Parents lose right to be notified if school staff use force on children

9 August 2010 1 min read Lauren Higgs Education

Schools will no longer be required tell parents when a member of staff uses force on their child following the government's decision to scrap legislation introduced under the last administration.

Last year, the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 established a duty on schools to keep records of when staff use force on a child.

The duty, which was set to come into force in September, would have also forced schools to report any such incidents to the child’s parents.

But the government has now introduced secondary legislation to prevent the requirement coming into force.

Carolyne Willow, national co-ordinator at the Children’s Rights Alliance for England, slammed the government for removing a "basic safeguard for children" without any explanation or public announcement.

"Parents will undoubtedly be shocked to hear that they have no right to be notified if a member of staff uses force on their child," she said. "The implications could be extremely serious, especially for very young children and some young disabled people who rely on teachers to share information with parents."

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