Teachers and police are becoming scapegoats for CV frustrations and lack of gov clarity

[LiveGr33n]

Teachers seem to be continually lambasted for schools not being open to all children( you’d think they’d invented CV) and parental struggles with home learning. Now they are even being criticised for following gov guidelines re opening for classes.

Police are now being spat at.

I think gov are to blame for a lot of this. They roll out rules often with very little clarity and a lot of vagueness leaving the police to police them and teachers to produce miracles in extremely difficult circumstances .They are increasingly not answering questions properly during briefings and never once do they stick up for either profession or highlight the fact that they are following their instructions. Presumably because they want themselves to look good and both professions to take the flack.

It stinks.

[Ang3113]

I have to agree

[SmileEachDay]

Yep.

[Littlecaf]

I agree too. Teachers at our school are being blamed for not opening on the 1st June, “like Boris said” but they can’t because the guidance says they can’t use a rota and they physically haven’t got the classrooms to fit all the children in, yet somehow this is the teachers fault

[Michelleoftheresistance]

Yup.

A quick summary of govt guidance for anyone currently needing a breakdown: the fact its the subject of this much parody says everything.

[LiveGr33n]

Doesn’t it just.

[Hibbetyhob]

Yes, absolutely.

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

@LiveGr33n I agree. Lots of misinformation and misinterpretation has led to some dreadful things being said.

Some people should hang their heads in shame for what they have said or done.

[AnneElliott]

I disagree. The skanky people that spit at police are not frustrated. What an odd thing to say. They're nasty pieces of work that previously would have tried to thump them or threaten that they had HIV and a needle in their pocket.

Those people have always existed and I do t think Gov guidance has anything to do with it.

[echt]

This made me larf.

As a non--UK teacher I'm amazed by the authority ascribed to teachers when schools do X, Y Z.

It's the government
It's the LA
It's the HT

And no it's never the unions as they can only ever advise.

[fortunatelynot]

Absolutely agree. I'm amazed at what appears to be the ignorance of some posters on here; luckily I am in a school where our families are so positive about what we are trying to do. We have daily deliveries of cakes, messages etc and so much thanks for everything.

I don't think people realise the bureaucracy that schools have to go through. We are organisations and have to go through the same stringent rules that every work place does. As a leader I have spent the last week doing pages and pages of a risk assessment to ensure my school can open come June 1st. This has been scrutinised by the governing board and the local authority who are able to say whether a school can go ahead and try to open. This process has NOTHING to do with the teachers - their bit comes when we meet next week (Yes - we do meet during half term) and a protocol is delivered to them so they know exactly what has to be done when schools are reopened to the year groups the government has requested.

Just to like to say as well that we have been open since shutdown on March 20th for all vulnerable children, key workers and children with EHCPS including the Easter holidays, VE Day and the other Bank holidays, plus provided remote learning for all other children including hand delivering work to children who cannot get online and supplying stationery, reading materials and food vouchers. And before anybody says 'well my school hasn't done x and y', make a formal complaint to the Chair of Governors which is the normal protocol for any complaint, and they can deal with it.

[Michelleoftheresistance]

I don't think people realise the bureaucracy that schools have to go through. We are organisations and have to go through the same stringent rules that every work place does. As a leader I have spent the last week doing pages and pages of a risk assessment to ensure my school can open come June 1st. This has been scrutinised by the governing board and the local authority who are able to say whether a school can go ahead and try to open.

A leader I spoke to yesterday said she'd produced 300 pages of documentation so far.

[SmileEachDay]

fortunatelynot

Absolutely right. I hope you’re managing to get some relaxation over the holiday. It’s a tough(er than usual) gig at the mo.

[Dadnotamum72]

This is the fundamental problem to much bureaucracy and concern over it not being exactly right and worry over getting it wrong. Like has been said the teachers themselves are not the problem.

When it first started the supermarkets didn't need 3 weeks to write 300 pages of documentation per store to put in new systems.( not really a fair comparison but the principle is there)

To much concern over the legalitys of getting it wrong, just needs to be the best efforts and try and make everyone safe it cant be a perfectly sanitised life.

[SmileEachDay]

Dad

It’s not even the legalities so much as the logistics- supermarkets needed to reduce the footfall to keep people distanced. Logistically there’s a really straightforward way of doing that, because the act of shopping is by nature a single person activity. So getting people queueing and a one in one out system mainly solves the issue, alongside tape on the floor.


Schools have to do the same. There isn’t a straightforward way of doing that because the activity of school relies on groups of children being together. This makes the logistics very complex in terms of both education AND continuing to stop virus transfer.


Also: I bet supermarkets have drawn up pages risk assessments. Maybe you know something I don’t about how supermarkets are run though 🤷🏻‍♀️

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

Unfortunately we now live in a litigious times. Some school’s budgets have suffered - on occasions due to not delivering SEN requirements but in other occasions for what could be seen as something minor which does not end up in court.

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

Also I don’t think supermarkets have to incorporate named children into the risk assessments- with what if scenarios, carry contact details in case if emergencies, have W warnings about toilet trips, weather, pick-up, drop off blah blah

[Flaxmeadow]

Not sure why teachers are being put in the same category as the police. Policing is a lot more of a dangerous job

[LiveGr33n]

Not even talking about Danger. Nice to see you again Flax.

[Flaxmeadow]

Also: I bet supermarkets have drawn up pages risk assessments. Maybe you know something I don’t about how supermarkets are run though

I work in retail
Supermarkets had to just get on with it. No PPE, hard to social distance. But they didnt complain or refuse to work. Same with the police

[GalesThisMorning]

I 100% agree. I wonder if it's easier to blame teachers as we are all likely to know and see teachers rather than the government which seems far away and hard to hold to account.

I also wonder if government knows this and purposefully sets guidelines that are vague and hard to pin down. It's very easy to blame your child's school who is seen to be the only barrier between you and getting back to work.

[LiveGr33n]

< sigh> my case in point. Teachers aren’t refusing to work. They’ve worked all the way through, they are still working. The work going into the new bubble groups is huge. They have a huge responsibility as are responsible for children in their care. The difficulties down to opening up for bubbles are due to gov legislation not teachers refusing to work. Teachers, doctors , nurses, supermarket workers, carers and police have complained when there is a lack of clarity or there are issues that need to be addressed. That is perfectly ok as last I heard we don’t live under a dictatorship.

[CallmeAngelina]

Ah, it's Flaxmeadow bashing teacher again!
"Supermarkets had to just get on with it. No PPE, hard to social distance." So did schools until Lockdown began, and since, as they have of course remained open.
"But they didnt complain or refuse to work." And nor have teachers. Still attending school to take care of your Key Workers' kids and continuing to work from home in providing work for those not in school.
Or does that not suit your narrative?

[LemonPudding]

Yup.

[BeakyFace]

I can't believe in this day and age that there are genuine people out there who believe we should all put up and shut up, and never question anything in our lives. And if you do question anything then you're complaining. For those who find it hard to understand, teachers aren't complaining and refusing to work. What an ignorant understanding of the situation.

It must be exhausting for the teachers on here to constantly say the same things over and over again just to be ignored because someone else has their own agenda.

[TwitterTwatterofTinyMinds]

I think the issue is 'not all teachers'...

The overwhelming majority of teachers have worked damned hard before and during closure to provide children with remote learning material, check up on the emotional wellbeing of pupils, staff key worker provision during term time and holidays, and keep track of those children who were on their safeguarding radar, often while juggling the same things all non-teachers have in terms of having their own children at home.

Some teachers have expressed concerns about the return, most of these have been legitimate and focused as much on the safety of children as on staff safety. A smaller number still have been a bit intransigent, but in a profession as large as teaching you will always get some who are perhaps more obstructive and constructive, just as you do in any workplace.