Schoolyard safety

A recent article in the Herald-Sun is a timely reminder of schools’ and parents’ responsibility to keep children safe on play equipment.

According to the article, more than 1,000 primary school students injure themselves in the schoolyard each year, with monkey-bars and climbing frames causing 70 per cent of injuries.

PV Executive Officer Gail McHardy is quoted in the article. Gail said everyone had a responsibility to keep children safe. “Parents need to familiarise their children where possible to play safe on equipment at home, before and after school,” she said.

The article also quotes an Education Department spokesman, who said schools had to make regular inspections of playgrounds and identify any safety risks – which was all audited.

Insurance

It’s worth noting that the Education Department does not provide personal accident insurance or ambulance cover for students. You can read more about school insurance issues in the Department’s Policy and Advisory Library (scroll down to  “Accident and ambulance cover”.

Schools are expected to communicate the insurance issues to parents; here’s a good example from Box Hill High School website.

The Herald-Sun article is behind a paywall – you can read it if you have a subscription.