Welcome to another week.
The government is giving schools almost unfettered rights to search school pupils without consent, after it updated guidelines last week to reflect the move.
The changes allow school staff to search without consent for “any item banned by the school rules which has been identified in the rules as an item which may be searched for.” We tried to find this guidance online, but could not spot it.
The guidance was exposed in a Schools Week article on 19th January, which focused on the issue of energy soft drinks as a child protection issue, after schools around the country had imposed bans on the drinks on school property, with some searching students’ bags in order to enforce the policy.
The article comes after a public health nutritionist, government behaviour tsar and celebrity chef expressed concerns about the way these drinks affect children’s behaviour and health, and have called on the government to make it illegal to sell energy drinks to anyone under the age of 16.
Parents have reacted angrily to the new search policy, whilst schools have defended the move, saying that they have a right to confiscate anything they deem contraband.
The search policy, and the idea that energy drinks are a child protection issue raise several important questions:
- Is the current search and seize guideline within the law?
- What can schools constitute as ‘banned items’ and are there any human rights concerns surrounding this discretion?
- Will banning energy drinks in schools and making it illegal to sell them to anyone under the age of 16 be effective ways to encourage positive eating habits?
- Should the government ever be allowed to try to socially engineer food choices?
Our question this week then, is just this: what do you think?
Researching Reform 
Schools need to ensure that their rules are maintained for the benefit of all staff and pupils. Given our modern permissive society, not all parents and pupils stick to those rules and a breakdown of general discipline too often results both at home and school.
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“BIG BROTHER ” says no energy soft drinks no we must obey big brother ;or must we? I believe that everyone should do whatever they like whenever they like provided they do not hurt or threatean others or the property of others.
When I was at school jews were blowing up British soldiers in Palestine but whenever someone called me a yid I retorted “just like the Virgin Mary” or “Jesus was a yid” or similar and certainly never wanted anyone arrested !
The “Nanny State” does not know best about what we should say,eat,or how best we should bring up our kids and we should all resist these outrages whenever we can !
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Schools need to impose rules and regulations that benefit staff and pupils and must ensure those rules are kept. In today’s permissive society, discipline – especially self-discipline, has become a rarity.
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Reblogged this on World4Justice : NOW! Lobby Forum..
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its really all about where will it end.
next they will be searching through mobile phones to see if they have been accessing sites that are 18+ only.
it could go on and on.
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I don’t like to think of the heart problems it could cause potentially from youngsters drinking energy drinks but if government is giving schools these rights, can’t schools send letters home with their children instead and educate children on why they have these concerns and if they do can they include fast food restaurants and burgers on their list too. As Dr Manhattan said ‘It’s really all about where will it end.’ If my children were at school still now, for me it would be a privacy concern. Females for instance on their time of month are going to feel very embarrassed having their bag searched and deserve privacy on an issue such as this. Who allowed energy drinks to be sold in the first place same with caffeinated coffee.
It is only right this guidance (which cannot be found) is out there for all the public to see now or else how else are they meant to know. I would have expected it be showing on gov.uk so i think parents would have a good defence for their children from this side anyway to argue privacy rights but that’s just my opinion xx
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Reblogged this on tummum's Blog.
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