A GLOOPY mix that has mesmerised children across the globe has been banned at one of Oxfordshire's biggest primary schools.

Hundreds of children who attend West Kidlington Primary School and Nursery will no longer be allowed to bring in slime, after school leaders banished the substance on Friday.

Slime can easily be concocted at home and has become a craze across the world, with ‘how to make slime’ becoming the most Googled how-to search phrase of 2017.

But the stretchy gunge has raised safety fears, as borax is a key ingredient – which, according to EU guidelines, ‘may damage fertility and cause serious eye irritation’.

Though harmless if diluted and handled properly, there were reports last year of children suffering burns after playing with slime.

West Kidlington, which teaches more than 450 youngsters, did not specify why the ban was necessary or what problems the slime caused, nor if safety was a factor.

Headteacher Simon Isherwood wrote to parents on Friday stating: "Some children have been bringing SLIME into school, which is causing problems.

"We have therefore made a decision not to allow SLIME into school.”

The Oxford Mail contacted the school for more details, but did not get a response.

Popularity of the DIY toy peaked last year as slime social media pages gained an influx of followers, crammed with colourful how-to videos.

Oxfordshire has not escaped so-called ‘slime mania’, with many schools teaching children how to safely make the substance during science lessons.

Science Oxford said in the 2016-17 academic year, it ran 14 workshops in eight different schools about slime.

It also runs about five slime workshops annually for families outside of school.

Sophie Batin, the organisation’s education outreach manager, warned the substance can be dangerous.

She said: “Making slime has become an incredibly popular activity for children, both in school and at home.

“We have found slime is a great way to teach young people about all kinds of science-related themes.

“The most common and effective recipe for making slime, and the one we use at Science Oxford, includes using PVA glue and borax.

“However, there are chemicals in borax that can cause irritation to the skin and so we take this potential hazard very seriously.

“We have a number of precautions in place to ensure children’s safety.

"We tell teachers, parents and guardians that if their children want to make slime at home, they should take similar precautions.

"Alternatively, there are lots of slime recipes that don’t use or borax so it’s worth investigating those too."

Science Oxford tips to make slime safely:

- Make children aware before they start making slime that hazardous liquids will be in use

- All children must wash their hands immediately after making their slime

- Control the use of the borax solution by keeping it in lidded containers, to avoid spills

- Use pipettes to avoid excessive skin contact with the liquid

- Closely monitor children when they are adding borax to their recipes

- Wear protective gloves

- Transport the slime in sealed bags