petal wrote:For me the issue is the lack of notification to the parent rather than the issue of having a medical examination. Agree with the GP comment.
Could you imagine picking your child up from state school one day and hear that there had been a genital examination without you hearing about it?

To the OP:
Given your feelings regarding the examination behind closed doors, are you sure that you want to send your child away full stop?
I mean, forget the examination, you will be sending your child away "behind closed doors" for years!
I personally would never do this, it goes against all my parental instincts.
However you dress is up, however fancy the school is, it's an institution.
People are willingly taking their children from a family setting to an institution.
I've seen grown men still affected by this separation, it's not a joke.
To me the whole concept of boarding school is outdated and from an era when parents were not as hands on and not even that affectionate towards children in general.
Why would a modern day parent opt for this?
I want to see my children EVERY DAY, I want to see their faces, kiss them goodnight, give them a cuddle, laugh with them, talk to them when they are upset, why would you deny yourself and the children this?
Children belong in a family setting.
Education cannot be more important than family.
I just look back at how I was at that young age, I cannot think of anything more daunting or horrific than my parents sending me off to a boarding school.

This is how I see it. And just wonder if it's a good idea for someone who is not happy to hand over control of your child to a school. This is what you are doing by sending them off. For me it's bad enough that "normal" school get to tell you when to go on holiday.

riccione wrote:As has already been posted, this is an entirely normal procedure, and as someone who had testicular cancer as a teenager i can't emphasise enough how important it is that our boys have their testicles checked as they reach puberty and beyond - i wish to god i had!

To the initial poster, i would say that if you're worried then either ask if you could be present or arrange for a chaperone to be. And to the second and third posters on this thread (who i suspect are the same person), i'd love to know exactly what your involvement in child protection is and why you'd respond to this standard procedure in such an alarmist way.

petal wrote:For me the issue is the lack of notification to the parent rather than the issue of having a medical examination. Agree with the GP comment.
Could you imagine picking your child up from state school one day and hear that there had been a genital examination without you hearing about it?

To the OP:
Given your feelings regarding the examination behind closed doors, are you sure that you want to send your child away full stop?
I mean, forget the examination, you will be sending your child away "behind closed doors" for years!
I personally would never do this, it goes against all my parental instincts.
However you dress is up, however fancy the school is, it's an institution.
People are willingly taking their children from a family setting to an institution.
I've seen grown men still affected by this separation, it's not a joke.
To me the whole concept of boarding school is outdated and from an era when parents were not as hands on and not even that affectionate towards children in general.
Why would a modern day parent opt for this?
I want to see my children EVERY DAY, I want to see their faces, kiss them goodnight, give them a cuddle, laugh with them, talk to them when they are upset, why would you deny yourself and the children this?
Children belong in a family setting.
Education cannot be more important than family.
I just look back at how I was at that young age, I cannot think of anything more daunting or horrific than my parents sending me off to a boarding school.

This is how I see it. And just wonder if it's a good idea for someone who is not happy to hand over control of your child to a school. This is what you are doing by sending them off. For me it's bad enough that "normal" school get to tell you when to go on holiday.

Siansnowden wrote:Hi
I really do understand the view that I am cynical but the sad fact is that some people and of course not the vast majority will abuse their power to be inappropriate with children; this is irrelevant of profession, class, culture etc. I have provided an exmplw of Myles Bradbury ( please google this) who excelled in his field as a paediatric oncologist but who have many children who had cancer a genital examination which was never medically needed. He totally admitted his sexual interest in children and is now in prison. It is completely expected that one would sent hat this happens but I am said to say it does and I have come across it countless times due to my work. If mum speaks to the LADO anonymously at first to see what it would involve and then think about the next step but Please, please don't do nothing; you will regret it. I am not saying this GP is a perpetrator but it may be an inappropriate medical examination based on old fashioned practice at the most but it is concerning enough to pursue. Good Luck; if you contact the admin of this site, she can put you in touch with me and I am happy to talk it through. Please also Google Southbank International School, Westminster. I would like to reiterate that this is not cynicism but keeping an open mind and let the LADO do its job.

Bluerose20 wrote:As far as I understand it, this is quite common. I suppose your first reaction in this situation is to be uncomfortable but I assume the examination will be done by a qualified doctor, as regulated by the General Medical Council, and is in the interest of the duty of care the school owes to your son. As your son is a full boarder, any examination to ensure your son is healthy will be comprehensive. I find it dreadfully sad that such examinations, when a party is trying to act prudently in ensuring the health of your child, is met with such grave cynicism. A testes examination is a standard medical test for males.