Yeovil school 'excludes four kids' over protest against unacceptable cameras in unisex toilets

[EweSurname]

www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerset-news/yeovil-school-excludes-four-kids-2676128

Another parent got in touch with Somerset Live previously to say pupils are "getting mad and upset" due to the introduction of the mixed toilets.

The parent, who did not wish to be named, said: "Apparently the toilets contain all genders in one place, one marked male, one female and one male/female, all in together with no place for privacy.

"The girls are now worried about their safety and privacy, especially when on their periods when they will not even be able to request sanitary products from friends due to boys being in earshot.

"They are already get picked on by boys for their periods.

"There is also a security camera trained on the toilets now in the area of the cubicles and I have been told the locks on the cubicle doors are faulty."

Jessica Yes, it was awful! I didn't know what to do. I got my Head of House and he sorted it. For once, in a school, there was a 'proper' response - police called in, boys excluded and prosecuted etc.

PlasticPatty I hope you are not left too traumatised, as a new teacher I can't imagine how difficult that must be. Thank god they responded appropriately.

We need to keep repeating it - women and girls are entitled to safety and privacy. Sharing toilets undermines that, breaches education law, and the rights of women and girls under the equality act. And it's downright creepy.

I don't think the girls care about the blood. They just don't want to be with boys. Rubbish. Some don't but many do and find it excruciating. Having individual washrooms with enclosed sinks is much better for this. Girls are often merciless to each other and gender non conforming girls can find this particularly problematic. If this school has shared single sex facilities and unisex private washrooms with sink then I applaud them for meeting everyone's need.

sarahcarer

I personally know about 12 girls at this school and have spoken to them about it so please don't tell me I am talking rubbish. THEY DONT WANT TO BE IN THE SAME LOOS AS BOYS AND THEY DONT WANT A CAMERA IN THERE.

And I guess girls don’t ever hide in the loos to get away from the boys eh?

Fair enough - I thought you were talking more generally. Can I ask why the girls can't just use the single sex facilities that are available to them? And as for the cameras - they must be one of the last secondary schools to install them. They help prevent the horrendous bullying behaviours that school toilets were well known for in the past.

The bloody hands issue is much better dealt with in individual cubicles with sinks.

Cameras have to be very carefully placed but they actually protect girls privacy because don't forget all doors can be opened from the outside now if you know how. Cameras prevent this. And I will say it again. Girls, like boys, can be cruel and merciless. Yes boys are more of a threat but the cameras protect everyone.

Really shocked at some of the comments about bloody hands. What happens if there is no loo paper? Even if you do usually carry wet wipes, what happens if your period starts earlier than expected? Most school toilets were built when rows of cubicles for one sex was the standard. They are not suitable to be turned into unisex ones. The whole report is making me incredibly glad I am not a student in that school.

Nettie good point....many a time after peeing I’ve realised there was no loo roll in the holder, and had to ask the girl in a neighbouring cubicle to pass some under the wall.....another reason why mixed sex just isn’t practical

According to another article. The four ripped the cameras out. That is disgusting behaviour x

never best practice to have staff share toilets with students, for obvious reasons..

Could somebody spare five mins to explain to thicky me what the "obvious" reasons are?

Suggesting teachers share the toilets with the pupils? Don't be so bloody ridiculous!

Teachers are generally told not to be in an enclosed room with a child on their own. It leaves you open to accusations, and it enables abusers to access children in a way they otherwise wouldn't be able to.

I'm still gobsmacked at the idea that anyone thought it was ever okay in any world to put cameras in a toilet! I thought that was universally accepted to be an absolute no-no. I'd have been ripping the fucking things out with my bare hands too!

PlasticPatty - what an utterly horrific incident. (My mum used to teach in really rough sink schools, so I know some of the shit that goes on in them - usually exacerbated by really, really crap senior management, a problem that is not fixed by putting CCTV cameras everywhere).

But on another note, I'm reassured, as a mooncup newbie, to find that it's a feature, not a bug, that if you have heavy flow you end up looking like Lady MacBeth after you've wrestled the damn thing out. I thought it was just my total ineptitude, but it seems like even practiced users find they can't take a full one out without some spillage.

It's amazing how easily socially unacceptable ideas get introduced and become acceptable.
Surveillance cameras in toilets - not creepy at all. Men and women, boys and girls sharing toilets, showers and changing rooms - nothing to see here.
It's a constant erosion of boundaries.

Interesting to note that cameras were only installed in these mixed-sex toilets and only there. They have, apparently, as the head pointed out, no problems in the single-sex toilets they have elsewhere in the school.

Interesting, because contrary to the experiences of many parents and children, mixed-sex toilets are frequently claimed to cut down on bullying.

We've actually had several threads now where people have stated that it had done just that in their schools only for those posters then many posts later in the thread to state that staff are actually supervising these mixed-sex toilets.

What mixed-sex toilets really do, apart from breaching the human rights of children to privacy and dignity, is widen the victim pool for bullies. Yes, most bullying is single-sex, but many bullies are equal opportunity offenders. They do bully opposite-sex children, too.

Furthermore, boys do as a PP said often understand neither consent nor boundaries and harass girls with absolute abandon (And as we know from the government's own report into this issue, 6 in ten girls have been sexually harassed or assaulted at school and one child is raped at school every school day). Increasing risk to girls therefore seems particularly counterproductive.

Now I do support unisex facilities (which must open directly onto a hallway), but from the setup here that's not what the school has installed.

What does seem to reduce bullying in toilets, is to have facilities that are located in central places and which don't have a door shutting off the complete block. This works for single-sex toilets.

All other toilets in the school are single sex. Three toilets only are unisex- all with doors which fully close. I'm finding this a non issue. There is no reason to 'have' to use these- unless you want to. Would be different if it was all toilets in the school, but it's not. And there are o oh cameras in this one. None of the rest. Maybe dad needs to juts accept his son and mates are vandals, and there is no higher cause here.

There is no reason to 'have' to use these- unless you want to.

Did you RTFT? Others have pointed out that when you need a loo during a busy school day, you should always have the option of single sex near to you.

They have done this at my daughter's school and so many of the girls are really unhappy about it. It's just totally wrong. There are other single sex toilets in the school but they are right at the other end of the building and they don't have time to get there and back between lessons without being late, let alone that prefects 'guard' the doors and only let two or three kids in at a time. There is no good reason I can possibly dream up as to why mixed sex toilets should exist in schools. It disgusts me and selfishly I'm glad my daughter leaves this year.

Oh and I'm nearly 40 and still sometimes get bloody hands when changing a tampon. Just for those who think it's an impossibility

I have stage 2/3 endometriosis with notable symptoms (severe cramping, occasional fainting from pain/excessive blood loss causing anemia) presenting at age 14 (cycles started age 12). At 42yrs old I have been managing it a long time and have never (even as a teen) let it take control or keep me from doing what I want to do (I have to plan well for the inevitable 1-3 days of barely being able to present as human).

I experienced 2nd & 3rd degree burns on my pelvis and adjacent skin on legs as a child at the age of 10. The scarring at the age I began my cycle was deep purple and keloidal as well as very noticeable in bathing suits and underwear.

Beyond the above I have experienced sexual assault twice, once as a small child and again as a teen from males I knew.

The above is shared for personal context - not sympathy, the above is just part of the fabric of who I am - lending to my general perspective.

Having the aforementioned issues, secondary school was an interesting battleground to navigate... the idea of finding a safe place to faint where males may also be present is quite unsettling. The danger of rape, photos, other abuse where a female may be unconscious, bleeding, and/or in a state of undress is obvious.

For the above reasons and many more transcending my own experiences as a female, unisex bathrooms in public are a no-go. Females and males have a right to single sex spaces for their own dignity and comfort. Third spaces (unisex) are a compromise to ensure those females and males identifying otherwise can also have dignity and comfort. The efforts to have three facility spaces needs to be replicated throughtout each property to ensure easy access for all.

The CCTV cameras seem like a violation... I get the vandalism issues and I can see how in the event of assault in that space they may be helpful but I am struggling to balance the possible pros with the cons. As an adult I would feel weird and exposed with the cameras even in the common area - vulnerability in those spaces paired with feeling like you are being watched would somewhat deter usage. I don't normally use public facilities just because I don't like to but in school or at work you will at some point need to use facilities - anxiety and/or dignity reduction should not be factors of usage.

Wow, sorry about the wall of text - I wanted to share with you a bit.

Bathroom Issue US this week: wnep.com/2019/03/14/student-claims-civil-rights-violation-by-transgender-student-in-locker-room/amp/