Posted on Monday 7th Aug 2017
Teachers must stop trying to wrap children in cotton wool with over-the-top health and safety policies, the chief inspector of schools has said.
Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Amanda Spielman said it stopped the children developing resilience and grit.
She wants the education watchdog Ofsted to prepare new guidance for schools inspectors in England.
Ms Spielman said making pupils wear high-vis vests on trips made them look like mini-builders minus the hard hats.
She said schools had developed an over-cautious culture that made it difficult for young people to cope with everyday events.
While individual schools have imposed bans on playing conkers and on pupils bringing toys such as yo-yos over the years, the Health and Safety Executive point outs there has never been official regulation.
And Ms Spielman said every minute enforcing bans on conkers and yo-yos was a minute away from tackling a multitude of real dangers.
"I want Ofsted to make sure that schools are properly focused on pupil safety but that it doesn't come at the expense of opportunities to broaden and enrich young minds," she said.
Can't find what you are looking for?
Don't worry, please call us anyway to discuss your ideal job.
Latest News
18/12/24Worry for staff and children as London council moves ahead with plans to close Kent special school
Staff at a residential special school in Kent, which is run by a London council, have voiced worries about plans to close the facility down. Wandsworth Council is moving forward with plans to shut down Bradstow School in Broadstairs due to escalating financial pressures.
17/12/24Schools given £740m to adapt buildings for Send pupils
The government has announced £740m of funding to increase the number of places for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) in mainstream schools in England. ??The money, part of the £6.7bn of education spending announced in the Budget, will be targeted towards adapting school buildings to make them more accessible.
10/12/24Starmer wants 75% of children ‘school-ready’ by 2028
Target of three in four reception pupils at a 'good' level of development is one of six key 'milestones'
09/12/24Kent school where pupils feel 'safe and happy' named The Sunday Times 'best in the South East'
A Kent school has been named the best secondary school in the South East by The Sunday Times Parent Power Guide 2025. The highest-achieving primary and secondary schools across the UK have been ranked by the paper, which said its survey is "widely acknowledged as the most authoritative".
06/12/24Ofsted "alarmed" by absences and "flexi-schooling."
The “alarming” level of children missing school has become a “stubborn and damaging issue”, according to the chief inspector of Ofsted, England's schools regulator. Sir Martyn Oliver said he was also worried about a rise in "flexi-schooling", where parents educate their children at home for part of the week. It is not clear how many children are taught in this manner. The Department for Education (DfE) said the government was putting education "back at the forefront of national life". Ofsted's annual report said attendance issues had "deepened" since the pandemic.