Lockers and drinking fountains are to be installed in all State schools as part of an attempt to prevent students from being loaded down with heavy rucksacks.

The initiative was being introduced because pupils are being laid down with textbooks, files and water bottles, Education Minister Owen Bonnici said. 

He said it was in the planning stages and could not give a deadline for when they would be installed across the schools. 

He also announced guidelines on the weight of schoolbags and how they should be packed. 

Studies carried out among students aged 8 to 13 years indicated that over 70 per cent had a schoolbag that exceeded the recommended bag weight. 

Students should not carry school bags that weigh more than a tenth of their own body weight, he said. So if your child weighs 32kg, his or her school bag should not weigh much more than 3kg. 

"Excessive weight of schoolbags can have a negative impact on children’s health and it is for these reasons that we have drawn up guidelines for schools, learners and parents to remedy the issue,” Dr Bonnici said.

The guidelines also encourage schools to have lessons in rooms which are near each other if the layout permits.

Learners should carry loose paper in plastic sheets instead of bringing files and teachers are being discouraged from clipping together materials for a whole year and to use digital technology instead. 

Students are encouraged to avoid taking books to school which do not form part of the timetable and to put tablets in the case provided and not in their school bag. 

The guidelines also advise students on how to pack their bag, placing heavier items closer to the back, and to not carry unnecessary items. 

Finally, in the third section, parents are encouraged to avoid bulky lunch cases, and to check their children are only taking the books they need. 

They are also encouraged to purchase well-designed backpacks and to help in correcting their child’s lifting technique.

The guidelines are currently available on the Education Ministry website and will be open for consultation, until the end of April.