Parents whose children attend the St Theresa College primary school in St Venera are concerned a mouse infestation is getting out of control, with students and teachers regularly spotting mice, droppings and nests in classrooms.

One parent says the problem has been going on for months. More recently, students playing out in the yard spotted a “sizeable” mouse while playing in the yard.

“First children spotted the mouse and then teachers saw it near the kindergarten area. This is not the first time that there have been such complaints. It’s all very worrying, especially since it was not some tiny mouse,” said the mother, who did not wish to be named.

While the mother claimed that the problem with mice on school grounds has persisted for a number of years, with teachers and students regularly coming across droppings in different areas around the school, it seemed as though the problem had escalated in recent months.

The mother said many parents were concerned, since young children often played with their toys on the floor, for instance, and could easily come across the droppings or even mice nests.

“When you have kindergarten kids around, they might not know what mice droppings are and could easily pick them up. These are little children we’re talking about; it’s all very worrying.”

Some teachers also claimed to have come across nests made of shredded paper in some of the cupboards used to store stationery and other classroom tools, the mother went on.

Asked whether any of the parents had contacted the education authorities, the mother said that while she had attempted to do so herself on several occasions, she had always been informed that the school’s sewage system needed updating but was never given any other details.

Contacted about the claims, the Education Ministry confirmed that a mouse had recently been caught on the St Venera school’s grounds, but did not give details as to whether there had been mice in the classrooms.

A ministry spokesman said that the College Precincts Officer was monitoring the situation and would be “taking further action if needed”. He did not divulge any details as to what the action would involve.