Are your students allowed leave school at luchtime?

Dickie10 · 21-09-2022 1:02pm #1

I was in a local town there Tuesday and noticed a huge amount of students from one school out at luchtime, there are about 950 students in the school. Im sure its only 5th and 6th years but there did seem to be younger students. I remember in my own school evry students got to go out to the shop at lunch even first years. it was a small 400 student chool, in a very small town, but by 6th year it was only 5th and 6th years allowed and even as students among the seniors at least it was something we felt was right to be brought in. This was in 2000/01 abiut 2010 the school stopped any students leaving for lunch, and i think this was rightfuly so. Hard enough to be managing students without letting them unsupervised off school premises, I would imagine insurance would be a minefield if anything were to happen them.

History Queen · 21-09-2022 1:15pm

Our students are allowed off campuss for lunch from TY up. Not aware of any insurance issues.

TheValeyard · 21-09-2022 4:21pm

Depends on school size I thought?

I know of one school that used to allow it, but because of problems in the town it was stopped.

Another school with 1200 will not allow it. As its just not practical. While another school at the opposite end of the town does allow it (different timetabling and closer to shops)

Can only imagine how annoying it is for shopkeepers to have students descend on you every day. Yes, nice money earner, but but it can be frustrating.

emmaro · 21-09-2022 4:24pm

Only TY, 5th and 6th.

Random sample · 21-09-2022 5:14pm

We don’t allow them out any more. it’s a pity, it was a nice bonus for seniors at one stage.

Lots still go out, and are facilitated by the local shop (they will hide kids if they see a teacher coming and have been very rude to the DP when they have gone in looking for students).

jrosen · 21-09-2022 5:18pm

One of my kids no, there is no leaving campus for any years. The other kid, 2nd year and up can leave the school grounds. My preference is for them to stay in school

Treppen · 21-09-2022 5:35pm

If anything happened, legally, who's responsible?

In my day... a few of us used to go to the local pub.... for a game of pool.... and a pint of Harp... and a smoke. But by then we were over 18 (well one of us was anyway, so technically he was in loco parentis).

History Queen · 21-09-2022 9:00pm

I wouldn't imagine the school could be held legally responsible for anything that happens when a student is off campus unsupervised at lunchtime. How could they be? Doesn't make sense. The remit of the school ends at the school gate (obvious exception being school tours/trips but these are supervised, and have explicit parental permissions).

Dickie10 · 21-09-2022 9:11pm

Our teachers used to go the pub for pool and pints but we never dared try it! i think its absolute madness in this day and age and just asking for hardship to be even entertaing it. someone said some students still go off school grounds even though its not allowed. Does there not be someone supervising yard at lunch? management would want to go in hard on kids skipping out to the shop if anything happened id say it would be carnage with insurance. even 6th years i think it would always be the 10% who would ruin it for everyone. id say its an awful job getting them back into class on time. better off do a few activites at lunch, or make lunch break just 35 mins max, go earlier in evening or on the half day.

Minnie Snuggles · 21-09-2022 9:32pm

My daughter was allowed off school grounds from TY but only if I signed a permission slip. I think the signed permission slip takes case of any insurance issues that may arise.

Random sample · 22-09-2022 10:34am

We have more than one exit from the school, kids will hop walls or leave a few minutes before the teacher gets to the supervision points. Also, some parents will log into the app and register a doctors appointment at lunchtime for their child to go to the shop. It’s very hard to keep order when parents aren’t on our side.

Dickie10 · 22-09-2022 11:42am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119649903#Comment_119649903

Jesus thats shocking that parents would do such a thing. Surely management should get on this big time, sounds a bit lawless. Whats wrong with the parents?

bennyineire · 22-09-2022 11:45am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119650210#Comment_119650210

Is your middle name Karen by any chance? This really is a non issue IMHO, lots of schools allow it and I have no problem with it

22-09-2022 12:02pm

Every student had to go home for lunch in the secondary school my daughter attended (Dublin). There was no option to remain in the school building for lunch. 300 students approx.

All the other local secondaries also allow students leave at lunchtime.

Dickie10 · 22-09-2022 12:21pm

oh right just sounds a bit messy thats all.

Random sample · 22-09-2022 12:29pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119650210#Comment_119650210

Not a lot management can do! They can’t ring parents and say they know the doctors is shut for lunch.

Kids don’t like canteen food, don’t want to bring in their own… parents don’t want them to starve, it’s a simple solution.

spurious · 22-09-2022 4:07pm

Where I used to work there used to be an hour long lunchtime until we realised the last 20 minutes or so some students were being used to run deliveries for local 'pharmaceutical' sellers. We cut the lunch break to 35 minutes then. Some still made it home/out but no hanging around.

sprucemoose · 22-09-2022 4:34pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119650421#Comment_119650421

canteen or bringing own food are two fairly decent options though in fairness

Exiled1 · 22-09-2022 5:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119648500#Comment_119648500

No insurance issues arise if students go off campus, ie. no liability to school provided they have it written somewhere as a break time policy.

Each school devises its own policy, depending on its willingness to provide student services or do the lazy way.

In this day and age, schools should be doing better and be well able to provide a canteen with hot/healthy food or provide a decent place for kids to eat lunch. Good schools were able to do this fifteen years ago.

Minnie Snuggles · 22-09-2022 6:26pm

They have a canteen and can order lunches to be delivered from a local restaurant.

They normally went down town to get school supplies etc.

Dickie10 · 22-09-2022 7:24pm

They went downtown to get "school supplies" ah here! now thats just taking the piss, what they dont have their maths copy in or dont have a ruler, o yeah head off down there and get them in the town shur no bother.

It sounds a few schools just pure lazy or cant manage thier staff for proper supervision, if theres a few routes out of school they should be fenced off, one or two ways in and out and teachers on thier posts within a few mins of break. jesus if were not where were supposed to be within 5 mins of class finshing we get a public stripping down in front of students! Kids down the town without permission would be internally suspended, 5 lunchtimes in a rowdetention and in until 3 pm on friday evening , usually gone at 1:15 on friday. It works no kid is bothered trying to leave because they know the penalty. might have 2 to 3 cases in a school year. they have a canteen lots of room to eat so no excuses. although some foods are banned from being brought in such as energy drinks and even crisps. the crisps are turned a blind eye to but BPM, Monster, red bull etc is banned and confiscated. its pure dirt anyway so i have no problem confiscating it.

none of the students seem to mind the rules and they know there are other schools in the town that might let them go down town not entirely sure but they always have the option of leaving if the rules are not to thier taste i suppose.

rainbowtrout · 22-09-2022 9:46pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119652278#Comment_119652278

Schools are not prisons. Our first and second years aren't allowed downtown, the rest are. So it's a privilege they look forward to when they get to third year. It means there's less chance the younger kids will get bullied by older kids. Also, we can't spend our lives mollycoddling them. 15 year olds should be able to walk to a shop a few hundred metres away and buy a sandwich and walk back to school.

History Queen · 22-09-2022 10:31pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119652278#Comment_119652278

Jesus.... judgemental much? Why are you so invested in this? What difference to you what lunchtime policies different schools have? There are lots of reasons for schools choosing different policies around this.

Treppen · 25-09-2022 6:36pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119652940#Comment_119652940

Ya I don't know (despite my own Harp Drinking in my day) I think you need to be very clear about how you release students in your care.

It could just take one parent who would - rightly- assume that a school was left in charge of the child when they were left to school in the morning. If an accident happened a school can't turn around and say "we can't be mollycoddling them, they should be able to walk to the shop at 15". Sure, any student can walk out the gates any time, but allowing them to do so every day is another matter.

Do the parents have to sign anything?

Dickie10 · 26-09-2022 1:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119653107#Comment_119653107

Sorry didnt mean to hit any nerves, just discussing a topic I was wondering about and looking to see what other schools did.

Dickie10 · 26-09-2022 1:23pm

"It means there's less chance the younger kids will get bullied by older kids." Sorry i was kind of afraid to ask about this the last day in case I got my knuckles wrapped! But would you not think there must be a bit of a problem here if students are safer from bullying by being outside of the school rather than inside its boundaries at lunch time? Is this not a fairly alarming thought for a school management.?

Dr Turk Turkelton · 26-09-2022 1:34pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119652278#Comment_119652278

The Christian Brothers back in the 80's would have loved this sort of acquiescence.

On a lighter note I remember in 5th class myself and two mates snuck out at lunchtime.

We went to the bar in the town and ordered three cokes and three plates of chips and took a seat.

Looked around and there was four teachers having "grown up" drinks!

Even as an eleven year old there was complicit nods of acceptance exchanged and we went down and dined most Fridays until we finished sixth class and after a few weeks there was even a few words exchanged.

kippy · 26-09-2022 1:51pm

Local secondary allows kids down into the village at lunchtime and possibly between free classes as well (cannot confirm this specificilly). School is about 10 mins walk from a few shops.

Most secondary schools around the city (Galway) seem to have no issues with students around town at lunch but amn't entirely sure if it's all schools or the specifics.

In one way schools are way over crowded (generally) and a release valve of letting them outside the grounds at any time isn't a bad thing. Kids need to develop some independance also and I suppose it's part of that also.

26-09-2022 1:52pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119663955#Comment_119663955

When you sign the forms enrolling your child in a school, you are agreeing to their policies.

The onus is on the parents to ask any questions they have about those policies - lunchbreaks or anything else - before enrolling.

Treppen · 26-09-2022 3:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119667097#Comment_119667097

True that, but in absence of a policy can a school just decide to allow students out?

26-09-2022 6:20pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119667433#Comment_119667433

I've never known a secondary school not to have a policy on this.

joebloggs32 · 26-09-2022 9:03pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119668155#Comment_119668155

Bang on.

The whataboutery of students being unsupervised knocking around town is crazy. Kids of this age make their own way to and from school without supervision.

Once the school policy permits it then parents have no comeback.

Many schools physically do not have the infrastructure to provide space for a canteen with hot meals. Where I work we'd have space for less than 20% of students to sit in the canteen. Our policy is to allow students who live close by to leave the school at lunchtime to go home once their parents have signed a permission slip at the start of the year. Those students are then provided with a lunch pass.

As said elsewhere schools have the authority to come up with whatever suits their own situation.

rainbowtrout · 27-09-2022 2:55pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119663955#Comment_119663955

They are signing a school policy with school rules when they enroll their child in the school, so it's covered there.

rainbowtrout · 27-09-2022 2:58pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119666923#Comment_119666923

No there isn't. And it's not an alarming thought for management. Senior kids are down the town, junior kids are on the school grounds where they can hang around with kids their own age. It doesn't mean they are being bullied when they are all in the building. Amazing as it sounds we do supervise our students when they are on the premises.

Honestly, you have some very strange ideas about how schools operate.

CramCycle · 27-09-2022 3:06pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119650421#Comment_119650421

Starve?!? Jesus wept, I have no issue with letting them out but starve. What scare mongering BS is this. They are teenagers, if their parents don't make them lunch they should be able too make their own. my 8 year old can make a sandwich for hiumself at home if he needs one.

Are your students allowed leave school at luchtime?

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