To think that a school cannot impose restrictions on what parents can do during the school day?

[crosstraineraddict]

A friend of mine was telling me about something that has happened at the school where her DCs go. Several times in the past few months, parents have gone out for the day to places over an hour away, to meet friends or go shopping or whatever, and their child has been ill at school, so they've been called and been over an hour getting to the school to pick up their child.

The parents have all apparently had a letter now stating that a parent must be within half an hour of the school at all times during the school day, and that they recommend that at least one parent works locally!

Am I alone in thinking this is bonkers and unfair, not to mention dictatorial!

I think we need to remember that a school is there to educate our children, not to nurse them. It is not a daycare establishment there for the convenience of working parents.

alemci - seriously there is no such person in most state schools. Staff are all first aid trained and aware of the asthmatics and those who require epipens etc but it's not one person's responsibility. In our school sick children sit on a chair outside the office until the parent arrives and whilst I care for them best I can it's not specific in my job description and certainly not built into my hours.

To me it just makes sense where possible to have a nearby contact but if you don't and you can't collect your child then there's not much anyone can do.

Autumnlights. I totally agree, but unfortunately many on here seem to disagree.
Maybe schools should employ welfare officers to care for sick children, then parents needn't leave work and can leave the responsibility of their sick child to somebody else.
I know I could never do this, and was one of the reasons I gave up work as had nobody to look after dcs if they were ill. We live ok but could have been alot more comfortable on 2 wages.
After working as a TA and teacher I saw many a sick child who just wanted a relative, not me or another member of staff. Most parents do make it within half an hour ime, but there were quite alot of sahm in schools in my area.
How do people manage when their dcs are off school for several days and child minders won't take their sick dcs, have often wondered this? Surely employers don't just say, hey take the time off?

well wear i live there are hence my response.

in the secondary school where i worked 2 years' agod there was an assigned medical lady in the medical room. perhaps different councils do things differently.

There were all the children with medical conditions on the wall. There were always kids in and out. tended to be the same ones.

i think it is quite an important place in a school.

sorry awful spelling where.

alemci.

There was a sick bay in my ds's secondary, where you went if you felt ill. There were regular attendees for specific problems too. However, you weren't nursed if sick, you waited there for your emergency contact to collect you. There was no way you stayed there being looked after, you went home asap if you were ill.

Potato people with dependents are allowed to take unpaid dependents' leave to look after sick children and can take it for a day or two whilst sorting out alternative arrangements.

Practically speaking, what most tend to do is use annual leave to cover sick days as far as possible, splitting between parents if they can, working from home a bit when sick child is napping or has gone to bed, maybe getting grandparents who live 2-3 hours travel away up to help if it's a long term thing like chicken pox.

yes of course but sick bay beats sitting outside in a corridor.

kids did get collected as should be the case but it was the first point of call and reassuring.

English, you must live in quite an urban area if you are able to say "I wouldn't choose to go more than a half hour drive from school for social reasons"...

From my own home, I am a 20 min drive away, which means I would be pushed to get there in half an hour, if I was in the shower say, or still had younger kids...

If I go to our nearest supermarket and am half way through a weekly shop, I am at least 40 minutes from school...

If I go to our nearest town, I am (just about) half an hour away if I am driving and traffic is OK; but I am 45-60 mins away from school if I am using public transport...

The nearest city is over an hour's drive from the school, in good traffic...

If I go to our local hospital for my physio appointment, I am 40 mins (in a car) or 90 mins if I have travelled by public transport...

Last week I went to visit a friend who had been transferred to the nearest specialist hospital unit - that was 90 mins drive from school...

The nearest maternity unit is over an hour's drive frm the school...

Several of my friends live three times as far from school or towns...

People who are saying "Of course parents should stay close" aren't thinking of the practicalities for those who live in more rural areas :)

Doctrine, with most employers (certainly local authorities, who are the biggest employers in most areas) dependents/parental leave is only allowed for serious things - broken limbs not vomiting, for example...

Fow4.
I know what you mean as we used to live in rural area. I did not drive due to a disability and ds2 schooled 8 miles away and went by bus. Even as a sahm I couldn't have made it there within an hour. I did have good neighbours though and I used my common sense. I know dcs don't always show illness prior to school but if any of mine ever have I wouldn't have gone shopping, out with a friend etc. I would have stayed at home that day.

flow nope, I live in a tiny village with about 50 houses, a playground, no public transport except the school bus, no shop, no school, in the Bavarian countryside :) But the roads are clear unless you get stuck behind a tractor... the nearest village shop is 20 meters from school about 4km from our village, Aldi is about 8km away, or the same distance to a "nice" small supermarket (but in another small town/ big village) but 8km = 15 mins drive (and the school and Kindergarten are between our village and the small towns where the shops are).

If I want to speak English with another native speaker face to face it's a 25 minute drive - that's my limit on a school day, but really it has to be anyway as DD finishes school at 11.20am :)

I have one school child, one Kindergarten child (age just turned 5, would be reception in UK) and a toddler. I am quite good at getting out the door quickly with kids in tow (bad at lots of things esp. keeping the house sparkly with kids, good at getting babies/ toddlers/ kids generally out in a hurry - I keep most things in my car and re stock when used up).

Flow, even unpaid dependents leave?

Our nearest city is also an hour away - when we first moved here I was under the dreamy illusion I'd pop there on a regular basis - lived here 5 years, been in about 10 times... Never on a school day

I did used to work part time before my toddler was born, in yet another small town about 20 mins drive from home, but 15 mins from Kindergarten (no school kids then). I work eves now but DH is home with the kids.

I haven't read all 11 pages, but how bloody ridiculous.

The school is in loco parentis while your child is with them. They don't need an emergency contact within half an hour. They are the emergency contact.

morethanpotatoprints says "After working as a TA and teacher I saw many a sick child who just wanted a relative, not me or another member of staff" for me this is what it is really about, I wouldn't want my kids to sit miserably on a chair in the corridor waiting for me while they are still little (or at all, but especially when primary aged). Obviously nobody wants this and some people have no choice about how their life has to work, but my responses have primarily been about the OP's example of people off shopping or socialising, rather than single parents with no support network and no acceptable alternative option to a job an hour from the school...

How do people manage when their dcs are off school for several days and child minders won't take their sick dcs, have often wondered this? Surely employers don't just say, hey take the time off?
Well yes, they do, because they're legally obliged to give you the time off. They don't have to pay you for it, but of course you are entitled to look after a sick child.

See Time off for dependents
Parental leave

Sorry English, are you saying it's OK for a parent to work an hour away but not for a SAHP to visit a friend an hour away, have I got that right?

Doctrine, I was about to say 'yes' to you, but then I read adrastea's link (Time off for dependents). Well well well well WELL! :)
NEXT time I need time off for a poorly child, I won't feel guilty and I won't feel like I need to beg and plead... Thanks, ad!

Oh yay, flow! I did think it was law so I wondered if we were talking at cross purposes somehow. Glad you've got some helpful ammunition.

adrastea.

If schools didn't have an emergency contact, how would they get in touch with parents?

Last year when my dd was still in school a playground accident just boys playing resulted in a brken nose and fractured leg. The other lad broken knee cap and head wound requiring stiches. The school did their duty and called ambulence etc. There was no free member of staff to accompany ambulance, parents were called and went directly to hospital. I am so glad that I could always be contacted and if not I had a stand by.
Loco parentis is indeed in place of the parents. Surely the fact that schools don't nurse sick dcs means this is the responsibility of the parents.
Of course some people can't just drop everything and be there immediately but surely somebody should be able to get there in reasonable time.

Thedoctrine it is OK by me to do whatever you want I am saying that while some people have no (real) choice but to be a long way from their child's school during the school day, and so consequently unable to get to them relatively promptly in case of illness, others do have a choice (to work nearer the school, to not travel a very long distance away for non-essential reasons such as shopping or socialising) could make that choice, but some make a different one.

Having been the child ill at school with un-contactable parents I won't do that to my own children unless I am in a position where it is unavoidable, and this affects my choice of whether and where to work, and whether and where to socialise whist my children are not with me, my husband or their paternal grandparents (those being the only people they'd be comfortable to be with for a moment longer than necessary whilst ill). Obviously if my husband or his parents (whom I trust) could be available to get to them within half an hour or so I'd be happy to go further, but they can't, so I am.

morethanpotato a 10 year old from my DD's school was taken by ambulance to hospital last year, without any adult she knew at all (fractured arm from falling off her chair of all the silly things, but it happens) - not saying its OK, but school has no admin staff on site and TAs don't exist here (abroad), there is just a teacher per class... so that's what happened as her parents were not able to get to the school quickly. She was fine with it apparently, it's all not the end of the world, just not great for the child involved, and they do remember...

Ok thanks for clarifying English.

I had to go to hospital once in my school career. If it had been on a Friday, my SAHM would have been food shopping in the next town along and wouldn't have heard for two hours or so until she got home. The risk of any one day being the day something happened to one of her DCs Wasn't enough to stop her food shopping and nor should it have been, IMO. Perhaps the people mentioned in the OP go off every day shopping or seeing friends - or perhaps it was just unlucky that the days coincided.

Doctrine I must say I was visualising day trips to Bluewater rather tahn the weekly groceries - who knows which was the case. In the 70s and 80s people had no choice but to be uncontactable for a couple of hours sometimes as you describe, but these days that is rarely the case even if you are at the shops...

TheEnglishWoman.

This was just as silly really, a comedy of errors. They were both going to head the ball, hence the head and broken nose injuries, they clashed heads. Boy one fainted at sight of blood straight down onto knee cap rest of body on top of boy 2 fracturing his leg.(Boy one, much bigger)
My point was parents were able to be contacted. How many parents would be up in arms if something serious happened and as they see it the school either didn't contact them or their dc were on their own in a hospital.
I think it is necessary for an emergency contact, in the absence of a parent it should be another suitable adult.