Students in Ontario school district uncomfortable using washrooms in schools, study suggests [Video]

A large portion of students at a school board in eastern Ontario do not feel comfortable using the bathroom facilities at their schools, with vaping being a part of the problem.

A survey of students presented to members of the Upper Canada District School Board (UCDSB) at a meeting on Wednesday night found that 41.3 per cent of students who responded felt comfortable using the washroom at school.

The UCDSB conducts the surveys twice a year, in March and in October, and the spring findings were down six per cent from where things stood in the fall.

Supt. Eric Hardie spoke to the board and said one of the issues was students vaping in the bathrooms at schools in the area.

He said the location of the issue presents challenges in solving the problem.

“So how we balance that privacy with also a respectful space where people can obviously go …