H&S on school bus trips-toilet breaks

[HappyMum4]

My children have just been to a safari park with their primary school, I have a child in recep., one in yr 1 & another in yr 2. They travelled 3 hours there, having been made to try on the loo before they left, and with no refreshments on the way. On the way back, another 3 hour trip, they weren't made to try, and were given snacks and drinks. Two reception kids needed the loo, so instead of scheduling a toilet break into the trip, they made them squat over a bucket. My daughter needed to go, but was too embarrassed to use the bucket, so she ended up soiling herself, and had to sit in it all the way home, and was completely distressed when she got back.
Where do we stand with this? Is this acceptable ?

I'd have a word with whoever was running the trip and see if next time they could get a coach with a loo on it.

absolutely fine!!

There Are Other Life lines Out There!!

That is a lot of travelling for a day trip, especially for young children.

Not sure what the solution is but maybe they could have trips a bit nearer another time.

What really ThreeBlondeBoys? Hadn't thought that myself but suppose you could be right.

Am I missing something? What are you talking about TBB?

So some of you think it's acceptable to take a bus load of children, some as young as 4, on a 3 hour long trip with no toilet break, and instead have them squat over a bucket on a moving bus? Apart from how degrading this is to a child, if the bus had to stop suddey, is this not a health and safety matter? What mother finds it "absolutely fine" that a 7 yr old has to sit in her own mess for the rest of the journey because her only other option was to poo in a bucket in front of the whole bus load of kids and teachers?

I'd say it was disgusting myself, those poor children, they must have been so ashamed. I bet the teachers/helpers didn't do this!!

I still think the trip was planned too far away from school.

NoahAndTheWhale-forgive me, I'm a bit confused by your response to TBB - "really, I hadn't thought of that" - am I missing something that TBB said, you seem to have understood something I didn't.

There are other life lines out there I guess!

past your bedtime, innit?

You could have the boys pee into bottles I suppose. The girls would just have to hold it in.

ignore the weirdos, happymum, i think you should say something. the kids should have been sent to the toilet last thing before getting onto the bus, your poor dd, i hope she's feeling okay now.

Past MY bedtime aitch??

Oh tis ok, think she/he has gone now!

I would be horrified. It is degrading for the students and, a H+S risk. My dd would not be going on that trip and I would make a complaint to the school about it. There must be an attraction closer to the school for them to visit.

I think 3 hours each way is FAR too FAR for children of that age, and school should not have attempted such a trip. IMO 1.5 hours each way should be max distance at that age.

For a journey of that distance bus should have had toilet. And if it didn't of course they should have stopped at toilets halfway.

And of course should have been taken to toilets before they left.

Def complain, although not much you can do about it now.

Six hours on a coach? How long did they spend at the safari park?

Good question......

There are clearly some real issues about this trip that the school needs to start taking notice of.
Firstly two, three hour coach journeys in a day is far to much for children so young.
Secondly anybody with half a brain should realise that a three hour coach trip without a break was a bad idea.
Thirdly having realised that the pupils were in need of the toilet, the coach should have stopped somewhere appropriate.
Fourthly there is the issue of the degrading and completely unacceptable use of a bucket.
For any school trip there has to be a risk assessment completed. I would suggest that it seems that if such an assessment was carried out it was woefully inadequate.
I would make a written complaint to the headteacher regarding all the circumstances around this trip and see what happens. If you do not take any action this kind of incompetence will be repeated.

That is not on! squatting on a bucket in the presence of other children/teachers.

How many teachers/parents helpers on the trip? did they all think it was fine? disgraceful!

I think you should complain.

DS2, when he was in reception, had an "accident" that was not really one as he was not allowed to go to the toilet . He was absolutely humiliated. It was a sports day, all the parents had come to watch, very hot, the children encouraged by the teacher to drink a lot. At some point Ds asks for the toilet (inside the school) is told that he cannot go because nobody can go with him. He wet his clothes, teachers eventually takes him inside to get changed, gives him a dry pair of pants. On the way back home, I could seee that ds was really uncomfortable walking I ask him what was wrong. The poor boy was so distressed at the accident he had put the dry pants over the soiled ones, nobody checked, his skin was all red.

When I asked the teacher why he was not allowed to go to the toilet I got " they were not allowed inside on their own and I could not leave the others unattended"" (TA was there BTW). I asked why she did not send him to me to take him if she could really not do it herself. Answer : "It would have been unfair to children whose parents had not come to watch."

fairness indeed.

I went to the headteacher who assured me that letting children soil themself was indeed not school policy!

sorry, did not realise I took so long, obviously needed to get that one out of my chest!