Parents sending their kids to school with coughs

[Brownbananabandana]

Our kids have been back at school for a week. We missed the induction day the week before they went back as one came home from childcare with a cough so we took them both out of childcare and got the child with the cough tested (which was not pleasant... they’re 5), waited for the negative result before we sent them back to childcare. We thought that’s what we were supposed to do as responsible adults and parents, meant I had a shit couple of days working from home as I’ve just started a new contract and it was really stressful, but surely that was the only sensible option?

Roll on this week though and twice already I’ve personally experienced parents in my childrens schools sending primary aged kids in with coughs. One child the parent actually told me in the playground after drop off that her child had a cough ‘but it didn’t seem that bad’. Another child today in the playground when I said good morning and asked how she was blurted out ‘I’ve got a cough’.... which isn’t a normal thing for a child to announce and smacks to me of a discussion having been had at home and a decision being made to send them regardless. I’m seriously not impressed, I know it’s tough having to keep them home, and before anyone jumps in with excuses for the parents, I know both sets. The first child’s parent wasn’t working on the day they sent them in with a cough, they told me! And the second child was being dropped in by a grandparent so could have stayed with the grandparent... they’d already picked them up and sat in the car with them etc! And if the parents were too concerned to let a grandparent look after them for fear of them catching covid then surely they shouldn’t be in school potentially passing it on anyway, so take the bloody day off and get the test!

How are we meant to control this if people blatantly don’t want to be personally inconvenienced?

And yes I’ve name changed as I don’t want outed... I’m fully prepared to be flames for judging, but I am judging! I don’t want to be stuck at home in the middle of a massive new project with kids who’ve picked up endless bugs because of other people’s selfish actions.

My DS always gets a bad cough at the end of a cold. Same as me. It lingers for weeks. I agree that those with symptoms should get tested,but the testing system needs to be better. People will ignore symptoms if they can't get a test, because they can't afford to miss work. That's worrying.

They are the same parents who don't observe the 48 hour rule after d&v. Unfortunately there are a lot of them.

The main symptoms of Covid-19 are:

• a new, continuous cough
• a high temperature
• loss of smell and/or taste

Apparently DC often have an upset stomach.

Not all coughs are new or continuous. A cold followed by a phlegmy cough, for instance, would not be the same as symptoms of Covid.

You can work from home OP, what about people that can't? How long until they lose their job or can't afford to feed their kids?

Focus your frustration on the lack of support and guidance. If you've got a Conservative MP, contact them and ask them to provide a level of sick pay that people can live off.

As far as I remember you can't get a postal test more than once a month? It wouldn't let me when I tried the other week. If you could that would help.

I had to ring the school today cos mine had a new cough.
They asked if it was continuous and seemed shocked I was gonna keep her off for a test. I'd already changed her back into her night clothes and sent her back to bed by then.
I think the rule is if it is continuous or not.
My school would have been happy to have her even if she was coughing a bit as long as it wasnt continuous. And to be fair her cough is a lot better now.
It's just difficult when its first thing in the morning and you're rushing to get ready and your kid starts coughing a bit.
You dont know if it's going to get worse, or will be fine in an hour.

I've got two kids at home currently as one came back with horrible snotty cold and spiked a temp briefly. Went for a test for the one affected (system was shite, but managed to get one 20 mins away eventually. People at test site were awesome - keep up the good work). Now have both of them home until test is back despite the fact both now fit and healthy, even the cold one is only mildly snotty and only had a temp for one day.

It's a massive pain, for many reasons, but i couldn't have lived with myself if one of my kids had ended up being the reason the school all came down with covid.

Trouble is there are fuckwit parents out there, like the abhorrent parents of this schoolboy! www.bucksherald.co.uk/business/aylesbury-grammar-school-isolate-year-8-after-coronavirus-outbreak-2965801

I have a child with asthma and she coughs constantly. Would be very unimpressed with her being sent home every week
The rules are new, continuous cough and for those with existing coughs due to conditions the cough has to be worse than normal or have changed from normal.

Your DC's asthma wouldn't be grounds to send them home.

Now reading this thread it seems that schools have very different rules on when to send a child in.

Regardless of the school rules, the government guidance is clear. If your child has a new, continuous cough (or fever, or change in sense of taste/smell) they must isolate for 10 days from the onset of symptoms and all members of the household must isolate for 14 days. The only way to shorten the isolation period for the symptomatic person and their household is a negative test result.

If the head teacher is telling you to send a child in to school during the isolation period, ignore the head teacher or point them in the direction of the government guidance.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection

Scotland here, we have had correspondence from the schools, health board and government advising that children should still be attending school with a cold. DD 15 along with all her friends have had the standard going back to school colds that happened this time of year... I’m actually perplexed that even now 6 months down the line people do not know the symptoms and will be wasting valuable resources every time precious has a sniffle

It’s not just any cough. There are specific symptoms just as someone shared up thread. If they started sending children home for every cough and runny nose, it will be utterly disastrous.

As I understand it, it is a dry persistent cough which comes on suddenly and seems to have no obvious cause that is attributed to covid and not a cough caused by snot dripping down the back of your throat. A message that seems to have been lost in amongst all the media hype. I imagine this is why the schools are reminding parents not to keep there child off for regular run of the mill colds and why the government are now stressing only getting tested if you have the actual symptoms.

@Tootletum excuse my late reply! Yeah I think it's near on impossible to recreate school at home unless you're a teacher. Even then, teaching your own kids is a whole other kettle of fish. There's loads of resources online (you probably already know that) but I genuinely believe that just reading a book together makes all the difference. We're all doing our best and they will catch up, don't beat yourself up about it!

I’ve sent one of mine in with a cough but she’s had the test and it was negative. I’m sure lots of parents are judging me but this cough will stay around for a few weeks at least because they always seem to with her.

As others have said, it's not just for any cough. Besides, my DC suffers from hayfever and has had a cough on and off all summer due to nasal drip, particularly on bad pollen days as anti-histamine can't keep up. We're just glad we're nearly at the end of the season! We're part of the COVID study so she's also been tested at various points throughout (all negative). Frankly OP wind your neck in.

This is why two schools near me have had to send classes home already due to outbreaks

I'd actually like my children to be able to get some kind of education this term, not have their schools closed because selfish parents keep sending their symptomatic kids in!

@pennylane83

As I understand it, it is a dry persistent cough which comes on suddenly and seems to have no obvious cause that is attributed to covid and not a cough caused by snot dripping down the back of your throat. A message that seems to have been lost in amongst all the media hype. I imagine this is why the schools are reminding parents not to keep there child off for regular run of the mill colds and why the government are now stressing only getting tested if you have the actual symptoms.

Nope, it's a new, continuous cough - lasting more than an hour, or more than three episodes of coughing in 24 hours.

Ive reported the thread. Just read the rules! (Not directed at op)
It does not say dry (that might be more common but the rules do not specify).
What it means is if your kid just has a runny nose and nothing else they can go in.
Persistent or not could be harder to work out.
If you aren't happy because your kid will constantly have a cough and be off for testing then you need to tell your mp that having all dc in school with no meaningful measures is not going to work as some kids will be constantly testing.