Should kids wear facemasks in school to reduce second wave and more school closures?

[947EliseChalotte]

Should kids wear masks in school in September when there are 30 in a class to reduce chances of second wave and avoid school shut down again?

@RafaIsTheKingOfClay

I am interested to learn about this - where is the info on these outbreaks made public? I'm super wary of September so would like to understand more.

@Sarahplane

I fully support wearing them in shops and public transport btw I just think all day is too long and will interfere with concentration so I think kids should be going back with distancing or in bubbles until the virus is suppressed enough for them to be back without masks.

Well, as there is no social distancing and the ‘bubbles’ are just the use of a word from the guidance that implies safety but provides none, perhaps masks should be worn.

Labyrinthloafer

www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-covid-19-surveillance-reports

@walksen

Thank you!

@Sarahplane

I fully support wearing them in shops and public transport btw I just think all day is too long and will interfere with concentration so I think kids should be going back with distancing or in bubbles until the virus is suppressed enough for them to be back without masks.

How is a bubble going to stop a child catching and bringing Covid home? It’s absolute madness. Add into the mix breakfast and after school clubs, and sharing toilets, it’s not a bubble and it’s won’t stop the spread. FWIW my children have been in 5 bubbles in 4 weeks.

Yes I think they should be worn inside schools, shops and workplaces.

I don’t think schools should be going back though. Lack of social distancing and families sending in known sick children and not following lock down rules etc will risk staff lives and members of families and others they come into contact with.

Bubbles aren’t safe whatsoever, it’s just a phrase to make it sound like it.

Mask them up, Plenty of children will be wearing mask all day in LEGOLAND and Chessington. No complaining there.

This thread is depressing.

The coved surveillance reports. They are released weekly. The info about outbreaks came from an epidemiologist, but I can’t off the top of my head remember which one.

www.gov.uk/government/news/weekly-covid-19-surveillance-report-published

There is a bit of a lag in the data and some of the increase is explained by increased testing. If you look at the most recent one, there’s a table that shows outbreaks by area and place over the last four weeks and over the last week. Interestingly the balance of where the outbreaks are isn’t the same for all areas.

Ideally yes but I can't see how it's possible and then add in touching masks etc.

If only to catch coughs and sneezes though, that would be something.

It's going to be a nightmare winter.
I just hope to god we can get easy fast tests by then because of every sniffle and cough... We will think it's covid

One of my dc will be in a proper bubble with I think 30 and limited teachers.

The other will be in a 180 dc bubble. It's utter nonsense. Yes it's a meaningless phrase.
The whole of the UK is essentially one giant bubble.

Bubbles aren’t safe whatsoever, it’s just a phrase to make it sound like it.

Agreed. Anyone who thinks bubbles will help is either naive or delusional.

@Ohsuchaperfectday

at The whole of the UK is essentially one giant bubble I am pretty despondent about the bubble bollocks.

I'd really rather they just said openly 'we can't be arsed to think it through, because our kids all go to schools with twelve in a class'.

I’m in South Africa and all 4 of my children are back at school, the eldest 3 have to wear masks at school (they’re 5, 8 & 10)...my 2 year old (at the same school) does not need to wear one.

None of my children complain about it. We have to wear masks every time we leave the house even for a walk so they’re used to it now, it is what it is..

Agreed, many children in other countries are wearing face masks so why wouldn’t it work here. Just the thought of 30 children, in a room during winter, no windows open and heating on makes me want to reach for a mask!!

Opening windows in winter is going to be another touch point in schools and offices.

We must have moving fresh air.
All we can do is be as fit as possible. As healthy as we can be.
I didn't realise other countries have dc wearing masks in the school...

@Ickabog

Bubbles aren’t safe whatsoever, it’s just a phrase to make it sound like it.

Agreed. Anyone who thinks bubbles will help is either naive or delusional.

I think they made sense when we were talking about classes of 15 max. Once we started talking about year group bubbles with teachers moving between bubbles I think it just started sounding like something they said to make it sound like they were doing something.

In practice what’ll happen is you will get different bits of bubbles self isolating with bits of bubbles that aren’t self isolating not having a teacher because the teacher is. At which point I’m not sure it’s a bubble.

Yes for secondary school.

Bubbles were fine until you factor in siblings. When I go to work I am in one bubble, my daughter goes into another, my middle son into a different one and my youngest into the attached nursery. 4 different bubbles in one family. And of course DH is out working as well.

This is the sickest thread I have ever read. Mumsnet, you should be ashamed. Putting a mask on a child is abuse, no other word. Shame on the rest of you for taking part

No. Absolutely not. Any mass intervention like this would need to have a full assessment weighing up the harms and the benefits. All the evidence says that children play a limited role in transmission. Enforcing mask wearing on children of any age all day is extreme and could lead to other adverse consequences.

I teach in a school in China, and although initially we had to wear masks, it was difficult to teach in. Difficult to project my voice and difficult to hear what the children were saying. Luckily we were allowed to remove these after a week or so. The main strategies we had by the tume we broke up for summer were:
-year groups in bubbles (although not in corridors so limited effectiveness)
-family health declaration each day (temp of all household members and other symptoms declared)
-2 temp checks during the day (any raised temp sent to medical facility for a covid test within 2 hours)
-hand sanitiser applied each hour

No, kids should not have to wear masks.
There is no science behind wearing a mask but there seems to be a lot of idiots on here that will believe anything they're told.

You can guarantee that schools will then say that they have to be a certain colour, logo free and bought from their "preferred supplier".

Country has gone mad.