Why loom bands are being banned at schools
Blue fingers anyone? Painful reasons for the banning - but craze divides schools and parents
Loom bands – the tiny colourful rubber bands that children spend hours making into bracelets – are being banned by schools across the country. Reasons for the bans range from the painful (loom bands being used as catapults, ouch) to the dangerous (choking and circulation fears) to the simply breaking school rules.
Health and safety concerns were the reason behind the ban at Furness Acadamy in Cumbria, according to the North-West Evening Mail.
Some pupils used them as catapults around classrooms, a teacher said.
Meanwhile, a GP has warned the bands could damage children’s circulation, after a boy in Bristol fell asleep with the bands wrapped around his fingers and turned them blue, according to the Daily Mail.
“They could be a choking hazard or cause circulatory problems if children swallow or wrap them round their fingers for any length of time,” Dr Anne-Marie Houlder, a senior GP in Stafford said.
“Parents need to be aware of the potential dangers if children are left unattended.”In Swindon, school pupils have been banned from wearing their bracelets on site as they breach uniform rules.
“We don’t allow any jewellery in school so children aren’t allowed to wear them as they are not part of uniform,” Millbrook Primary School headteacher, Karen Pyman said, according to the Swindon Advertiser.
“The only jewellery we allow is a watch. We know some of our pupils enjoy making loom bands and we encourage them to continue doing that outside school.”
MFMers have mixed opinions on the crafty craze pinging around school playgrounds.
“Our school has limited them to wearing two bands and that’s it. It’s good to see the kids (boys and girls) playing with them instead of computers or iPads,” one MFMer commented on our Facebook page.
“My daughters motor skills are not great and I think activities like this help so I'm in favour of them,” another MFMer said.
So what do you think? Have loom bands been banned at your child's school? Let us know in the comments below!
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