To have to keep children off school with cold symptoms

[wondering1]

I'm interested in your thoughts. A child in DD's reception class has recently been diagnosed with asthma. Been very ill in hospital but now back at school. Being winter there are loads of coughs and colds going round. The mother and teacher have asked that any child with any cold symptoms (even if well in themselves I get the impression) be kept at home until fully recovered to minimse risk to child with asthma.

Thoughts?

As a school govenor I can say that OFSTED would be very unhappy with this stance. Attendance is a huge issue at the moment. Bet the Head doesn't know half the reception class are going to be off all winter! If you deem your child well enought to attend school then they should be at school.

What about all the other illnesses that young children get that have no symptoms while being contagious. Many of these can also cause problems for a severe asthmatic.

I understand the mum being worried, but I'm surprised the teacher has also asked.

It must be very worrying for the mum whose child has asthma but that is highly unreasonable. Like many of you have said I keep Dd off if she feels rough with a cold but I obviously send her to school with a bit of a cough or a stuffy nose. What do the other parents think?

That's completely unrealistic and unworkable for many parents. It just won't work.

I'm sure the mother is very worried about her son's asthma and I honestly sympathise, but I don't think she appreciates how much this would impact on other children's learning, as well as people's jobs...my work would be furious if I kept saying I couldn't come in because my child had cold symptoms but was well enough to go to school. It wouldn't fly.

I would speak to the head and ask for clarification on how long this is meant to go on for and if they really think it's an adequate solution.

I do feel very sorry for the child with asthma and his / her mum, but it really isn't fair to put this on the other parents. If the child isn't well enough to be in the normal classroom with the other children (and their minor germs) then they need to consider other ways to keep the child healthy without inconveniencing all the other children and their parents.

Didnt they prove that you are infectious up to 24 hours before you are symptomatic. Renders it all pointless anyway!

i would not be keeping my children off at hint of a cold.
I understand the mothers concern , but you have to ask what she does when they are out and about mixing with the public

In a similar vein, I was once asked to keep my reception child off school when he had slapped cheek. The NHS guidelines clearly state that exclusion is not necessary and he's had it a few times and is fine with it, just has rosy cheeks. The reason I was asked to keep him at home was because one of the teaching staff 'might be pregnant'. With the best will in the world, we cannot make decisions on whether to send our children in to school based on other higher-risk groups around them, we can only do what we feel best for them.

If I kept a dc off every time they had cold symptoms there'd be someone home every day from October-April!! It's unreasonable to ask a whole class to stay off for a sniffle for the sake of one child.

that's just ridiculous of the school

there is a boy with luekemia at my sons school and we haven't been asked any such thing. We have been asked to keep children off with chickenpox or coldsores and not to take children with chickenpox onto the school grounds I think that's fair enough

there is a child in one of my dds class who is having chemo, and even we haven't been asked to keep kids off with colds.
If the child is so much at risk, then they should be the one kept at home.

That's not realistic. A cold if otherwise ok is no reason not to go in IMO and I for one don't get paid for taking time off with a sick child so at this time of year when they are all a little snotty it wouldn't be worth me working.
I can see why the asthma mum is panicking but its just no do-able in the real world and she can't wrap her child in cotton wool forever

There's no way I'd pay school fees in that situation - I really can't believe that the parents of the asthmatic child are being so selfish. It's sad that thier child is ill but why should that mean that the (paid for) education of all the others should suffer.

I'd be asking the HT to confirm the policy in writing - I bet you find it's soon dropped.

Difficult one but if the school fear the current deadly bug;then you shud keep them off

Sounds like mum is terrified and teacher is humouring her.

Colds are contagious for 24 hours before you get any symptoms.

Ds2 has a condition that means he is at high risk of being hospitalised with every vomiting bug, and a cold sends his health haywire and keeps us on our toes looking after his health for a week after the cold has gone. My niece has a compromised immune system and ends up on heavy-duty drugs s at the slightest sniffle. We could home educate and not let them have any friends I suppose, but there is not a lot else you can do!

Though I totally understand where the mum is coming from, I do think she is being unreasonable.

My 5 yo DD has cystic fibrosis and coming into contact with other peoples coughs and colds is not great for her. If she gets a cold she has to go onto a course of strong antibiotics for 4 weeks. If, as happened last year she has a persistent cough (most likely picked up from other people) she'll be admitted to hospital for 2 weeks intravenous antibiotics.

Most people in DDs class know nothing about her condition and not once have I asked for children to be kept away.

What I have asked her teacher though is if there is someone with a hacking cough they don't sit next to DD at carpet time for eg. The teacher has also reinforced good hygiene - catch it, kill it, bin it (or whatever the buzz words are) and plenty of handwashing. Her reception teacher last year even brought in extra bottles of hand gel.

Perhaps the mum and teacher in this case should try and put something similar in place?

As a teacher I'd have nobody to teach if all the sniffly/coughing children had to stay off.

A private school - so people pay for their child to be educated but are not allowed to receive the education if their child has a runny nose

Ofsted do visit private schools, I am sure.

yes the hand hygiene sounds like an excellent idea and a good opprtunity for children to learn about viruses and how they are transmitted.

but my children cough from november til May and there is no way i could keep taking time off work every time one got a cold.

I wonder what the child's doctor has recommended. is there anyway the school cukd send work home for the next few months?

Is this not an extension of a nut free school for children with nut allergies? A cold free school for children with cold allergies?

(Yep seems ridiculous to me and my child has been blue lighted to hospital with asthma)

Surely things would end up
With illegal ratios and teaching set ups as if teachers r off all the time and tas left in charge and vice versa. Not to mention fact that surely they would all learn nothing as teachers would have to repeat everything all the time. My dd would have missed most of reception.

My 3 year old has severe asthma (over 20 hospital admissions)

It pisses me off when people send their child into nursery with a chest infection or serious things (until they have been treated for a few days and recovering) but I would never dream of asking that other parents kept their children off when they had sniffles or a common cold. That is completely unrealistic.

Ridiculous request IMO.

I would not engage in any kind of discussion about this but simply send my child in.

The child in questions mother needs to learn she cannot wrap them up in cotton wool and yes, that is what she is trying to do by this request.

Also agree with the above poster re: slapped cheek. Schools should be following the HPA guidance with regard to infectious illnesses and potential risks & making alternative arrangements if necessary i.e keeping child and member if staff apart if possible.

DD1 has a girl in her class with no immune system. We've had no such requests to stay off school with colds. Sounds mad, the school would be empty this time of year.

Oh dear, I feel very sorry for the parents of the asthmatic child and can understand their concern but this really isn't a reasonable request at all!

My ds4 would hardly have been at school with this policy, he iusnt poorly but like a lot of four year olds he is quite snotty at times. I am a soft touch and keep him off if he is under the weather, tired etc but I can't keep him off every time he has a snotty nose!

I have exercise induced asthma (which I think has mutated into regular asthma really). I also have really crappy lungs constantly full of icky stuff, drippy nose (due to pollen, cat, dog and dust allergies) year round, and have gone around with man-size hankies since my teens (well, now I can afford to buy myself pocket packs of tissues so not AS bad, but always have tissues in my pocket).

I'd never be at work myself if I imposed that rule on myself, and that's quite apart from what it might do to anyone else with asthma. In fact, others having colds around me makes little or no difference, so I fail to see what school are hoping to achieve with this.

The asthma-suffering child needs to learn to manage the condition for the long-term themselves.