Chaos at school gates: Pupils climb fences to protest against head’s new ‘prison’ rules including lesson suspensions for being two minutes late, laddering their tights or asking to go to the toilet – as parents join demo and police are called in
- Students at Camborne Academy protested against the school’s ‘harsh’ rules
- Pupils were filmed chanting ‘school is s**t’ over the academy’s ‘prison’ rules
Parents and students launched a protest over ‘harsh’ rules at a secondary school in Cornwall which they claim has students suspended for asking to go to the toilet and having laddered tights.
Students complained Camborne Science and International Academy has become a ‘prison’ after children were thrown out of lessons for being just two minutes late.
Parents and pupils said the strict rules have seen children put in ‘reflection’ for minor infractions including yawning, going to the toilet, and having laddered tights.
Videos posted on TikTok show pupils climbing school fences to join the protest and chanting ‘school is s**t’ in opposition to the new rules.
Police were later called to the students’ revolt as the academy’s headteacher said the rules are ‘vital’ for the school’s ‘wellbeing and success’.
Videos show pupils gathered at the gates of Camborne Science and International Academy
Pupils and parents launched a protest following complaints the school had become a ‘prison’
Parents gathered outside the school as police attended the protest at Camborne Academy
Videos posted on TikTok showed dozens of students marching through Camborne Academy as parent’s gathered outside the gates in a protest which was reportedly organised over social media.
A caption on one video reads: ‘POV your school had a protest bc of the school becoming a prison with gates locked everyday.’
Parents and pupils have complained students have been put in ‘reflection’ for going to the toilet as they slammed the academy’s ‘ridiculous’ rules.
The mother of one pupil told the BBC her son was ‘crying because we had car trouble and it was literally breaking his heart as he was afraid about getting… suspended’.
Another mother complained the school’s rules are enforced on a blanket basis, with no distinction between minor infractions and more serious breaches of the rules.
‘It’s the way they’re being enforced, there is no distinction between being two minutes late to class, literally two minutes late, and throwing a chair,’ the mother said.
Parents said students have been left feeling anxious by the school’s ‘military-style’ approach to bad behaviour and the ‘severe’ punishments being handed out, according to Cornwall Live.
They claimed children are now being given daily detentions for wearing trousers that were previously deemed appropriate and being reprimanded for taking their blazers off during the heatwave or failing to have a clear pencil case.
Parents also said children were punished for small infractions including yawning and for failure to pay enough attention in class.
In ‘reflection’, students are expected to copy lines out of textbooks for two entire lesson periods – without stopping for lunch, a glass of water, or a toilet break.
If students fail to complete the ‘reflection’ detentions they are then suspended, parents claim.
Pupils were filmed storming out the academy chanting ‘school is s***’ in protest against the rules
Students and parents launched a protest against ‘harsh’ rules at Camborne Academy in Cornwall
The protests come as parents have raised concerns the academy in Cornwall may join the controversial Athena Learning Trust, which is known for its strict rules and its use of ‘reflection’ to enforce them.
Head teacher Emma Haase (pictured) said the rules are vital for the ‘wellbeing and success of the whole school community’
Head teacher Emma Haase said it is vital for the school’s wellbeing that behavioural incidents are kept to a minimum, as she urged concerned parents to contact the school directly.
‘For the wellbeing and success of the whole school community it is vital that individuals’ issues relating to punctuality, behaviour, uniform and organisation are kept to a minimum,’ she told the BBC.
‘As always, if any parents or carers have questions about how a policy is applied in a specific instance… they are encouraged to contact the academy directly.’
A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said: ‘Officers were made aware of a protest at Camborne Science and International Academy involving pupils taking place on school grounds on Wednesday, September 20.
‘Local officers attended to speak with the school to give advice on ensuring that the protest remained safe. This is a school matter and there are no follow-up matters for the police in relation to this.’
Camborne Science and International Academy was contacted by MailOnline for comment.
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