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Payments were also paid to students who successfully sued their local council after they were physically attacked, bullied or sexually abused while at school.<\/p>\n
All the incidents were revealed in a Freedom of Information Act survey of local councils which found last year a total of \u00a31.8million was paid out to settle 89 student compensation claims.<\/p>\n
Experts believe the actual cost to councils is probably closer to \u00a34million once an allowance has been made for the legal costs associated with the cases.<\/p>\n
Hertfordshire Council paid \u00a330,000 to settle a case where a pupil who was injured after they ran through the finish line at sports day and crashed into a fence.<\/p>\n
The same authority had a case that cost \u00a320,000 to settle where a student was injured by a metal gate that another pupil was swinging on.<\/p>\n
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In Lambeth, London, the council paid \u00a32,840 after a basketball hoop came loose and hit a child underneath and \u00a311,678 when a child fell off a chair that had a dodgy leg.<\/p>\n
Kent Council had a \u00a310,000 case where a child was hit by a football in the playground and a \u00a315,000 compensation claim where a student\u2019s fingers were injured in a door.<\/p>\n
In Lancashire the council settled five compensation cases from pupils last year including \u00a336,730 to a pupil hurt during a PE lesson and \u00a37,789 to a student who fell off a bike.<\/p>\n
Northumberland Council paid \u00a310,000 to settle a case where a student was injured in a trampolining accident while in Barnsley \u00a330,000 was paid to a pupil hurt while helping to put away a trampoline.<\/p>\n
In Wakefield a student broke their leg when they fell from a bookcase that wasn\u2019t secured and the council ended up paying \u00a325,000 to close the case.<\/p>\n
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Lewisham Council, in London, paid out \u00a319,991 to settle a case where a pupil hurt themselves tripping over a tree stump while Warwickshire paid \u00a33,350 in a case where a student was hurt falling out of a tree.<\/p>\n
Birmingham Council paid \u00a34,350 to a child who suffered injuries to their teeth after tripping on a classroom carpet.<\/p>\n
It also spent \u00a330,100 on a case where a child broke their arm when they fell off a climbing frame, \u00a37,593 to a pupil who cut their knee badly in a PE lesson and \u00a33,293 to a pupil who broke their wrist after they fell over a tree root during playtime.<\/p>\n
Christopher McGovern, Chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, said: \u201cThe compensation culture is out of control in our schools. It has become quite a racket.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmbulance-chasing lawyers are running a money-making rip-off of public funds that should be spent on supporting education. They advertise on the internet to encourage parents to makes claims.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome claims are legitimate but most are not because they just reflect the hustle and bustle of daily life in school.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jonathan Scarsbrook, president of the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL), said: \u201cSchools and the councils that run them have a duty of care and must be held to account when they fail to protect children from injury and sexual abuse.\u201d<\/p>\n