Goggles banned at school swimming lessons

[chris watton]

report in DT said:

Pen-pushers have slapped the ban on the swimming aids amid "fears" a pair could "snap" onto a child's face too hard, injuring them.

Parents branded the ruling by Oxfordshire County Council's healthy and safety brigade as "nutty" and "extreme."

However, bureaucrats defended its no-goggle policy claiming that it reflected national guidance provided by sports bodies.

Children will now need a medical reason for them to be allowed to wear the protective eye wear in the pool during school lessons.

Teenage swimmer Danni McFadden, aged 13 years, said: "It hurts my eyes if we swim without them and I go in the water."

More....

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews...

The mind boggles! (or is it goggles...)

[steviejasp]

How short sighted is that?

[Theoldfm]

Yes, my little lad is a member of a swimming club and always wears goggles - he wont swim without them.

He was picked to swim in the school gala last week and we had to sign a disclaimer in order to allow him to wear his goggles - bonkers!!

Edited by Theoldfm on Friday 25th February 19:26

[TheEnd]

"it reflected national guidance provided by sports bodies. "

I bet they said something entirely different, just some safety guy wanted to make his name.

[BliarOut]

Utterly ridiculous, you can't swim competitively without goggles.

[Victor McDade]

report in DT said:

Children will now need a medical reason for them to be allowed to wear the protective eye wear in the pool during school lessons.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews...

Will not wanting other people's piss in your eyes be a valid reason?

[carmonk]

article said:

"fears" a pair could "snap" onto a child's face too hard, injuring them

What exactly does this mean? I swam with goggles for many years and they didn't 'snap' into my face at any velocity, let alone 'too hard'.

[neilski]

What about when kids smack their head at the end of the pool because they can't judge where to turn accurately?

[fluffnik]

This is what happens when redundant posts are kept occupied - no overstaffing, no such nonsense...

[HereBeMonsters]

BliarOut said:

Utterly ridiculous, you can't swim competitively without goggles.

Just to be the exception that proves the rule, I used to swim competitively without goggles all the time. Went to the Nationals in Sheffield, and I wasn't the only one there without them.

Always wore them for training though. Otherwise chlorine poisoning.

[carmonk]

In relation to this health and safety nonsense I remember in the early 80s, when I was about 13, a group of us used to have swimming lessons at the local pool. Part of the lessons included diving. Trouble was, the pool only had one diving board and that was only a couple of feet above the water, so we all used to follow the instructor up to the public balcony in our swimming gear, climb over the the rail one-by-one, balance on the 2" wide edge ten feet above the tiles then dive out into the pool. I somehow doubt that would be allowed now.

[BliarOut]

carmonk said:

In relation to this health and safety nonsense I remember in the early 80s, when I was about 13, a group of us used to have swimming lessons at the local pool. Part of the lessons included diving. Trouble was, the pool only had one diving board and that was only a couple of feet above the water, so we all used to follow the instructor up to the public balcony in our swimming gear, climb over the the rail one-by-one, balance on the 2" wide edge ten feet above the tiles then dive out into the pool. I somehow doubt that would be allowed now.

Peterborough by any chance?

[carmonk]

BliarOut said:

carmonk said:

In relation to this health and safety nonsense I remember in the early 80s, when I was about 13, a group of us used to have swimming lessons at the local pool. Part of the lessons included diving. Trouble was, the pool only had one diving board and that was only a couple of feet above the water, so we all used to follow the instructor up to the public balcony in our swimming gear, climb over the the rail one-by-one, balance on the 2" wide edge ten feet above the tiles then dive out into the pool. I somehow doubt that would be allowed now.

Peterborough by any chance?

About 200 miles north

[BliarOut]

carmonk said:

BliarOut said:

carmonk said:

In relation to this health and safety nonsense I remember in the early 80s, when I was about 13, a group of us used to have swimming lessons at the local pool. Part of the lessons included diving. Trouble was, the pool only had one diving board and that was only a couple of feet above the water, so we all used to follow the instructor up to the public balcony in our swimming gear, climb over the the rail one-by-one, balance on the 2" wide edge ten feet above the tiles then dive out into the pool. I somehow doubt that would be allowed now.

Peterborough by any chance?

About 200 miles north

Ah, we used to do a similar thing

[carmonk]

Back in the days where kids were allowed to have fun

[BliarOut]

You could sit up there having a fag then dive in once general swim was over

[Marf]

http://www.prescription-swimming-goggles.co.uk/

An achilles heel in the H&S madness?

[dandarez]

Made the front page of today's Mail (no, not the Wail)... the 'Oxford' Mail.

It's just what we have come to expect from Oxfordshire County Council - it's usually mind bgoggling!

Bunch of .....!

[Tsippy]

If I couldn't wear goggles when swimming I'd have had to stop as the water made my eyes too sore.

What a load of fking st, just more evidence that further cuts are needed to local councils.

[Oakey]

They can still put chlorine in the water right, that's not banned yet is it? I mean, so long as a kid doesn't get 'goggles snapped in his face' that's all that matters, irritating chlorine in the eyes is acceptable I'm guessing?