Re: Childrens swings. Prevent chains tangling?

In alt.home.repair on Sat, 19 Jul 2003 18:26:11 +0100 "gandalf" posted:

>> Do it your selfers/home repairers please help. >> Six swings in local school yard suspended by chains. Good strong >> commercially built equipment, built of galvanized tubing set into >> the ground. Overall structure is fine. >> Some teens deliberately swing seats up and over and around etc. >> and tangle the chains them so swings become unusable. >> Haven't we all done it, or tried, at some time? :-) Yeah, for >> sure. You did so! >-----------

Parish is right. I was well-behaved too, and for that matter, I went to public schools for 12 years in two cities and never even saw a fight. Or vandalism. Or teasing. Admittedly this was the 50' and

60's but I don't think things have changed at either school. And we had one girl who stuttered, and two who never knew the answer, and we all sat their patiently until the teachers decided they had had enough time to answer. Even though in the fifth grade I had heard the saying "Children can be so cruel", I never saw it.
Presumably these teens do this outside of the school's normal hours. That being

But kids use playgrounds all weekend and after school too.

I think the school should hide snipers nearby and when the teenagers have clearly started to do this, shoot 'em.

The rubber hose idea is good, assuming they don't slit the hose, and most won't. But it should be done on both chains of a swing. Normally the chain is straight during swinging (although you might want to take some slow-motion video to confirm this, and save it for the lawsuit), but even a small change that is applied to only one side could set the swing to rolling sideways and knocking someone off.

Do one swing and see if the hose is stiff enough to keep.... it will probably work the second time, but I'm not sure it will work the first time and if it doesn't, it won't help

the case you could disable the swings and stop their 'fun' by threading a bar >through all the seats and then fixing that, at either end, to the galvanised >frame using motorbike locks.

OK I don't really expect you to shoot them. Maybe catch them.

Should work, should be cheap and reasonably easy to fit and remove, for those >with keys that is. > >The integrity of the swing is not affected and neither is the playground surface >so you should avoid the very real problems regarding insurance and liability as >described by parish. > > >

Meirman

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Reply to
meirman
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Thanks for the replies. As I feared there is a lot of apprehension about liability. Enough to discourage anyone from doing anything! Although at my age my overall reputation is either already made or already ruined! {Just a moment officer, please ......} So I don't care as much about that as I once did! But would be bloody nuisance to have sell the house to pay a lawyer since I was a) Going to live in it for a while yet and b) Give it to my son (if it's any use to him).

For info; the swings are in an area open 24 hours, there are no teaching staff after around 4.00 PM even when school is in session. At this time of year even the maintenance staff are doing repairs at various other schools or are on vacation! There is no security staffing at all! There is a sign that says "Use at own risk". Oh, by the way there was a very interesting and, precedent setting AFIK, legal case in Labrador-Newfoundland, Canada recently, where the judge ordered the parents of a teenager responsible for deliberate damage to a school to pay $7000 for repairs. Right on!

While glad to hear/see everyone were such 'goody, goody two shoes' while at school maybe some 'hell raiser' could reply with some swinging suggestions?

Thanks everyone, so far anyway. Terry.

Reply to
Terry

Hello Terry

Not me!

(Didn't see me, can't prove anything)

Think of bike securing chains. They're encased in a plastic tube which prevents tangling. I'd guess a thickish hose slid over the links would still give enough flexibility to be usable, but prevent such tangling.

Reply to
Simon Avery

"Terry" wrote [galdalf wrote, up the thread] | the case you could disable the swings and stop their 'fun' by threading a bar | through all the seats and then fixing that, at either end, to the galvanised | frame using motorbike locks. | The integrity of the swing is not affected and neither is the playground surface | so you should avoid the very real problems regarding insurance and liability as | described by parish.

I agree

| For info; the swings are in an area open 24 hours, there are no | teaching staff after around 4.00 PM even when school is in | session. At this time of year even the maintenance staff are | doing repairs at various other schools or are on vacation! There | is no security staffing at all!

It's probably only a few delinquents doing this regularly. If it is possible to put in a temporary CCTV camera with video recording, it may be possible to identify them and 'have a word'.

| There is a sign that says "Use at own risk".

Unfortunately (certainly in British law) you cannot limit or exclude liability for death or injury.

Owain

Reply to
Owain

Sad to say, the school my wife teaches at also has a similar ban - for all activities. Basically, to protect themselves against being sued by (idiot) parents, they asked "if anyone objects please tell us". A couple of parents did. So to be safe the blanket ban was issued. Don't blame the school, or the head, blame the parents who insist on this ruling. It causes more trouble for the school than it does for the parents. As regards High Court injunctions, please don't drag the school to court. It just syphons money from the school to the lawyer's pockets, and nobody wins. Neil

Reply to
Neil

The same thing in the article in the paper; the guy featured had lots of parents supporting him but only a few supporting the school.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't we live in a democracy where the wishes of the majority prevail? Maybe the definition of democracy has changed to be "the majority defer to the minority for fear of being sued".

Anyway, wouldn't the few parents of those who don't wish their children to appear in photos/videos have to sue (or obtain an injunction against) those taking the pictures?

You are correct, but pictures (still or motion) of things like Sports Days are a record of your child's life and something that many (most?) parents would treasure.

When my father died recently I inherited reels and reels of 8mm cine film (and the videos he'd had them transferred to) of my, and my sister's, childhood - holidays, Sports Days, village fetes, etc. Priceless IMO (my kids think they're hilarious). Why should any parent be denied these memories?

Reply to
parish

I agree entirely. We have many treasured photos of our children taken over the years, including some at school. As you say, it's the majority deferring to the hysteria of the vocal minority. Perhaps parents who want to take pictures should (although I couldn't possibly suggest ;) ) take the photos / films regardless, and in any parent objects just say they'll crop any pictures of their child ... or "sue me" ... No doubt the school would step back, say "we said what we wanted" and let the parents sort it out. ho hum, such is (sometimes stoopid) life. Neil

Reply to
Neil

Of course the correct way to address this, assuming the objectors *are* the minority, is for the school to allow those parents to withdraw their children from the event(s). Of course I no doubt that these parents would start bleating about their childrens' right to take part in the activity.

I am of the firm belief that this country, if not the whole world, is going bloody mad :-(

Reply to
parish

In alt.home.repair on Sun, 20 Jul 2003 13:13:14 +0100 "Owain" posted:

Wouldn't work in the US either with children (below a certain age?)

Even when kids are trespassing, such as at your backyard swimming pool. It's called an attractive nuisance. Insurance companies and homeowners with any sense and any chance of a kid arriving insist on fences around pools or around the yard the pool is in.

Meirman

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Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

Reply to
meirman

I thought it was a brilliant idea, it might mean that the parents actually watched their children rather than spending vast amounts of time and effort recording them for posterity and annoying everyone else into the bargain. Video recorders at school events are a pain in the backside.

Reply to
usenet

Now, why didn't I think of that?

- Figmo

Reply to
Figmo

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