Rush for wi-fi in schools 'putting children at risk'

Children's health is being put at risk by the rush to introduce wireless networks in schools, a teachers' leader warned today.

Trade union Voice, previously the Professional Association of Teachers, called for a moratorium on new classrooms being fitted with wi-fi.

But architects suggested wireless networks were likely to become increasingly important for schools.

Voice general secretary Philip Parkin said: "I don't know whether wi-fi is safe but there is an accumulation of evidence that suggests it can have a significant impact on growing children, in particular the development of the nervous system."

He said research was under way, adding: "Our view would be that nobody should move in any significant way until the results of that review are known." Teachers working in wireless zones have reported nausea, headaches and memory loss.

Mr Parkin said: "We need to be absolutely sure it is safe. We need more clear and definitive evidence." Gordon Brown has pledged to rebuild or refurbish every secondary in England-Wireless technology is likely to be a central feature.

The Commission on Architecture and the Built Environment, the Government's advisory body, said the rebuilding drive could create " expensive white elephants" if it invested in hardwired equipment instead of wi-fi.