If you think the key worker guidance should tighten up for school attendance please sign this petition

[swooby]

I can see from other threads that people are just as infuriated as I am about the current key worker guidance leading to schools being half full whilst the other half of kids get excluded.

So I made this petition. It basically suggest that:

1.If there is a non key worker parent at home then that family cannot send their children in to school

1. The keyworker definition needs to be tightened. It is currently far too broad and open to abuse.

I just can't get my head around how a non key worker has to home school kids UNLESS they happen to have a key worker partner.

If you feel the same please sign this petition at change.org on the link below:

chng.it/g4Zjg792Gn

Please share the link too

[LadyDique]

The keyworker definition needs to be tightened. It is currently far too broad and open to abuse

This is far too vague to get any decent response, even if you get a million signatures.

What would you suggest in order to 'tighten' this?

[HermioneWeasley]

Many key workers like supermarket workers and nurses are women - if they can’t access childcare they could be taken out of the workforce if their partners can’t or won’t stay home with kids. Not sure that’s the best thing right now.

[swooby]

Good point. I guess I'm thinking that it's mostly about point 1. If it was the case that all parents must be keyworkers to get a school place then this would actually solve the issue for the most part. As when it was like that back in March there was minimal school attendance.

[Thatwentbadly]

I agree with the sentiment but it needs to be more specific and not because it’s unfair but because it’s a risk.

I would like to see a space in school for children if both parents or a single parent is a key worker who can’t work from home. If there is a parent who is furloughed, on parental leave or a stay at home parent then they should not be using that place.

[swooby]

@HermioneWeasley

Many key workers like supermarket workers and nurses are women - if they can’t access childcare they could be taken out of the workforce if their partners can’t or won’t stay home with kids. Not sure that’s the best thing right now.

I hear you, but why wouldn't the partner deal with the homeschooling if they're working from home? It's very hard, but the rest of us are having to do it.

[Deliaskis]

Both DH and I are KW, he works away from home, we don't get a place despite only 10% of kids at her school in, remote provision is an utter disgrace, DD is basically left to her own devices for large chunks of the day. We're being massively let down by school. So no, I won't sign your petition and make this even worse for even more people. No thanks.

[breadwidow]

Signed, I agree with you. In terms of 'tightening' the definition pne way could be if you are wfh, the presumption is that your child should be at home too unless massively extenuating circumstances. I'm technically a key worker, but in flexible wfh job, husband also at hone and unlike me works part time. My kids are therefore at home. But others in similar roles to me are using the kw provision, and shouldn't be IMO. There are a few jobs like lawyers (in virtual trials) and some healthcare jobs (where appts have moved online) were even done at home, the nature of the work means you cannot keep half an eye on the kids, so unless you have another parent at home you are gonna struggle. But flexible office job type work, why is a public sector role more key worker than others? Thinking about it though my work have said we are key workers according to the definition I am not in COVID/brexit response role and I'm not delivering an essential service either, so employers are pushing the boundaries of the Defintion.

Btw op I think this should be made a gov.Uk petition - if on here and gets to certain level govt have to respond petition.parliament.uk/

[ZydecoLaydee]

Why are you infuriated? We need to support our key workers many of whom are fatigued and struggling. If you take away school places it will push so many over the edge. And this is from someone who is part of a 2 key worker household.

[Fridget]

Regardless of what that parent at home is meant to be doing work wise?

I know a nurse currently working in ICU, married to a barrister whose hearings are mainly done by phone or by video from home. He’s by far the bigger earner, but couldn’t work if he was caring for children let alone home schooling. So the NHS would be down one nurse.

I do agree some people are taking the piss (eg sending child in if one is a SAHP) but it’s really not as simple as you claim, and thankfully the rates are coming down anyway. Have you any evidence of how much difference it would make to the rates if there were a few fewer children in schools?

[SpinningWheelOfFortune]

Not sure how this would work out for a lot of families. For example I am a key worker as I work as support staff in a school, so I'm in every day supervising our own keyworker/vulnerable children. DH is a self employed tradesman so is unable to work from home. If school said that both parents had to be key workers to be eligible for a school place DH would have to stay at home, therefore earning zero, which would be impossible for us as he earns around 3 times what I do. I'd have to quit my own job before we could let that happen.

[MrsTeachers]

Nope I won't be signing, it could be the difference between a parent keeping to losing a job.

[Sockwomble]

"If there is a non key worker parent at home then that family cannot send their children in to school"

Then my nurse on a covid ward sister won't do any extra shifts. But if you think that is best...

[HauntedPencil]

This seems rather late in the day now - we are probably through the worst if it

[HauntedPencil]

Agree with PP too - the reason that it's broad is that there are lots of variables - how far do schools look into peoples circumstances etc

I feel for people where all but a handful of kids are in their schools as that must feel awful but I think it's just one of those things.

[Welliesandpyjamas]

DH is a key worker and in school as normal (EY class teacher). I can't work from home due to the nature of my job. If my 2 youngest didn't have places in their schools my job could not be covered by anyone else in our small company, and as a consequence our harvest related trade would be halved and many local small farmers would lose a big % of their income. Also there would be a massive detrimental effect on my 17 yr old DC's A Level marks and future proapects as he would be left in charge of home schooling younger siblings, one of whom's MH is badly affected by lockdown, whilst also taking live lessons and submitting critical coursework and assessed work. We are absolutely not selfishly taking advantage of the places.

[Waxonwaxoff0]

And what about non KW parents who can't work from home?

I'm not a KW (DS's dad is) but I'm not at home as my job can't be done from home. It's infuriating that so many people thinks everyone who isn't a KW is at home.

[keepingmindful]

No. My husband is a key worker but I earn much more than him. If I can’t work as I am homeschooling our 4 kids, we can’t pay our mortgage.
It would make more sense for him to home school but as he teaches A level students this summer then who is going to teach them?

[Benhew]

I think that rather than removing the KW provision, there should be equal rights for non-key worker families - like the right to flexible furlough or some paid leave to homeschool. I have no issue with the school places, I do have an issue with having to take unpaid leave to homeschool mine because I'm not allowed a school place for my children.

[breadwidow]

I think the OP is riled by the same specific group I am riled by - kw workers who are working from home in office jobs which are no more critical than other office jobs, and yet get to have kids in school while others have to suck it up. There are also situations where families with a sahp are using key worker provision. Unfortunately I think, at least in my children's school, this doesn't account for the majority of the increase of kids in school this time - I think that down to business being open, staff not furloughed but these jobs cannot done done from home.

And yes we may be over the worst now but i am still pretty concerned that school closures won't work as quickly as needed with nearly a third of kids in (compared to less than one in 10 last lockdown)

[HJ40]

Change.org carries no clout. Why didn't you start it on the parliament website?

[breadwidow]

@keepingmindful

No. My husband is a key worker but I earn much more than him. If I can’t work as I am homeschooling our 4 kids, we can’t pay our mortgage.
It would make more sense for him to home school but as he teaches A level students this summer then who is going to teach them?

But what if your DH was not a teacher. I know many people where both parents (or in one case a single parent) are working in busy jobs (but deemed not critical and they need to pay the bills) and just having to cope, working late into the night and muddling through.

[HauntedPencil]

@keepingmindful

No. My husband is a key worker but I earn much more than him. If I can’t work as I am homeschooling our 4 kids, we can’t pay our mortgage.
It would make more sense for him to home school but as he teaches A level students this summer then who is going to teach them?

Non key workers aren't giving up their jobs to homeschool - they are just expect to do both.

[breadwidow]

@HJ40

Change.org carries no clout. Why didn't you start it on the parliament website?

Yes very good idea

[HauntedPencil]

Whilst I don't agree with restricting places at this stage - I am not classed as a kw and I can't just give up my job to homeschool - so if people didn't have a place they'd have to just get on with it like we've had to. I don't mean that fi sound bitter but I hear that a lot.

The real issue that there is literally nothing in place for non key workers - not even an acknowledgment by the government that we can't exactly homeschool whilst working.

That's not the fault of key workers. Expecting 2 working parents to homeschool kids is nuts.

[Benhew]

One thing that also confuses me is in our school lots of 'key workers' say they didn't need a place last year as they were furloughed...if they are so key, why were they furloughed before? Surely the covid response is the same this time! I can't seem to understand it!