Schools must look after kids

I will never again with confidence send my son on a school excursion. I will never again believe his teachers can keep him safe.

The drowning of a Parktown Boys’ pupil was, for me, more than the affordability of a life jacket. I simply ask how competent are the people we leave our kids with? Bucket-loads of questions filled my mind as the story broke.

As we discussed the drowning at the office water cooler, one thing was for sure: we all believed the supervisors of the camp, the adults who were meant to act as parents in the absence of the biological moms and dads, failed – and failed dismally.

So many mistakes were made; life-changing mistakes that were avoidable. Adult responsibility failed – and today a family mourns a young boy.

Was a clear policy in place requiring all boys to wear life vests? Would it not have been the responsibility of the camp to provide the vests? Should boys without vests have participated in this activity at all? Should questions not have been asked about whether or not each boy could swim and whether or not he was a strong swimmer? And were any camp facilitators trained as lifeguards in the event of an emergency such as this?

Adequate supervision surely requires that a roll call take place before and after each activity. Having seen the final letter sent to parents by the school before the camp it was clear: there was never any mention of lifejackets.

Courts have repeatedly held that where a child is under the care of the school, including while on school camps, the staff owe the children in their care a legal duty to protect them from physical harm.

This legal duty arises from the school’s assumption of its role in loco parentis, meaning in the place of a parent. Does an indemnity form absolve the school of such responsibility? When I went to Grade 6 camp, I had my first panic attack. But I was in competent hands: there was constant communication with home… I was in safe hands – and that’s what camps should be – a home away from home. This could have all ended so differently…

Kekeletso Nakeli-Dhliwayo.

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