One in 10 children ask to miss school over ‘filthy’ loos
One in eight primary school parents have said their child’s school toilets were unclean, with this jumping to one in four parents with a child at secondary school
One in 10 children (11%) have asked to miss school because of worries about using unclean school toilets, according to a new survey from Parentkind.
Its survey found that one in eight primary school parents have said their child’s school toilets were unclean, with this jumping to one in four parents with a child at secondary school. This means around 4,300 schools are struggling with cleanliness.
More than three in 10 parents complained to their child’s school about the state of school toilets, with parents telling Parentkind some toilets are “so dirty that (their children) felt like they were stepping into a horror movie”. Other parents reported their child had “seen cockroaches” in school loos.
According to Parentkind, when parents do complain about the state of toilets at their child school, four in ten complainants say nothing gets done.
Meanwhile, one in six (16%) primary school children have wet themselves at school because of dirty toilets, equivalent to one million children, while one in four (23%) children hold it in until they get home.
In addition, one in five (18%) children avoid drinking fluids during the school day to avoid needing the toilet.
The poll also raises concerns that “filthy” school loos are having an impact on learning, with about four in 10 (42%) parents saying they are worried that the state of some school toilets is affecting children’s ability to concentrate in class.
Jason Elsom, Parentkind CEO, said: “With a million children facing humiliation because of the disgusting state of school toilets, we need to shine a light on the health and wellbeing of our children who are refusing to drink during the day to avoid going to the toilet and the millions of children suffering constipation because their school toilets are so dirty.
“Parents tell us that we need to set aside the cash to clean and upgrade school loos. That is why we are standing up for parents and their children in asking that recently announced funds by the Chancellor should be directed to making the nation’s school toilets fit for use by children.”