As a couple are now pointing out, it is usually not to do with ‘elf n safety gorn mad, guvnor.
It can regularly be issues of children in care, fostered, adopted or in protection. This I respect as a reason, and can be more common than you think.
The balanced view is to plead not use of online, social media or print media for the pics.

Weeks ago our lad won player of the week for his local (great) youth football club. They asked permission to take his pic/advertise it on their site as its a weekly thing, took his pic…..its still up there even though 4 other children have won it since.

Andyfla – how the devil are you? I’d suggest we meet up for a ride and a chat but not sure when I’m next free.

Cash – awfully well, come and join the saturday morning ride – gently potter round derbyshire with a cake stop in Crich – on top of your favourite hill !

Shouldn’t you be saving the downtrodden rather than commenting on here ?

The balanced view is to plead not use of online, social media or print media for the pics.

This makes more sense than the blanket ban IMHO and is the line I shall be pursuing.

we can take all the pictures we want, but are reminded that as some parents don’t want their kids pictures published, don’t put them on the internet etc.

works well for us.

Andyfla – single parent this weekend, will get in touch about another time. Which cafe though? The Loaf or the Tea Rooms? Never been in either, strangely.

Apologies for hijack

Cash – not sure tbh, the one next to the tramway museum, not bad at all

My son plays with a lovely little girl on our street. she is fostered and from a very “difficult” background we and every one else know not to put her or her carers at risk by taking photos. Seems perfectly sensible to me . We miss out on an occasional image but she gets a safe and secure home and to play in a “normal” world.

No matter what your intentions in the digital age once taken what happens to an image cannot be controlled.

Last place I taught, and I think it’s quite widespread, sent out a letter saying kids may be photographed in activities by the school, or parents if this was not ok they had to opt out. Two parents took this option. Made events with parents a pita but if teachers were taking photos the kids were asked to step out the frame. One kid had a no photos under any circumstances caveat, as he was a kidnap threat. Was a dozen or so years ago and there were Yugoslavian connections.

photography can be legaly restricted in such environments. But in a ‘normal’ (for want of a better word) school, this act doesn’t apply

what does ‘legal’ have to do with it? Isn’t it sufficient for someone to make a polite request and for that request to be politely granted?

I thought the point of send your kids to school was the hope they might leave school as better, kinder, more capable adults. Its difficult for that to happen if the example children’s parents set it to treat simple requests with smart-arsery, distain and disobedience.

I have to say, the most pleasurable experiences I had in the audience of school productions were the ones where parents were asked not to video/take pictures and respected the schools request.

+1 I was lucky enough for my kids to be a school just before the digital age so to speak so the issue never really came up, apart from end of year photos I think I have just one photo from sports day, don’t think mine or my kids lives are any poorer for it.

My daughters school took the opposite approach and said you could take photographs if you wanted and if you didn’t want your kid to be photographed then they could sit in the classroom.

Proper made up with their approach.

No internet posting of any photos though.

I was once taking pictures of the flyball team in Heaton Park (public park) with the the clubs permission when one woman said she did not want me to take pictures of her dog as it was like taking pictures of kids! 😯

I kid you not! I told her as we were in a public park (and so public space) I could take photos of whatever I wanted. She then stood in front of me while all the other members of the team did there stuff with their dogs.

It was an intresting conversation i had with the club memeber who had give me the orginal concent to take the photos when she did not get any for the clubs web site. FFS

There is no way I’d not take pictures and videos of my kids in stuff. If someone wants to complain about that to me so be it, sue me if you like. We used to have to sign waivers and show ID to take pictures of the kids at swimming events and I understand that but there is no way I’d miss the opportunity to have a few memories and to share with grandparents etc.

Lots of indignant outrage, thought I’d wandered into the Daily Wail pages…

… So, maybe there isn’t much the school can do, apart from to politely ask

But perhaps your conscience should wonder whether your irresponsible actions have resulted in a LAC being turned into a human golf club – perhaps years after being taken away from sadistic biological parents

My kids school lets you take pictures of the Xmas play and sports day as long as nothing goes on social media. If they do there will be an outright ban. It seems to be working so far.

rkk01 – Member
Lots of indignant outrage, thought I’d wandered into the Daily Wail pages…

… So, maybe there isn’t much the school can do, apart from to politely ask

But perhaps your conscience should wonder whether your irresponsible actions have resulted in a LAC being turned into a human golf club – perhaps years after being taken away from sadistic biological parents

Oh, the ironing…

Oh, the ironing…

Sorry, that’s lost on me – would you card to explain?

Whats wrong with just being a nice person and doing as you are asked?
Oh yeah, Britain in the 21st century.
I can’t think of a school that likes these things (only taught as supply in 63) but there will often be something that makes it happen. I know of several kids who cannot be photoed for a reason barely different from the case above. Stupid nanny state but that’s it.

Whats wrong with just being a nice person and doing as you are asked?

What’s wrong with the OP taking a few pictures of his kids at their play/spots day? It’s not against the law, as we’ve already ascertined.

Ultimately, the school/carers/guardians have a duty of care to the children they are charged with looking after. If there really is an issue with a child’s identity being protected, then it’s the duty of those agencies to ensure they are not photographed in such a way as to compromise their safety. It has nothing to do with any other parents; it’s just easier for the school to impose ‘rules’ to save themselves the hassle.

Personally, I’m more concerned with the insidious creeping malaise of social paranoia; can’t do this, mustn’t do that, that’s dangerous, etc. Banning parents from taking pics of their kids at school events is just another example of how we increasingly pander to such paranoia, whilst reality and facts are ignored. Is there an increase in child abuse because some parents take a few pics at a sports day? We need to get a grip and stop being so flipping edgy and twitchy.

It’s not quite elf and safety gone mad, but is it on the same spectrum?

I’m normally Mr Haveyouriskassessedit but that sounds like knee jerk bollocks to me.

At HTN we were asked by BC not to take or publish any pictures from the junior race. It wasn’t an issue as they were all butt-ugly.

My kids school lets you take pictures of the Xmas play and sports day as long as nothing goes on social media. If they do there will be an outright ban. It seems to be working so far.

This sounds like a decent halfway house.

Whats wrong with just being a nice person and doing as you are asked?

Nothing, but it works both ways. This particular head has form for being a lazy manager who takes the path of least resistance for her irrespective of the wishes of the majority.

Nothing, but it works both ways.

Like they organise a sports day invite parents along – you don’t take pictures as per their request

Nobody is concerned about CCTV coverage…no?…no?….carry on… 😀

The photos that make it to social media will be the only ones to exist for a while. The rest will be lost after about 5 years or the next mobile phone upgrade. Kids photos these days don’t last very long.

Stoffel speaks the truth -Social paranoia bollocks that actually discourages societal safety and demonises young people and child – adult friendship.

I’m wondering what, if an, legal restrictions may possibly be in place

It could, for example, be a term of the licence to enter the school’s land.

You could, also, not be a dick and make an assumption that the teachers aren’t total morons that say things for nothing.

No one is being a dick here …. There’s too much worrying about what might ( but doesn’t ) happen these days .

Ridiculous. OP go ahead mate … Take pics ! I would

There’s too much of people getting huffy about “their legal rights” and wanting to litigate things.

I struggle with long sentences again but did the OP actually ask the school about the reason for the request or did he just run straight to STW to seek some barrack room legal opinion to tell him what he already believed?

I’m inclined to agree, I’d suggest that schools are public places (just like a public library) and as such you have every right to take photos of your, and other people’s, kids, with good reason of course! That’s still rightly covered by laws regarding the content and use of those images but theres no reasonable reason not to. For the odd “kid can’t be identified” situation – harsh as it sounds the majority shouldn’t suffer for the tiny minority -pull that kid out of the day instead.

Any child can be photographed at any point by anyone on the street, unless you hide them day and night you’re not going to stop them being scattered all over social media now or in the next 20 years. People should get a grip and put things into perspective. And if you want your kid not to be photographed by loving parents of other kids, YOU can explain to them why they can’t be at a photographed event.

It could, for example, be a term of the licence to enter the school’s land.

I don’t believe schools are “private” property where the owner has the right to dictate terms of entry.

Also, its not about being a dick, its about not bowing to paranoia and knee jerk reactions but viewing it logically and applying policies that protect the minority that need it without inconveniencing the majority who don’t.

Some parents didn’t want their children photographed by other parents and one of the Christmas Plays our children were in.

Our school waited until the end of the play and then organized for all the children who’s parents consented to pictures being taken to stand and have their photos taken – either alone or in groups (of Angels etc), still in costume and against background scenery etc. It worked very well and we got some beautiful pictures.

I assume the children who’s parents who didn’t want them photographed were ushered out of the hall before they realised that they were being treated differently? Otherwise that would open up a whole other can of worms . . . .

I assume the children who’s parents who didn’t want them photographed were ushered out of the hall before they realised that they were being treated differently? Otherwise that would open up a whole other can of worms . . . .

Before they realised that by being sanctimonious dicks they had deprived themselves of some very nice memories.

Speaking as someone who’s a bit out of touch because his children are grown up, what exactly is the ‘worry’ over having your children photographed running a race or acting in a play?

SST the thread is only two pages a couple of explanations have been given . In today’s bad world children who are at risk or vulnerable for various reasons mix with other children in normal schools . If images of them appear on social media by accident they may be identified and located and come to harm . So three solution s option a make their lives worse and add to their misery and stigma by excluding them from school events as some suggest above option b a simple easy and harmless rule don’t take photos or option c a difficult to enforce and impossible to police take photos but don’t allow the photos on to social media or other publication.
A photo of your child at school is really not so important that another child should have to be taken out of a happy foster placement move towns and schools and go back into care.

Seems like our school got it right then. No one who wanted them was forced to go without photos and no one was put at risk.

no one was put at risk.

How do you know?

You reckon they’re public property where anybody has a right to be then? 😯