011 18:24

From Y3 ours are just allowed to leave the cloakroom when they are ready whether a parent is there or not. My elder 2 walk round to find me at the younger ones door. This seems fairly common round here. Think for Y5 in particular they are being OTT here, I walked home with friends from that age.

Original poster

RandomMess · 06/09/2011 18:25

The parents are all outside and the children are allowed outside once the teacher has seen the parents. It takes ages, it's chaos and often at least one child has already been sent to reception by the time you collect the others.

There are not many streets you could safely walk to school from due to blind corners and crazy parents in their 4x4's I just want to wait in one spot and let them come to me. Obviously there isn't anywhere I can stand where I can be seen by more than 1 teacher at a time.

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tkband3 · 06/09/2011 18:28

DD1 (y4) has for the past year gone down to one of her twin sisters' classrooms to come out of school, so I only have 2 doors (which are right next to each other) to pick up from. She wasn't allowed to do this when she was in Y2 and they were in reception though - that was a fun year .

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