Parents are unhappy about a school’s choice to introduce unisex toilets with CCTV cameras inside the restroom.
They think it is “over the top”.
Students of all ages and gender share the toilet blocks at Buckler’s Mead Academy in Yeovil, Somerset.
A few students claim surveillance cameras inside the “communal areas” of the restroom point towards the cubical entryways – in what’s been named a “breach of privacy”.
But the staff at the school say the cameras are essential in view of vandalism and fighting occurring.
One father asserted four students including his child had been prohibited from the school for harming the cameras.
The father, who did not want to be named, told the Daily Mail: “The school believes they broke the cameras.
“We have been told the cameras have been put into the toilets for safety reasons because there have been fights and graffiti in the toilets.
“I don’t care what has happened, there should not be cameras in the toilet area.”
A mom whose daughter is at the school, attended by children aged 11 to 16, said the decision was “wrong on so many levels.”
She added: “I’m absolutely disgusted that CCTV has been put in the toilets. This is a breach of privacy.”
Another parent told Somerset Live that schoolgirls, in particular, are worried by the move.
They said: “The girls are worried about their safety and privacy.”
Headteacher Sara Gorrod added that the use of CCTV was appropriate to fight “unacceptable” damage caused by vandals.
She said: “There has been some social media discussion suggesting we have CCTV which films inside the toilet cubicles.
“This is not the case – there are cameras in the communal places outside the cubicles in some areas of the academy.
“This is due to the fact these areas have been used inappropriately by some students in the past. The damage they have caused is unacceptable.
“These [single-use toilet cubicles] provide maximum privacy for students. They have full-length doors and sides. Most cubicles also have their own private wash-hand basin.”
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