Dear Parent / Carer
We have received communication regarding the accessibility to toilets at Ballakermeen. I understand the concerns raised and wanted to share with you some details of the situation and hopefully some reassurance.
Unfortunately, there have been a few incidents involving damage to the toilets in recent weeks. We have applied appropriate sanctions on those involved however the damage has led us to have to take the difficult decision to close some of our facilities which have been left unsafe. Please be assured that there are always several toilets open throughout the school day which include male, female and individual facilities that can be used by anyone. We will always ensure that we have the maximum number of facilities available, and I would hope that there should be no reason as to why a student is unable to use a toilet. We have now set up a live internal system to track which toilets are open and available and which are not to ensure that student needs are met.
There is also a separate issue regarding students congregating in toilets. This is not acceptable as it can be intimidating for other students and is often when other poor behaviour choices are made. We would ask that any instances of poor or intimidating behaviour should be reported to a member of staff at the soonest opportunity. To address this issue, we have adjusted our duty supervision rota to provide a greater presence from our breaktime duty staff. It is not however possible to supervise all the toilet areas all the time so I would ask that each family individually speaks with their children to ensure that they understand what is acceptable and what is not. If each of our students individually makes positive behaviour choices, then collectively we will enjoy a better environment in which to study and to work.
Graeme Corrin
Headteacher