To be appalled at the amount of people who think school staff should be collateral damage.

[Witchcraftandhokum]

This is not a response to teacher basing thread, I know full well that all teachers aren't perfect and all schools have not responded to the Lockdown in the same way. But I'm amazed at some posters in here demanding that things return to normal immediately. I've seen someone promoting a petition demanding that schools reopen with no social distancing and no safety measures. People saying schools should have never closed and people saying that teachers should "just bloody well get on with it".

I am concerned about the lack of consideration for vulnerable and shielded pupils and staff

And have tended to assume that the plans for return before the summer were always about getting schools to experiment with what arrangements they can make, and then see what ones are actually fit for purpose. And then more come back in September.

But they are not discussing the long term educational future of pupils who cannot attend school because of exceptional medical vulnerability (or someone officially shielding in their family, from whom they cannot be solvated at home). Nor the employment future of shielded teachers, and the measures to protect vulnerable ones

AllpowerfullLizard The advice/guidance has been shocking. Just "here's what you need to do" without any support on how it's achieved.

And what would happen if supermarket shelf stackers, checkout workers, hospital cleaners, bin men and care home staff just opted out of returning to work?

Teachers are certainly not at a higher risk then those people. It’s a disgrace frankly the way some teachers are holding the country to ransome.

Polly you do realise it's not the teachers who make the decisions don't you. Boris et al, have said how things need to work without giving any thought into the practicalities of how we socially distance and how many more staff are needed to do so. Also supermarket workers are free to wear PPE if they wish, some posters here don't want school staff to be able to do that.

Teachers are certainly not at a higher risk then those people. It’s a disgrace frankly the way some teachers are holding the country to ransome

Which teachers are holding the country to ransom and how?

This won’t go well on Teacher Hating MN but I totally agree with you.

Teachers have been explicitly told that wearing PPE in school is unnecessary.

And it is the government dictation school opening plans. And they can't even make their minds up about that. Dozens of updates for every new announcement they make. Believe me, any teacher worth their salt wants nothing more than to get back to their classes and back to 'normal', this uncertainty is crippling for parents, students, teachers and SLT alike.

I teach in secondary. We have been told to open for year 10 from 15 June (we have no year 12) with no more than 25% in at one time. And we are doing exactly that. We actually planned to open from the 8th, but the DfE instructed schools to put it back to the 15th. We have been open, again as instructed, for vulnerable children including through the holidays. How are we holding the country to ransom?

And what would happen if supermarket shelf stackers, checkout workers, hospital cleaners, bin men and care home staff just opted out of returning to work?

They all had safety measures put in place - limits on customers in store, card over cash, care homes on lockdown, hospital cleaners with extra PPE (well they had at the hospital my dad died at through COVID) and bin men offered PPE.

FFS give it a rest.
polly nobody is refusing to return to work.
witchcraft who’s holding who to ransom?
You are clueless and offensive. It’s getting ridiculous now.

Jimmy It wasn't me that said anyone was holding people to ransom. I'm not sure if you're calling me clueless?

@Pollyputthepizzaon

And what would happen if supermarket shelf stackers, checkout workers, hospital cleaners, bin men and care home staff just opted out of returning to work?

Teachers are certainly not at a higher risk then those people. It’s a disgrace frankly the way some teachers are holding the country to ransome.

Here we go again...

I'm certainly not refusing to work. I can't wait to go back, but parents must appreciate that a return to 'normal schooling' can't happen at the moment.

Oh god witch I’m so sorry. Just finished a long day with the kw and vulnerable kids and I’m clearly tired and emotional. A thousand apologies

Absolutely not a problem Jimmy.

Agree OP. The way some posters talk about teachers here reminds me of how middle class women used to talk about their scullery maids a century ago.

We weren’t going to stay locked down until a vaccine, we have to start getting back to normal. When do you propose society gears up again?

I don’t think teachers should have to return to work, especially not the vulnerable ones.

But it clearly is not the case that retail workers, transport workers etc have adequate safety measures in place, as we are dying at a higher rate than the rest of the population.

I am absolutely terrified at work. I wouldn’t wish any teacher to have to face similar or higher risks. Well done them for having unions that are prepared to defend their rights.

@Stripesgalore they might not be adequate but at least some protection has been offered - posters like polly and her pizza don’t think they are worth any......

onlyfools I'm not advocating schools stay closed. I'm saying parents need to realise that we can't return to normal as yet.

Here we go again. Let's bash teachers. Gives the furloughed a break for 5 minutes I guess.

I don’t think anyone is saying “as normal” but rather get back to “some normality”. In this country that starts with schools and childcare.

onlyfools you clearly haven't read my op. I'm talking about the people who think schools should be back with no social distancing or safety measures in place.

@Pollyputthepizzaon no one has refused to go back in my school. The decisions come from the top down. The way the DfE guidance was given to schools is appalling.

I am in a classroom with a lovely group of children. I don’t have PPE though and one of the children sneezed over me and several others yesterday. I am in a room with 2 other adults and 15 children for up to 10 hours (key worker group so providing childcare before and after school but also proper lessons for them within school hours.) The local playgrounds are not allowed to open, I have to queue at Tesco’s 1 in 1 out system and the hairdressers and restaurants are all shut because it’s not safe enough yet in my school everyone is doing the best they can for the kids and their families.

I’m sick of people generalising on here about schools and teaching staff. Look further to the top of the tree at the DfE and to the promised made by Gavin Williamson.

Most teachers aren’t ‘returning to work’. Most of have been working throughout.

Several friends of mine are teachers and last had a day off in February.