Schools ‘must ban harmful rugby contact’

SCHOOLS SHOULD ban “harmful contact” from rugby games, experts have said.

In a piece published in a leading medical journal, academics said that tackles and scrums should be prohibited on school playing fields.

Allyson Pollock and Graham Kirkwood from the Institute of Health at Newcastle University argue that most injuries in youth rugby occur due to the collision elements of the game. Writing in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), they said that ministers should “put the interests of the child before those of corporate professional rugby unions”.

Removing collision from school rugby is likely to “reduce and mitigate the risk of injury” in pupils, they said. They argue that a history of concussion is associated with the “lowering of a person’s life chances” across measures including low educational achievement and premature death.

Meanwhile, a head injury is linked to an increased risk of dementia.

Commenting on the article, Professor Tara Spires-Jones, UK Dementia Research Institute programme lead and deputy director of the Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, said: “Very strong, reproducible evidence supports a greater risk of dementia in people who have head injuries, which urges caution in games where there is a risk of head injury.

A Department for Education spokeswoman said: “Schools have the flexibility to offer a diverse PE curriculum which suits the needs of their students.

“We expect schools to be aware of all of the risks associated with sporting activities.”