UPDATE: Thame Headteacher accuses national newspaper of ‘false reporting’
On 18/04/2018 At 5:28 pm
Category : Missed a ThameNews story?, More News, Thame news
Responses : One Comment
FOLLOWING a report in The Sun newspaper, about an incident involving drug-taking at Lord Williams’s School, in Thame, the Headteacher, David Wybron, has issued the following response: (SINCE this article was posted, Mr Wybron has confirmed that some pupils were excluded from the school)
“In response to the article in The Sun newspaper last week, it was very disappointing to read such false reporting concerning a prescription drugs incident at the school. The report was inaccurate in many areas:
No student was coughing up blood
No student was taken to hospital
No student passed out.
“The truth is that staff were very professional in how they dealt with the incident, recognising that a small group of students were unwell. Paramedics attended our Oxford Road site and parents were contacted immediately. They were very appreciative of how a team of staff supported their children. On the day of the incident, which was Thursday, March 15, the parents/carers of students in Years 10, 11, 12 and 13 were contacted by the Headteacher with the following message:
“Dear Parents/Carers
A small group of Year 11 students were taken ill this afternoon having taken prescription medication, supplied by person(s) unknown, at lunchtime in Thame.
The students received medical attention in school and are all now safely at home. We do not know if other students may have taken this substance. Medical advice is that we alert parents/carers of Upper School students to what has happened. Symptoms seen today included severe lethargy, slurred speech and sluggish movement. If you are concerned about your son/daughter, please contact the NHS 111 service for medical advice.
I am grateful to the staff members who dealt with this incident in such a professional way. It is a pity the report in The Sun newspaper was not constructed as professionally. The school sends very clear messages to students about the dangers of drug taking and the sanctions of doing so. What we cannot control is the availability of drugs, including prescription medicine, outside school, and the fact that a very small minority of students are prepared to risk taking something, which can cause harm.
David Wybron.”
The report in the Sun Newspaper on April 8 (updated on April 9), followed a press release from Thames Valley Police, reported on Thame.net on March 29, 2018 – LINK HERE
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Being aware of the amount of “Fake News” that has come about from the rise of internet-based news sites, I find it rather ironic that Mr Wybron has created some of this own to discredit a national newspaper.
If we are to believe the TVP Press Release then the drug in question is Xanax. This is not available on NHS prescription (which took two minute to find out via Google). Mr Wybron’s explanation of a “prescription drug” is misleading at best.
With the inclusion of misleading information into his statement, can we trust the rest of the content…………I do hope so.
I applaud the staff’s professionalism when dealing with the issue, but Mr Wybron seems to be missing the point of the article.
It is reported that eleven 15-16 year olds where unwell due to drug misuse at Lord Williams’s School where Mr Wybron has a Duty of Care for the children.
In his response he states that he cannot control this…………as a Parent I am extremely worried by that admission.
For information I am not the source of The Sun information nor an employee of any newspaper