Local parents are expressing concern after an incident at Carman Elementary School where students were asked to show a staff member the waistband of their underwear.

Parent Josie Sands says she had to explain to her son that a request of that nature "is not right... that person or anyone else had no right doing that."

According to multiple sources, a student soiled their underwear and attempted to flush the garment down a school toilet. Staff later discovered the clogged toilet and began an investigation.

In a letter sent home to parents with children involved in the incident, Carman Elementary School Principal Cecile Affleck explains a staff person asked grade four and five students to show their elastic underwear waistband above the pant waist "for the purpose of ascertaining which child or children were involved in the incident."

Richelle Foster has two children attending the school and while they weren't involved, she's shocked all parents weren't informed of the incident.

"The school board should've written a letter to all parents... Why weren't we informed that something like this happened in our school?"

Foster says she doesn't feel her children are safe until the staff person is removed from the school.

In the letter to parents with children involved in the incident, Affleck noted the request of the staff person was not intended to be "salacious or exploitative."

"The action, however, was not done according to our investigative methods for matters of this nature. Due to the sensitive nature of the request made upon the students, it was important to address this issue directly with the students," Affleck wrote in the letter.

Another parent, Richelle Foster says the matter was handled poorly, "a child had an accident at the school and trying to avoid being embarrassed flushed his underwear down the toilet."

"As a parent, I'm furious."

According to the letter, on March 22, the school guidance counselor spoke to grade four and five boys regarding the 'Kids In the Know' personal safety curriculum. Key points include:

-It's not okay for an adult to ask a child to show their underwear

-It's okay for a child to say "no" to such a request

-The children did nothing wrong whether or not they complied

-The job of the school staff is to keep kids safe

Affleck encourages students to talk to their parents or guardians about the incident and suggests more resources can be found at the Canadian Centre for Child Protection website: protectchildren.ca

In a release by Prairie Rose School Division (PRSD), Superintendent/CEO Terry Osiowy says the "investigative actions applied to this incident did not follow respectful investigative methods."

"PRSD will continue to investigate this matter and will respect all student and personnel confidentiality both during and following the investigation. PRSD will continue to review and revise administrative procedures that will provide school leaders with the necessary guidance and direction for completing sensitive investigations."

Osiowy says PRSD will not be making any further comment.