To think parents will begin to lie

[Settleandcalm]

DD has a slight temp for one day, as a result doing the right thing we eventually got the test, and a veeeery long time later the results. The test was awful making her vomit over herself, the wait for my older children who are already struggling being in and out of school also awful. But it was the right thing to do.

BUT. Would I put her through that test every 3 weeks which is the average she got a temp:cough last year? No. Can I afford to lose my job? No. I will do the right thing but I have an utter fear over it.

But I suppose I wonder how long it will take parents to start slipping back to the “watch and see” version of illness. If it’s just a bit of a temp on one day... just a bit of a cough... maybe give them a day and see if they are fine, rather than fight for a test or isolate The whole family for 14 days.

There are already kids in school coughing and I know only us and one other family has tested, so perhaps, because of the testing fiasco and inconsistent rules people are already starting to lie?

[Giningit]

Definitely think more parents will lie. How many times are we expected to keep our DC off school and self isolate over the winter period, when they are probably only picking the usual bugs? This is particularly difficult for working parents and those with more than one DC. The fact that getting a coronavirus test is like gold dust over here is making the situation impossible.
One of my DCshad a bad cold, with normal symptoms of a cold, but also developed a cough. I tried to get a Coronavirus test, so many times but wasn’t able to. I kept her off school for a few days because she wasn’t well, not for any other reason. Now she’s back at school but will tell anyone who asks that her symptoms starter far earlier than they did to head off the self-isolation question.

[SayakaMurata]

At my school we had a child trying to hide a cough, clearly having been told to by a parent.

They were sent home, tested, and were negative, all by the next day. Apparently.

Parents are already lying and there's nothing the schools can do about it.

I know that having a child sent home has repercussions but a parent's job is not more important than someone's life.

[Tanith]

Begin to lie?? They are already lying!

[Ickabog]

They were sent home, tested, and were negative, all by the next day. Apparently.

I wonder if we work at the same school? We had an identical situation this week.

[ErnestTheBavarian]

My son (19) did have Covid. No cough at all. Slight temperature . Felt generally shitty. No cough

[Castiel07]

@CountessFrog

There’s another issue - if one child gets a cough and you all have to isolate, then once that test result comes back, all kids back to school, yes?

But then the other child has caught the same cold and is now showing symptoms including a cough. It’s obviously a cold that’s been passed round family members. Do they have to get tested?

My daughter was tested as negative but then my husband developed her cold and he was coughing in work, doesn’t look good!

Yep your supposed to treat each person as if they could have something else, even though its 99% that they have the same thing.
We had the very same thing last week, 5 year old high temp *over 39 got him tested the next day.
Got a negative 24 hours later so we were lucky but this was just before the tests here had problems
Then 2 days later 4 year old had a high temp but had to get her tested as school wouldn't have her back until.
I do get why but I do also understand why parents are so worried about their jobs and money.

[AlternativePerspective]

I think they might but then it’s going to happen that they know someone who catches the virus and their view will change.

As for a temperature, no-one should be sending their child to school with a temperature, COVID or no COVID. Cough and a cold is fine when it’s a cold, but not a temperature. IMO.

[Bunkumum]

If parents choose to lie about having a test but the child is still ill then I would have no qualms about continuously sending the child home. I don’t need to see a negative test result for me to decide if a child is well enough to be in class or not. People have lost their minds over this. Before Covid I sent ill children home for hundreds of reasons. Having a negative test doesn’t mean they are well enough for school.

[ErinBrockovich]

@Ickabog my DC’s school required a copy of the test result before they would allow them back.
The result took 4 days.
Don’t ask about the process to request it. Absolutely horrendous.

Although my DC had a decent temperature of 38.8 for more then 24 hours and a really bad cold, I was as sure as I could be that it wasn’t Covid.

I get back to school and people ask after my DC. When I say they’d had a really bad cold soooooo many people replied ‘oh so has little Johnny’. My DC was the only one kept off and tested. I can only guess that not one of the many others who had the same illness had a temperature with it 🤷‍♀️

[ErinBrockovich]

@Iamnotthe1 do you have a source?
My DC’s school absolutely refused to have them back until they had a copy of the negative result.
Their sibling’s nursery took exactly the same position. So the sibling could not return to nursery until the unwell DC got their negative result.

[Leftsideright]

My kids off for two weeks because her school overreacted to a cold. No tests were available in the first five days. So she's home. Two weeks she's got to miss out on year one. She missed 4 months of reception. She was out of school for 5 months. She goes back for a week. Then I have to keep her off again. I have to lie to her and say I'm keeping her off because I don't want to confuse the poor thing. I don't want to tell her that it's because of coronavirus.

I didn't even want her to have such a horrible test. Perfect way to traumatise them isn't it. I can understand the importance if she has a fever or dry continuous cough. But anything else is likely just a bug. They can't surely keep doing this too kids.

It's upsetting and unsettling. It's a waste of everyone's time. They piss me off so much. The schools are so safe to open. Yet half the town's got kids off with colds and unable to get a test. So are they safe to be open?

It's like they are taking a gamble like a lucky dip! Send them in. When one catches the Corona prize everyone goes home. Then we will put you all in the game again.

I really can't see how this plan is healthy or good for anyone. Whilst my child's at home alone over a cold. Her mate who had the same thing is in because his mum won't keep him off for anything. Same symptoms, yet one kid is on and the other is punished for needing a day at home on a really sneezy day where she needed drinks, rest and Calpol. Adults also need a day of paracetamol on bad days with colds. Or a hot bath and a quick sleep. We don't always if we are working. But it's cruel to force a poorly child to struggle through at such a young age.

I could rant all day about the fact my child's friends are all at school learning and making new friends and my little girl will go back full of nerves. I hope she can still settle into year one.

Oh also I saw a video of the classroom and it looks so formal and boring for five year olds. No toys. Just desks and displays. Coronavirus is literally robbing our children of education, socialising and learning through teamwork and play.

May aswel keep them home if this carries on. It's only going to get worse at the winter rolls around.

Rant over.

[QuestionMarkNow]

The testing each time a child has a bit of a cold/cough is not manageable with the testing we have in place in the uk (Not even bothering to go into WHY this is such a shamble).

For some parents, this will not be manageable. Where I live, about half of the people are in areas with their council tax. People are struggling financially sooo much. They are not going to take the risk of losing that job for something that is much more likely to be a cold. Because the risk they face is no food in the table.

It is really worth remembering, not everyone can work from home. Not everyone is employed with sickness pay etc... Not everyone can live on the basic unemployement benefit. Not with a whole family to feed. People will get stressed/frightened/taken by the throat and will do whatever they think is the best to keep afloat. And yes that includes sending a child with no test. Because they will not see what other choice they have.

Of course in leafy areas, MC job where wfh is Ok, attitudes will be very different. Because they can afford to.

[Bagadverts]

With the testing system in a mess I wonder if the government will restrict who is eligible. I heard about priority for hospitals and care homes and teachers. At that point presumably any child with a temperature or new cough (or worse if have asthma) will to do two weeks isolation.
I have great sympathy for parents who may lose jobs, maybe new laws are needed but really they need business support as well - some very reasonable employers are not joking when they say business will close if employees are regularly absent even if very good reasons.

[Ickabog]

www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools

Schools should not request evidence of negative test results or other medical evidence before admitting children or welcomng them back after a period of self-isolation.

@ErinBrockovich.

[Florencex]

Yes this will happen. But I feel there is too much unnecessary testing anyway.

[WanderingMilly]

I work in a school (not teaching) and have sent children home in the last few days. They are children who are coughing, mostly, and all had a very obvious colds (sneezing, runny nose, sore throat, very obvious phlemmy cough rather than dry, continuous COVID cough). Most have not had a temperature or very slightly raised, and not as high as the government 37.8 guideline.

I have been saying to parents, no need to test, this is not a testing scenario, this is just a child with a bad cold who shouldn't be at school spreading it to others, keep at home until cleared.

Much better than expecting everyone to get tested. We have had others who show more COVID-type symptoms though, and of course they are asked to test (although all have been negative so far).

[Itsabeautifuldayheyhey]

If it’s just a bit of a temp on one day... just a bit of a cough... maybe give them a day and see if they are fine, rather than fight for a test or isolate The whole family for 14 days.
What does "a bit of a temp" or "a bit of a cough" actually mean? You need to quantify this. What temperature? How often and for how long is the coughing?
I'm not sure you should be getting tested unless it is for a new continuous cough and an actual fever.

[PleasantVille]

Whilst covid is a new illness sending unwell children to school because you simply can't afford not to has always been with us, it's not going to change now. Of course some parents will send their children in where another parent might make a different call, that won't surprise anyone will it?

Add in the wide range of possible symptoms and current testing problems and I'd guess 000s of children every day will be going to school when maybe they shouldn't but what's the answer, the country just can't function if working parents have to keep taking time off.

[Bupkis]

Those saying about a bit of a temperature for a day - on The Briefing Room on Radio 4 last night, look8ng back at the first 6 months of Covid...one 9f the points raised was in the difference in symptoms in children and adults one if the differences being that children would be more likely to have a very short lived fever.
It's still available on catch up www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000mk3m and worth a listen, it was very interesting to hear where we are (and how much we still have to learn) wrt covid

[brightbluegentian]

My DD will be going to school with a cough today. We have been off for almost a week trying to get a test and waiting for the results. It was negative so I’m afraid she is going back even though she still has some cokd symptoms.

[QuestionMarkNow]

@WanderingMilly

I work in a school (not teaching) and have sent children home in the last few days. They are children who are coughing, mostly, and all had a very obvious colds (sneezing, runny nose, sore throat, very obvious phlemmy cough rather than dry, continuous COVID cough). Most have not had a temperature or very slightly raised, and not as high as the government 37.8 guideline.

I have been saying to parents, no need to test, this is not a testing scenario, this is just a child with a bad cold who shouldn't be at school spreading it to others, keep at home until cleared.

Much better than expecting everyone to get tested. We have had others who show more COVID-type symptoms though, and of course they are asked to test (although all have been negative so far).

How is the school expecting the parents to cope with that sort of demand? How will the parents be able to take some many days off to look after said children?

If the school wouldn’t have sent the children back home before, then they shouldn't sent them home now. Unless the school is doing it’s usual thing of assuming mum is at home all day so it doesn’t matter

[Lovemusic33]

My dd has woken up with a snotty nose and sore throat, it’s obviously a cold and not covid, she doesn’t have a cough, no high temp, no loss of taste, her friend also has a cold. It’s cold season and I can’t see how parents can keep kids home every time they have a slight cold, they would be home all the time. My dd is 16 (in 6 form) but is petrified of having a test, she has ASD, sensory issues mainly around her mouth, her gag reflex is very sensitive (struggles at the dentist), I’m not getting her tested every time she has cold symptoms. She has gone to school.

Advice is to keep them home if they have any of the covid symptoms, a snotty nose and sore throat is not on the list. If your child hasn’t got covid symptoms then send them to school.

[Settleandcalm]

Those saying I shouldn’t have tested “a bit of a temp” I was told to by school and 111 or she wasn’t allowed back in.

In “normal” times if it isn’t over 38 I’d be ignoring it.

[Pikachubaby]

It’s an idiotic set-up

Winter will be ridiculous, kids (and teachers) often get colds and coughs, they will end up missing lots of teaching time

My DS gets tonsillitis twice a year, he gets a temperature and cough. That’s going to be fun

DH has asthma and gets coughing fits. He’s a teacher. That’s going to be fun .

Then there’s all the normal colds

It will be a very disruptive year and kids’ learning will suffer

In DS year one kid coughed, he was taken to the nurse and the rest of the class was sent home immediately

The whole thing is idiotic

Totally bonkers

[Settleandcalm]

And obviously, yes I’d asked because it’s the responsible thing to do and the guidelines, as always, are as clear as fucking mud