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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBU Norovirus and school attitude..

44 replies

ultrablue · 14/12/2019 23:27

So DS and DD go to different schools that are managed by the same school. DS goes to the lead school... Parents get an email to say that there has been a single confirmed case of Norovirus at a local primary school where siblings might attend.. Brilliant parents and students are aware, on the look out etc etc.

Same day DD comes home from "linked" school ..
DS " It was terrible at school today 15 children and 4 teachers were in the medical room within an hour throwing up and the other end Mom"

Me"That's terrible, what did school do?".

My daughter spends a bit of time in the medical room for other reasons which is a bit of a concern.

DD "well the really I'll children "(I'll let you draw your own conclusions) had to wait until their parents picked them up. " The others who only threw up where sent back to class"

"You are kidding me Norovirus and being sent back to class"

"Yes mom"

Really they are sending vomiting kids back to class knowing how contagious it is. All the other local schools that have has a couple of outbreaks are closing to deep clean.

DD has now finished her mock "mock" exams and my mom is in a nursing home, where I (we) visit Every Day.

AIBU not to send her to school regarding the schools attitude? Norovirus could be fatal to my mom and the other residents

OP posts:

fedup21 · 15/12/2019 10:25

I’m not sure how the OP can be so sure her DD hasn’t muddled some facts. The 4 teachers throwing up where the kids were is so unlikely. They would be elsewhere.

Agreed, this is all rather strange.

MitziK · 15/12/2019 11:11

The ones who are 'really ill' are the ones with fevers, are clammy and sweating, have actually really been sick and are clearly ill.

The 'see how you do' kids are the ones who come and tell you they've been sick, but there have been no witnesses, there's no sick in the toilets, they don't smell of sick, they came bounding up the corridor before staggering round the corridor, they've been saying 'goodbye, I'm going home' to all their friends at break, their eyes are bright and their cheeks a healthy colour, they just happen to have this illness immediately after a lesson they like and at the start of a lesson they don't, you've seen them 30 times this term at the same time every week, they've just stuffed their face with snacks at breaktime or happen to be on the detention list for tonight, and quite frankly, the most they have is a slight feeling of queasiness that immediately resolves if Mum is dragged in from work to collect them and they bounce out of Medical to be collected

I've had genuinely ill kids all term. I've had emotionally distressed kids all term. I've had genuinely injured kids all term.

That doesn't mean I don't get absolute chancers as well.

Gammeldragz · 15/12/2019 11:41

Our school closed for three days to do a deep clean as they had 20-25% absense rate last week. Norovirus/vomiting bug and a cold/flu type virus. Before this they were giving out hand sanitiser in class.

Witness55 · 15/12/2019 11:55

My dd also says students have been sent back to class after being sick too. It's disgraceful. If she's ill now, she texts me and I can usually tell if she's genuine. I collected her just last week when she had a severe migraine. The receptionist had refused to send her home. I turned up unannounced to get her. She walked out of class and was being followed by an agitated member of staff. The receptionist said but she hasnt followed the correct procedure! My dd was sobbing in pain and walked out of the building. It turns out her teacher had said how she could actually see the migraine over her eye and knew she was in pain but the reception refused to call me. It pisses me off. And to those poor student sat waiting in soiled underwear if that were my child I would be making a complaint to the governors and head.

HideYourBabiesAndYourBeadwork · 15/12/2019 12:00

I’m struggling to believe they sent anyone back to class who had been sick. Maybe they were sent back because the staff thought they were pulling a fast one?

All of the schools round here including the ones my children go to are very twitchy about norovirus as it’s so easy to pass on and is particularly nasty.

Savingshoes · 15/12/2019 12:15

I would report this to your Local health protection team (HPTs). They can be contacted by searching for your regional Public Health England centre.

www.gov.uk/government/organisations/public-health-england

Londongirl86 · 16/12/2019 05:50

I don't think it's right and I don't think the 48 hour rule Is good either! I've made a post last night. My child's best friend was taken to someone's house Friday who had had it all week. That child began vommiting yesterday. I now fully expect we will get it just in time for Christmas. If she goes back Wednesday she will probably infect several kids still as her adult relation was ill all week. I am absolutely peed off with people being irresponsible with norovirus. Those poor kids having to be at school like that!

Dcle · 16/12/2019 06:05

Am absolutely with you on this - our nursery was absolutely terrible when our daughter first started (and got noro, gave it to us all, including her poor granny who was hospitalised due to impact on underlying health condition). It infuriates me and I have pushed really hard, but politely, for 2 years for them to change their approach and this week they sent out notification saying they'd had sick kids. Finally. So do lobby lobby as the education and public health England guidance is really clear on what they should.do..

SubordinateThatClause · 17/12/2019 18:01

I regularly go into primary schools for my job. Lost count of the number of times I've seen children in class with a v* bag.

Londongirl86 · 17/12/2019 18:30

I think you should be allowed to keep kids off if they have cases in the school. Especially this week. Nobody wants Christmas ruining after all the money and effort.

ThreeAnkleBiters · 17/12/2019 18:33

I would check if that was actually true. If it is of course YANBU that's ridiculous.

BlueLadybird · 17/12/2019 21:52

@SubordinateThatClause Do the children look ill? Or do you think the school suspect them or not being ill and so send them back to class to see what happens?

sandybanana · 17/12/2019 21:57

I wouldn't be sending her back. Not this side of Christmas.

I would also be emailing the head for clarification and possibly giving public health a call...

If it's true, that's absolutely disgusting on the school's behalf.

Tessaraqt · 17/12/2019 22:15

My child's teacher was talking about how so many bugs were going round, and mentioned their nativity practice and how so many kids were sick and said "honestly, we had FIFTEEN kids sitting there with sick bags during rehearsals!"

I actually thought.... WTF. You had kids puking sitting there next to other kids?! Mental.

SubordinateThatClause · 18/12/2019 10:25

@BlueLadybird - ill! Staff in schools have been cut so much, office staff are overwhelmed, teachers overwhelmed, hardly any teaching assistants left. There are not enough adults and it can take ages for parents to collect...

LaserShark · 18/12/2019 10:30

The last school I taught in, children were sent back to my lessons with a sick bag. I was furious. Ill children can’t learn, it’s embarrassing for them to be sick in lessons and the infection risk is absurd. Our local high school has closed four days early because of the spread of Norovirus and they are being deep cleaned. It spreads like wildfire and is absolutely not worth the risk.

turkeyontheplate · 18/12/2019 10:35

I would keep my kids off for the rest of term in this scenario. Zero fucks given for what school or anyone else thinks about it.

Witchend · 18/12/2019 11:10

I suspect the "only sick once" are the children who regularly turn up claiming to be sick because they know if the school believes them they're sent home for two days.

My friend was a school nurse. The number of times she met someone who "had been really sick" off to the cinema, at football practice, down town, at McDonald's... Etc within a couple of hours after being sent home.

Frankola · 18/12/2019 11:22

Before you do anything I'd call the school to ask their version of events.

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