Public school to stop playing rugby

A leading public school is to stop its pupils playing rugby partly because of fears of legal action over injuries, it was revealed today.

The £15,000 per year King's School in Ely, Cambs, is planning to phase out rugby over the next four years in favour of hockey, rowing and football. Headmaster Richard Youdale has written to parents of the 700 pupils acknowledging that the decision "will cause distress in a number of quarters".

In the letter, Mr Youdale wrote: "Since rugby is a game which is notoriously difficult to referee and increasingly subject-to litigation, it is perhaps not surprising that schools have begun to find it harder to secure the services of referees and team coaches."

One mother at the school, who did not want to be named, said parents had vociferously opposed the move at a sports day last Saturday. She said: "Eliminating rugby is a highly retrograde step."

There have been a number of cases where pupils have successfully sued schools for injuries suffered while on the playing field. Last year Ramsey Elshafey won £100,000 in compensation after his hopes of becoming a dentist were shattered by a tackle which caused serious ligament damage to his neck and back. His former school Newcastle-under-Lyme Grammar School has no plans to drop the sport.

At many schools parents take out insurance which covers their children if an accident happens. This type of insurance is not offered to King's School parents because the school has its own cover. The school was founded over 1,000 years ago and former pupils include Edward the Confessor.