Ebbw Fawr Learning Community in Blaenau Gwent introduced a toilet chaperone policy for secondary-age pupils in response to significant vandalism costs and excessive classroom absences. The school initially stated that all secondary students requesting toilet access during lessons would be accompanied by a pastoral team member to the toilet block entrance.
After consultation with 50 pupil representatives, the school narrowed the policy to apply only to students on stage three of its behaviour policy or those with persistent attendance issues. The Welsh government noted that councils establish school toilet policies and emphasized they must be accessible to all learners throughout the school day, accounting for pupils’ basic needs.
Molly Fenton, founder of the Love Your Period campaign, has expressed concern about the arrangement. The 24-year-old from Cardiff argued the policy poses risks to students and could amplify existing stigmas surrounding toilet use in schools. She warned that young people already face barriers to accessing school toilets due to embarrassment and that adding a chaperone requirement would likely worsen the situation, particularly for students managing menstruation or other health matters.
Fenton recounted her own school experiences with periods, describing situations where she felt uncertain about how to manage her needs while at school. She suggested that young people would be unlikely to confide in chaperones about sensitive health issues, especially given reduced trust in authority figures following the pandemic. She called for cultural change to create school environments where toilet use is free from shame and stigma.
The school stated that vandalism by a small number of pupils had resulted in thousands of pounds in damages in recent months. The chaperone arrangement was designed to address incidents most prevalent during lessons adjacent to the lunch break.
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