Would you be happy with this?

[Admodean]

My kids school has staff on the door to welcome children and then the door gets locked. You can walk into the reception area but they have to buzz you into the actual school, and you aren’t allowed in unless accompanied by a staff member.

The school has announced a Friday coffee morning for parents and toddlers. Adults with no DBS checks will be in the school hall and not accompanied one on one. The hall is central and anyone could wander off into the school. I don’t think this is ok.

Would you be happy with that? If not, who would you report it to as a safeguarding issue? Ofsted? LEA?

Are you joking?
I'm quite sure the staff are capable of ensuring the coffee morning guests don't go wandering around the school.

How will they do that when there’s one teacher and 15-20 adults? Will the adults be able to access the same toilets being used by the school children? It’s concerning.

You are being ridiculous. Adults need DBS clearance to be with children in schools, not to simply be in the building, away from children.

Surely parents without a DBS already go into the school for open days, concerts, class assemblies, meetings with teachers etc.

With the greatest respect, I think you're making a mountain out of a non existent mole hill. The difference is, if you rock up to drop little Johnny's lunch off and start roaming round the school corridors most of the school won't be aware that you're in the school building. The coffee morning will have been discussed as a staff. Staff will probably be strategically positioned around the school hall to prevent people wondering off and the classroom teachers will be extra cautious of letting kids out to the toilet without a TA / other teacher supervising outside the loos.

My understanding is there will be one person running this. They don’t even have enough teachers to cover all of the classes, never mind to position strategically to prevent people wandering off from a coffee morning.

Op, there are plenty of days during the year when people are in the school, and the staff manage them all. It is a normal, regular process.

The staff will be well practised at keeping an eye on 20 adults by engaging with them. The office staff will be on alert and the TAs will all have been briefed.

Let them do their job. It will be fine.

Most schools around here are doing a coffee morning this Friday for Macmillan. Considering the years of experience the staff will have had of Christmas plays, fairs, sports days, open classroom sessions, stay and plays etc I think they’ll manage 20 adults in a hall. These are the same people that manage 30 4 year olds on a school trip…. I know which is easier!

This is a weekly thing starting next month and every Friday going forwards.

What are you particularly worried about?

Usually when parents are in school it’s for something involving the children so there are multiple teachers present. But the children will be in class with their teachers and there’s only one individual running this session. I’d be less concerned if it was a one off because someone would have to very specifically target that one session. But this is a weekly thing.

It's likely the hall has locked doors to stop wandering.

But really you're over reacting.

Adults wandering off round the school. Going into toilets unsupervised with children as young as 4. An attacker could gain access to the school with a weapon. The locked security doors are for safety - it’s not safe if random people are allowed in.

You are being ridiculous. Do you want the school to cancel all nativities, assemblies etc to ensure no adults are allowed in school without a 1:1?
They won’t be using the same toilets as children.
Nearly all, if not all, adults will be known to the school. That does not mean they are safe but they are linked to the school. They’re not opening all the doors every Friday for a free for all.

I think your school is unusual, or perhaps it's a post COVID approach. When DD was in reception we took her into her classroom every morning. When she was in year one we took her into the school and waited outside the classroom with her until the teacher called them in. In both years parents made their way out of the school independently. There were discos later on where parents hung around in the hallways chatting whilst kids were in the hall.

The chances of parents doing something to the kids is very small. Children are most likely to be abused in the home not by another parent in a school. Whilst there may not be staff always with an eye on parents, there are other parents with an eye on them

OP your first step is to write to the head and ask them what risk assessment has been carried out for this activity and what actions are being taken to mitigate the risk of adults accessing other parts of the school. If you are not satisfied with the response then you escalate your concern to the Chair of Governors. You don’t go to Ofsted until you have exhausted these steps.

Schools don’t want adults wandering the corridors and it’s not just in case they are child molestors it’s because it’s disruptive when parents find little Johnny’s classroom and start waving through the door.

Most schools I’ve been involved in through my own kids and then jobs in education as well as being a school governor have strong access arrangements for visitors which generally involve having to sign in at reception as well as being given a visitor lanyard or badge. Staff should challenge any adult in school who don’t have any indication on them that they are a visitor. If these steps are in place then I personally wouldn’t have a problem with a coffee morning being held in the school hall

Ask them for their risk assessment

I think you are over reacting.
Massively.
This is a quire normal event. My kids school used to do this. Visitors have to sign in. If you are that unhappy you coukd get yourself dbs checked and volunteer to help run it

Of course it's ok! Schools host open events all the time. There will obviously be school staff present in the hall, supervising the event (likely office staff, SLT or family support workers, those sort of roles, maybe the odd TA roped in to help serve). Of course safeguarding is important but so is the opportunity to raise money and make community links. Schools aren't prisons! People attending the event will be contained in the hall, not roaming the corridors snatching children!

Are you new to this school parent lark? I'm stunned that anyone would be concerned or surprised at a school hosting an open event. Surely they will do class assemblies too? There will be Christmas/summer fayres, nativity plays, book and biscuit type events to promote shared reading etc. How else are they going to raise money and build links with the school and wider community? These kind of events are a positive thing.

So the school are introducing a lovely weekly community event for mothers and toddlers, and you want to stop them? Since you say the schoolchildren will be in class with their teachers, I don’t understand what you are worried about. The school will have done a risk assessment.

But if you are really concerned, your first port of call is the headteacher. The school will also have a DSL (Designated Safeguarding Lead), who in some schools is a different person from the headteacher. You can complain to your school's Governors - the school will have a Complaints procedure on their website. In England your local authority will have a LADO (Designated Officer) to oversee safeguarding.

But be aware that going down any of these routes will make you look like a ridiculous, over-zealous troublemaker.

The toilet thing is a complete non-issue too. Most schools have a toilet near the foyer for guests/emergency use by parents. If not, it's the staff loos for such events. They won't be letting guests wonder down to the Reception class to share the toilets with 4 year olds (thank goodness, for the sake of guests as well as the safety of children - most Reception bathrooms have tiny toilets with cubicles staff can see over for safety, plus will likely come with bonus widdle on the floor or seat!)

I'm baffled that you don't trust the school to safely run such a mundane event without having appropriately risk assessed. They'll be highly experienced in doing so. Ask to see their risk assessment if you're that concerned but you're being ridiculous.

Round here at least 2 local Primary Schools have historically held weekly playgroups for under 5s in the school hall on a weekly basis. No need to book etc; just turn up on the day. You reported to school reception and they let you through into the school hall.

What your school is doing is not unusual. I am sure access to other parts of the school will be prohibited. It is a normal part of school life and them playing an active, and welcoming participant in community life. As others have suggested ask to see their risk assessment. There will be one.

Just to add, finally, that birth rates are falling, which means many schools are currently struggling to fill their spaces in Reception each year. Introducing a toddler group to entice new potential families is a brilliant idea!

If you want your relationship with the school to remain positive throughout your child's time there, don't be that parent who kicks off for no reason.

My daughters primary did a parents coffee morning every Friday.
Yes technically parents could wander off but no one ever did. We were more interested in the free biscuits.
You can't DBS check every parent/carer/guardian that does activities inside the school.
It would mean no class assemblies or award ceremonies.
No sports day.
No Christmas/Summer fair.
No parents information meetings.
No parents evenings.
No open day tours (I assumed you attended one of those before you applied).
No PTA related meetings.

School staff wear ID badges on colour-coded lanyards, so they will challenge any adult 'roaming the school' not wearing one.