Health and Safety FAQs:
Am I allowed to let my child play with conkers?
Response: You may only allow your child to play a game of conkers if they are wearing the appropriate safety goggles.
Is my child allowed to use a floatation device in a public swimming pool?
Response: No your child may not use a floatation device because if the float knocks into another swimmer it could cause them to drown.
Is my child allowed to bring a pencil case to school?
Response: No your child may not bring a pencil case into school in case they try to hide sharp objects like scissors or a pencil sharpener in it.
Am I allowed to let my child carry a flaming torch through the streets with thousands of other people, with no safety goggles, no safety instructions and no supervision?
Response: Yes of course, it’s bonfire night
In our cotton wool society where children can hardly blink without us worrying that they are over exerting themselves, or putting unnecessary pressure on their eyeballs, I was stunned by the complete disregard for health and safety at the torch light parade last weekend. Flaming torches were handed out to adults, and children alike, with no safety warnings or instructions on how to make sure you did not burn yourself or those around you.
Initially I thought the idea of holding a torch sounded fantastic, and like hundreds of other, battled my way through the crowds to ensure I would be able to get one. And then almost instantaneously I regretted the decision and wanted to put it out. At 19, I was the youngest of my friends there than night, and as adults we were all extremely cautious not to accidently set someone alight while dodging the burning embers that were showering down on us. Each of us began to wonder what on earth had made us think it was going to be a good idea.
Meanwhile children as young as three and four were weaving through the crowds, in a hyped up, squealing frenzy holding what one child described as a “fire gun.” I can only imagine that the aspect of danger to their games, in comparison the bombardment of safety regulations in other aspects of their lives, was enough to make them completely out of control. They raced through hoards of adults, holding their torches high, annoying at eye level with most of the adults. This is of course with the exception of the child still in a buggy, waving a torch around which was more likely to set fire to someone’s knees than their hair.
The parents who allowed their children to run around with torches may have had no concern for health and safety, but one father quite literally took his disregard for safety to new heights. He thought nothing of carrying his child on his shoulders through the parade. This may not have been such a bad idea if the boy had not been wearing one of those bright orange, highly flammable jackets, the ones that make children look like the Michelin man. The father had raised his child to flame height, in a flammable jacket, in a crowd of thousands, a health and safety nightmare. But nothing happened.
The night had health and safety violations left, right and centre and still nothing happened. To this day I still cannot decide whether I am more shocked that children were allowed to run around with flaming torches, or impressed that for at least one night genuinely no one cared about the health and safety laws that dominate society.
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