Parents and schools hail proposed safety steps
Regulations will ensure mechanism for dealing with child abuse
Abu Dhabi: Concerned parents and heads of schools from across the capital on Sunday welcomed the proposed regulations by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) against child abuse.
They said the move would create a clear and much-needed framework for dealing with and preventing cases of abuse.
According to Adec, the new regulations will require schools to develop a mechanism for dealing with and reporting cases of child abuse.
It will also entrust principals as guardians of all children enrolled at private schools, and will include provisions like cameras and Global Positioning System (GPS) devices to improve safety in school buses.
Strong measures
"Hearing about child abuse cases worries all parents, which is why I am especially happy to know that Adec is taking such strong measures to prevent it. I will feel less worried sending my seven-year-old son to school," said Leena Lathish, a 33-year-old mother from India.
While parents believed the regulations would make schools more accountable and enhance child safety, principals and headmistresses hailed the clarity it would provide.
Peter Lugg, principal of The Cambridge High School Abu Dhabi, told Gulf News it had previously been unclear who to go to when cases of abuse and neglect came to light.
"When it came to reporting abuse and neglect, there was previously a grey area, and this regulation will clarify that as well as give schools the legitimacy to act," Lugg said.
"Our school has had a child protection policy in place for the past four years now, which specifies how to deal with and report any cases of abuse. And as per Adec regulations, we will now ensure that the company which manages our 25 school buses installs camera and GPS devices at the earliest," he added.
Jihan Nasr, superintendent of the Abu Dhabi International School, said the school's buses had attendants who were mostly women and qualified in handling children of all ages. "We take special care of every child enrolled at our school, and will implement these regulations by Adec as soon as possible," she added.
