Posted By Micky Just think Zoe, some youngster comes down with a nasty disease from playing with loo rolls following your advice and you are right in the s***.

Posted By steve e ashton chalk one up for the good guys! Yay!

Posted By Frank Hallett Well done Zoe - a partial victory - but is it the right part? There will be theoretical statisticians sharpening their pencils and decimalising you [and the rest of us who supported your efforts] to death to prove that they do know what they're talking about. After all, like every doom-monger, they have a position to sustain as without it they become just another average person. Any adverse responses should be directed to the HSE web-site and told to look for the articles on "sensible" risk management. Zoe for next "Pres"! Frank Hallett

Posted By Heather Aston Zoe Well done - score one for common sense. I see there were some more letters of the "elf & safety ruined our school" variety on Friday, although there was one letter from a safety professional taking the sensible view. Heather (who is this elf anyway?)

Posted By Paul Leadbetter I always thought it was 'elfin safety', something of great interest to Santa and the makers of the Lord of the Rings! Paul

Posted By Micky Are you guys sure you've got it right. I've always interpreted it as 'effin safety'! Still, as I meander my weary way through the obstacles of life ..... I think.... is it really worth it?

Posted By Ken Taylor I hope you haven't given them the address of this website.

Posted By J Knight Who's going to type 'Loo rolls health & safety' into Google? Surely even a telegraph journo has more interesting things to do with their time? (Come to think of, why should they, i evidently don't!) John

Posted By Robert K Lewis So do we now start a thread commenting on the H&S risks of reading the Telegraph, or whatever newspaper fires your buttons, so that we can annoy peeping journalists? We are always hostage to fortune as any risk assessment can fall apart at any time. The public want absolute statements, yet we all know from our Fuzzy Logic things both happen and don't happen at one and the same time. Therefore we always must expect something to happen at any time and for even "safe" activities to produce injuries. Zoe has been very bold in waving the flag but as others have said the problems start if the highly unlikely happens. Bob

Posted By Jack This should really be on the other thread but it's been closed. I mentioned at the beginning of the other thread that CLEAPSS had advised years ago on this. By coincidence their latest newsletter has a snippet: Can we use egg boxes and the cardboard centres from toilet rolls, eg, in model-making? The concern is that children handling these items might pick up bacteria. Although bacteria from faeces can pass through several layers of toilet paper, we do not reckon that a cardboard centre cylinder would become contaminated. These days, eggs stamped with a little lion come from flocks of chickens that have been tested for Salmonella. We do not believe there is a significant problem and doubt if pupils using cleanlooking egg boxes or toilet roll centres will be exposed to more bacteria than in ordinary day-to-day living. We would be more concerned about whether pupils are taught to wash their hands properly after visiting the toilet, whether they in fact do so and whether anybody checks that they do. However, if your LEA or governing body has banned the use of these items, you must cooperate with your employer and obey the directive - but do challenge it! You could, of course, use the cardboard centres from kitchen towels instead.

Posted By Jon Bradburn Speaking of the H&S risks of reading the telegraph - Is this still a broadsheet? -not read it in years. If so then generally speaking they are too large to read on a table and so must be read in the hand. Has anyone considered the risk of ULD (probably not work related) associated with this technique and identified any control measure? Yours in Eggstreme anticipation

Posted By Ken Taylor For the benefit of 'Sun' 'readers', the 'Telegraph' is a newspaper with words as well as pictures and rather than going for sensationalism tends towards information and debate. They should be congratulated for publishing the Zoe response. Personally, I find local papers more interesting and get my national news from the TV and radio. I was pleased to see that Jack has given us the CLEAPSS guidance. They tend to be very sensible on H&S issues in school science and design technology and their advice often translates well into other areas of school and work activity.

Posted By Eloise Francis Good to see that there are so many H&S Professionals out there with a good sense of humour! .....actually, until a year ago, my parents still had my hidden stash of Blue Peter loo rolls that I collected as a kid.......and I am now 29........!!!!

Posted By Merv Newman Telegraph, grauniade, times, they all have their uses. Just make sure that the editorial page comes out on top. And don't use staples to hold the pack together. This thread is going to be blocked VERY soon. Hi, Martin

Posted By Andy Petrie The ink always came off. That's why posh people used to get their butlers to iron the paper, not to make it flat but to set the ink. Another useless fact from Andy!