Banned: ice slides in the school playground

Published on Sunday 21 January 2007 00:13

GLOBAL warming has made them a rarity, but health and safety regulations are consigning them to history.

The age-old schoolyard pastime of fashioning patches of snow and ice into frozen slides to hurl yourself down, ignoring grazed knees and bruised heads, has fallen victim to 21st-century bureaucracy.

Thousands of Scottish children have been banned from making ice slides with the warning that any "enduring slip hazards" will be covered in sand and salt by janitors.

Local authorities have said that they have banned slides because of the risk of children being hurt and the fear of being sued by parents.

And with a cold snap having given children their first chance this winter to make some slides, the move has been criticised as an example of the "health and safety culture gone mad".

Across Scotland, education authorities have carried out a campaign against children building slides from ice and packed snow in school playgrounds, even if pupils are allowed outside at break time.

But the move to stop the fun has been strongly criticised.

Children's author Julie Bertagna, whose book Bungee Hero focuses on a boy overcoming his fears, said: "It's another example of too much health and safety. Too much wrapping children in cotton-wool will lead to a generation of unimaginative and fearful adults.

"Children have to be allowed to take a certain number of risks and get the occasional cut or bruise. I'm a parent myself and I constantly need to fight against the urge to be over-protective. I used to make slides and used old tea trays so they would be extra slippery."

Former Scotland and Hibs star, Eddie Turnbull, who would no doubt have driven health and safety campaigners into states of apoplexy when he played half a season with a broken foot, said: "Banning them from sliding is a daft idea. Kids need to get into scrapes. I remember sliding and having skinned knees through falling and I think that helped in sport through making me used to pain and to taking risks.

"I feel really sorry for kids nowadays. Although they have the gadgets and the money that we didn't have, they don't get the chance to have fun like we had."

Councils which have imposed an outright ban include Aberdeen, Edinburgh, East Lothian, Angus, and North Ayrshire

Explaining the policy, East Lothian said: "Head teachers do discourage pupils from making slides in the school playground. Head teachers always instruct janitors to salt such constructions due to health and safety reasons."

Angus Council agreed with the policy, as did Aberdeen.

Edinburgh said: "[Individual head teachers] would undertake a risk assessment of the playground to ensure that children can play safely, which would mean gritting areas susceptible to icing over."

Other authorities such as Glasgow and East Dunbartonshire say that such matters are for schools to decide upon, although if a slide is considered dangerous then it would be put out of action.

In a statement, Glasgow City Council said that schools had a responsibility to promote children's safety, but a city teaching insider said that the actual practice was that slides would be salted to stop them being used.

He said: "In reality, if they see children on a slide made of ice then they will salt it. It's the whole health and safety thing."

West Lothian Council said that "an enduring slip hazard" would be removed depending on whether it was in a particularly awkward place. The council added: "Disciplinary procedures are not generally relevant to harmless experimentation with the elements of nature."

Only one of the councils contacted and which supplied an answer said that children at their schools would be allowed to have slides in playgrounds. A spokesman at East Renfrewshire Council said: "There are no guidelines. Our children can go and slide."

Education officials have said that the modern culture of health and safety and the risk of being sued meant that schools had little option but to salt and sand the slides.

A Central Scotland head teacher said: "Nowadays you just can't take the risk of having a child having their head cut open by falling on a slide. The whole culture has totally changed and we can't have those kinds of dangers around schools. I do remember myself how much fun it was to make slides and play on them, but they should play on slides after school I'm afraid."

A spokesman for East Lothian Council said: "The main reason for the policy is because we have a duty of care to the children at our schools. That is the main issue here.

"There is also the issue of legal action which we all have to be aware of."

Kathleen Marshall, Scotland's Commissioner for Children and Young People, suggested a compromise should be found between teachers and pupils. She said: "My office is concerned about 'proportionate protection' which acknowledges that there is a need for some protection. It's all about assessing the risk and having a proportionate response. I can understand that those responsible for schools would be concerned about leaving potential health and safety hazards in the playgrounds, where they might present a risk to children, staff and visitors.

" I think it would be interesting to discuss the issue with the pupils, who may well manage to come up with some appropriate compromises."

Conkers gone bonkers

Last year it emerged that a school in Lanarkshire had banned pupils from playing with conkers because of fears of an allergic reaction. Some schools south of the Border have banned the pastime altogether because of the risk of splinters getting into eyes.

This recalls the ban on clackers which were such a hit in the 1970s.

A school in the south of England has banned paper planes in case they cause eye injuries.

Some playgrounds have had see-saws removed, and swings facing the sun have been moved because of the risk of eye damage.

Last year, Watford Borough Council banned the Guy Fawkes bonfire because they feared the harmful effects of smoke. And in Devon, a fire station was built without a pole fearing crews could be injured if they used one. Even in the military, changes have been made to assault courses - lowering climbing walls and placing mats under obstacles.

The perfect slide

To make the perfect slide, you don't need much of an incline, although it will help. Place your foot on the snow and begin rubbing it to compress it and make the surface slippery.

Continue to do this - with your pals - along the whole length of the slide until you have a shiny and slippery surface. For maximum speed, try coming down on a tin tray, rather than on shoes, but a plastic bag will do too.

Before leaving your slide for the night, cover it with as much cold water as possible. This should freeze overnight to produce even better results. Crisp bags or cups are ideal for carrying water, which should be poured thinly along the length of the slide rather than on one spot - you don't want to melt the ice you already have. Water thus applied will leave you with a glistening, super-slippery slide the following day.