Solar protection issues for schools: policy, practice and recommendations

This study presents findings on solar protection policies and practices in primary and secondary schools in New South Wales, Australia. The findings suggest that policies have been more fully articulated in primary schools than in secondary schools and that there is wide scope for further public health initiatives to protect children from the risk of skin cancer. Little attention has been given to the potential benefits of timetable changes and provision of shade in school environments, although school principals considered the latter would be a successful means of increasing protection. The level of solar education provided in the schools surveyed in our study was minimal, suggesting that urgent attention should be given to incorporating these issues in the school curriculum. Observations of school children's solar protection behaviours suggest that the majority of children used some form of protection in the middle of the day, but the form of protection changed with age. Consideration of more structural and environmental changes is needed to maximise the opportunities for solar protection in schools.