Scouse school slaps ban on leather footballs

A school located at the heart of a well-known breeding ground for Premier League talent has angered health campaigners by banning traditional leather footballs.

Malvern Primary, in Huyton, Merseyside, has told parents their children can only use sponge footballs in the playground for health and safety reasons.

The town is known as a hotspot for youth football, giving rise to such names as Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard, Newcastle United’s Joey Barton and Everton veteran Peter Reid – who also had spells managing Manchester City, Leeds United and Sunderland.

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Anti-obesity campaigners said the sponge ball rule was at odds with Huyton’s reputation of producing a string of footballing greats.

Tam Fry, chairman of obesity prevention charity the Child Growth Foundation, told reporters: “Children must be exposed to risk, otherwise how can they be expected to learn?”

A spokesman for Knowsley Council said: “Malvern Primary School treats the health and safety of its pupils as a top priority and has for a long time had a policy of protecting children by recommending sponge balls in the playground.”