AIBU to think school closures ignore parents' work commitments?

Ik people keep saying they can’t win. But they can? Just put out comms saying go home at lunch if you want. Or stay

Plotting? Too damn hot to do anything of the sort.

I walked past about 30 kids in the dining hall today - I was hit by a wall of human heat that felt roughly the same as going outside into full sun in the car park at 2pm.

We're still open at the moment. Two thirds of the site is windows in full sun (no curtains or blinds, they're a bit pricey when you need thermal curtaining and/or blinds the equivalent of 7-45 foot long and a half mile wide to cover each window on the sunward aspects yes I am a pedantic dick, thank you). So you get all the classes trying to scuttle into the north facing rooms, except most of those are also south facing.

It's going to be brutal tomorrow. Assuming the woods that the public transport run through don't catch fire like they did last time. Or the fields. Or people's vehicles. Or the buses. Or on the railtracks. Then it'll be more dangerous than just heatstroke - but at least we've got a few defibs, I guess.

I found primary school communications were always appalling, and usually had that tone. It Grated. And it was always body last minute when the school must have known about key dates for months (although adverse weather doesn't come into that category).

Secondary was much better, they seem to appreciate that parents need to plan ahead.

Lol. It is for people with school age children who need to earn money to live!

Oh I have just read that.

Schools cannot win on this.

I wonder how many employers where wfh is possible this week are not agreeing to that as an option, if only to save unpleasant journeys to and from work?

Doesn’t she say no AC in the post

I think our reactions to weather are ludicrous and people should get on with it tbh. But I accept other people have different views and reactions to the heat, so I speak for myself. The voting is pretty split which reflects that as well.

I work in a big school and have also been a governor in a primary school. If they started using apologetic tone for inconveniencing parents, they would open themselves up to all sorts of demanding communications and complaints. They deliberately use plain, authoritative language. They don't work in the service industry and you are not the client. They are not doing anything wrong, they don't need to apologise or use a conciliatory tone for inconveniencing you.

We're open. It's obviously very hot, above 30 in every classroom and hotter in the hall where the kids eat, with fans. Plus well into the 40s for kitchen catering staff.

No plans to close yet, but Fridays forecast is somewhere between 35-39 degrees depending on where you look, so I expect the head will decide nearer the time.

My home is 6 degrees cooler than the coolest classroom, luckily I've only got my two DC here, not 30!

Would it be more expensive than all the lost wages and related tax of the parents now missing work across those days. And the cost impact of the cancelled surgeries and clinics, and the unpaid time off that might be related to the patients who were going to attend it?

Honestly if the school on our road costed up air conditioning and started doing local events to fundraise for it (sponsored walks, fete days, raffles, a well publicised gofundme), I’d contribute even though I don’t have kids that go there. I bet it wouldn’t be that hard to crowdfund for at least a good chunk of schools.

They would need to prioritise it over other school spending needs (I won’t be contributing to them buying more books or getting a new playground for example), but I think people could get behind a capital project like air conditioning. And I’m not sure it’s that expensive… I know it’s a smaller scale but it was surprisingly affordable to have it fitted at home, and we had it piped in through vents - units on the wall would have been even cheaper.

We’re not remotely set up for that. As much as you can say school isn’t childcare, if schools started finishing at 1pm, you’d have thousands of parents unable to work (and even if at an individual level that is their problem to solve, I think the economy and general society would notice). Or they’d be using after school clubs until 6pm, defeating the point of starting at 7am anyway.
Moving the dates a little might be better, I feel like it’s often hotter at the start of July than end of August. Although I don’t know if stats bear that out, and I appreciate it’s now only June!

Does anyone you knowhave 32 kids in their house? And no water access?

They probably have air conditioning being a private school - that’s what’s differentiating here.

It’s two days (I am a nurse and my husband also a ‘key worker’)

it would be a huge amount of work to identify who has to work etc.

If it was for over a week then it might be necessary but that won’t be the case in this instance.

I don’t understand how the school is too hot but home is fine?! I run a children’s home, I cannot install air con or do anything different to what I would any other day. Where should I send the kids if it’s too hot in the home? Obviously their bedroom windows only open a small way for safety reasons so no doubt they’ll be hot in there, hot in the living room, and hot in the kitchen and garden. But I very much doubt it’ll kill any of them. 🙄

Where is the funding coming from to fit this air con? Believe me we would love it but no way will budgets stretch to that. All the fans do is move around the hot air.

it’s not ideal and with or without children staff will still be in but as much as some don’t like it child safety has to be first priority

General teachers have absolutely no say when schools close for snow or extreme heat. Plotting 🙄

Stick an advert out. You are free to teach in the classrooms with 32 sweaty bodies in 37 degree heat. Everyone will be pleased for such a trooper!

And I went to a brand new primary school in 1978. All on one floor (except the portacabin that had to be bought to accommodate an even greater spike in the birth rate that had been anticipated when moving from the Victorian combined primary and secondary at that point), open plan areas, thick curtains to separate areas and keep out excessive heat, plenty of natural light and airflow, mature trees left when constructing the site to provide shade (the weeping willows were our favourites in summer, only beaten by the five sakura they'd been donated by Hiroshima, followed by the pear, apple and ancient oak at the back of the field).

Yes, we did have classes of 36, but we had plenty of space.

All funded by the same Labour government.

I think it's pretty normal for teachers to be pleased they don't have to spend the day in unhealthy conditions with loads of kids.

Why do we think teachers need to be selfless all the time. Office workers relish any unexpected time off too

My class was 30° by the end of the day today. We also have portacabins and the temp in those got up to 36°. It’s insane.

How on earth do they expect kids to learn. We didn’t even have a fan, I’ll have to bring my own in from home tomorrow.

Kids spent the day complaining of headaches and were just soaking leaving at 3:20. Our school isn’t closing but it bloody well should.

I agree. We should be surely trying ways to keep them in without closing being the first port of call. These kind of summers are not going to go away.

Sorry I meant campaign to the school for air con /gov

As pp said complain to the school and secondly also campaign for better worker rights as there should be a function to look after the children in contracts.

It's very hard and I think many parents don't quite realise the extent of the hassle and interuption of life DC brings. I think its should be messaged far more