Leicester outbreak particularly affecting children?

[Crockodoodle]

Mr Hancock told MPs in the House of Commons last night.'We've decided that from tomorrow, non-essential retail will have to close and as children have been particularly impacted by this outbreak, schools will also need to close from Thursday, staying open for vulnerable children and children of critical workers as they did throughout'.

And I keep reading that it doesn't spread in schools /amongst children.

[mooshie06]

I’ve also picked up on this but not much mention in any of the media! Wondering why? Does it not fit with the return to school narrative? Or are they surprised it’s affected children but aren’t going into detail til they see the effect of this. Be interesting to see

[IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfBoom]

I'm a staunch anti-lockdowner but the idea that kids don't spread it always seemed a bit suspect to me. Kids are lil germ factories.

I do believe that the risk of serious harm to kids is infinitesimal though. Doesn't justify closing schools, and never has.

[AKissAndASmile]

I too want to know what he meant by 'children have been particularly affected by this outbreak'. Does he mean there have been a lot of children who have suffered severe symptoms/ admitted to hospital? We need some clarity on this asap.

[gotothecooler]

And I keep reading that it doesn't spread in schools /amongst children.

The only place I keep reading this is on Mumsnet tbh

[sunandrose]

I took his comment during the BBC interview to mean that children are testing positive, rather than getting hit hard by the virus...

[Adelais]

They mentioned a lot of children had tested positive in Leicester but nothing to say they got ill with it.

[icedancerlenny]

@gotothecooler

And I keep reading that it doesn't spread in schools /amongst children.

The only place I keep reading this is on Mumsnet tbh

My daughter’s paediatrician told us this. It’s not just a Mumsnet thing!!

[gotothecooler]

@icedancerlenny



My daughter’s paediatrician told us this. It’s not just a Mumsnet thing!!

Fair enough. But I haven't met your daughters paediatrician. So the only place I am hearing it is on Mumsnet.

[ineedaholidaynow]

Is the paediatrician an expert on COVID?

[PTW1234]

Part of me hopes it’s because more people, including children are now being tested.

The other part of me is really fearful about the secondary illness in children linked to covid, that appeared and disappeared..

[icedancerlenny]

It was a conversation about whether my daughter should go back to school following her cancer treatment and me shielding. I assume she has more knowledge about Covid and its effect on children than I do. She said she should go to school as there is evidence that children aren’t affected badly and don’t pass it on as they do with other viruses. She said if she stays off school she has more chance of a problem falling off her bike.

[Crockodoodle]

@PTW1234 I wonders that. There was loads of high temp /coughs in my school during Feb, not saying they were covid but they would at least be tested now.

This is lots of school children affected whilst social distancing is happening. What the fuck will it be like in September with no SD.

[Barbie222]

And I keep reading that it doesn't spread in schools /amongst children.

This is how nudge politics works - presenting cherry picked studies, confusing absence of evidence with evidence of absence, and encouraging whatever mental gymnastics staves off clear common sense.

[missbipolar]

They've never said children don't spread it just children seem to be largely asymptomatic a

[SunbathingDragon]

@missbipolar

They've never said children don't spread it just children seem to be largely asymptomatic a

That’s not true, as there was a study (from a number countries) saying children did not transmit the virus. This has now been redacted but the belief if that they are not as contagious as adults are.

[cabbageking]

Those testing positive for C19 in Leicester include a couple children who returned to school. Did they bring it to school and infect staff or did the staff infect the children? No idea.

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

Oh my stars! I have just finished writing all my school reports and so have had a full day online teaching as well as being attached to SIMS.

Just casting my mind back to a few weeks ago when teachers were the subject of so much vitriol that some of us were considering boycotting threads. We were told that children (by parents on these forums) could not catch the virus. We were told that children (by parents on these forums) that children could not spread the virus. we have been told (you get the drift) that we should not have PPE. We have been told that we do not need SD in schools.

Yet all other workplaces seem to have PPE/SD/WFH rotas etc.

How times have changed!

Only on Mumsnet

[IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfBoom]

Children are still extremely unlikely to die from it. There's no need to shut schools or have kids socially distancing for something that's less dangerous than flu.

[SunbathingDragon]

@IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfBoom

Children are still extremely unlikely to die from it. There's no need to shut schools or have kids socially distancing for something that's less dangerous than flu.

I agree that so far everything we have seen indicates that you are right. However, schools mean lots of parents/grandparents doing pick up/drop off and mingling with teachers being in greater contact. It’s a difficult balance because children’s education is so important but so are the lives of the adults they are in contact with and who they in turn can pass the virus onto.

[Enormouscroc]

adc.bmj.com/content/105/7/618.full

There's this opinion piece in the BMJ

[Barbie222]

That's from April, @Enormouscroc . This piece has been cherry picked literally scores of times on MN. PHE really do know better now another three months along

[JassyRadlett]

The evidence base (there’s a good collection of the literature on Don’t Forget the Bubbles) suggests that based on evidence to date, (patchy and inconclusive) children (especially under 10s) are less likely to transmit it than adults.

This seems to have been overinterpreted into ‘children don’t transmit it’.

[JassyRadlett]

That said has there been any epidemiology out of Leicester around infection chains and patterns?

[Babesinthewud]

I heard on news last night (though was half asleep) that’s could be because the carries are the teens etc... although the said that there’s been surge in hospital admissions.

Stands to reason as the youngest were never thought to get it bad

[Babesinthewud]

no surge in hospital admissions I mean