Dd1 sent home to self isolate what about dd2?

[Lochnessgiraffe]

Had a phone call from school this morning. A friend of DD1 is positive for corona. So DD1 is being sent home to self isolate. They want us to send DD2 to school. How does this work?
If DD1 is possibly infected so will DD2. Both me and my dh have had both vaccinations.
I know dd2 won't want to go to school next week. Can we keep them off?

Schools here it was mixed, but many made siblings isolate together if one bubble had been affected.

Ask the school - they can advise on what is the best approach, this won't be the first time it's happened.

Our schools is just the close contact not siblings. Unless your dd1 shows symptoms rest of house doesn't isolate

We got told in a similar situation that only the person who actually had the close contact with the positive testing person has to isolate. So your other DD won't be expected to.

If dd2 hasn't been in contact with the infected person then she doesn't need to isolate. She's a contact of a contact. It's only the direct contact who isolates. The whole country would grind to a halt otherwise.
Of course if dd2 has been in contact with the infected person out of school that's different.

Dd2 should go to school, unless of course your dd1 starts showing symptoms.

This has happened many times in our school. It's only the child in the bubble who isolates. The rest of the family carry on as normal.

It doesn't make much sense, but it is the policy that siblings of contacts can still go to school and I still went to work with very vulnerable people pre-vaccines being available while DC was off school as a covid contact. I don't think the school will let you keep DD2 off just because she doesn't want to go while DD1 is at home. We have had 1 period of covid contact from school isolation for each DC since September, and each time there have been some days when we couldn't take the other child to school because I was at work at school time and DC are not old enough to leave in the house on their own. The school accepted this as an authorised reason for absence.

The policy seems to have changed in recent months. Previously the whole class were sent home when a pupil tested positive but now it’s only the children who came into close contact with the positive case either by playing with them or sitting with them. Someone in my DD’s class tested positive but DD can stay in school because she didn’t sit anywhere near them. Siblings have always been able to stay in school unless your child tests positive too of course then you all have to isolate.

None of the rules really make sense.

They won't tell us who has been diagnosed with corona and both girls spend lunch together

We have this in our school and the policy has resulted in it spreading throughout the school recently as siblings infect each other who then infect other pupils in different bubbles as the siblings were not isolating are and inevitably infectious before they show symptoms or test positive.

Totally ridiculous policy!

I personally ignore the school and keep both mines off.

My ds is currently off as a contact, the rest of the house is carrying on as normal. There was a specific case of sending home siblings as well as while back (Derbyshire?) to try and stop further spread but numbers were very high.

At our school is your child is isolating but you need to take another one, you either drive right up close and teachers will assist, or you walk them in late / collect early. Might be worth calling school

Yep-siblings of those isolating as close contacts have always been going to school. If you keep the siblings off, it would be unauthorised.

The idea is the self isolating person stays out of the way of the others at home wherever possible. Not always easy!

They are not allowed to tell you who has COVID as that would be divulging personal information (although DD1 will probably be able to work it out). How come both your daughters spend lunch together, have school given up with bubbles. The person who is sick should be telling school who they have contact with at school. Normally schools will also have seating plans to facilitate this too

Why are dd1 and 2 having lunch together? Are they sitting with the positive friend?

If DD1 is possibly infected so will DD2.

It doesn't really work that way.

Both me and my dh have had both vaccinations.

You can still get it.

I know dd2 won't want to go to school next week.

Not sure what relevance this has. She doesn't get to decide

It's always been that traced close contacts have to isolate but their families don't.

If dd2 hasn't been in contact with the infected person then she doesn't need to isolate. She's a contact of a contact. It's only the direct contact who isolates. The whole country would grind to a halt otherwise.

This. And the school won’t tell you which child has tested positive but will have gone through all the contacts of that child so if your other DD was a contact too they would have told her to isolate as well.

Get DD1 tested in a couple of days - if she's negative then the rest of you don't need to self-isolate, if she's positive then you all do.

This is what I was told when my DD was sent home as a close contact last week.

As PP have posted you seem to be misunderstanding the rules

If a sibling is also a close contact you would have been told so they and everyone else in the house carry on as normal. The vaccination status of anyone in the family is irrelevant, why are you thinking about that?

As a PP said, the idea is to limit contact with the person who is isolating, but this must be very difficult with a young child.

There was a school in Wales before half term who asked all siblings of contacts to stay off as well as so many people were testing positive. Luckily it was just before half term so along with half term it seems to have helped stop the spread

There's quite a few schools here with positive cases, only 3 more days left of school so I'd absolutely keep mine home if one had to isolate.