Schools should close for 2 weeks after the Christmas mixing

[OverTheRainbow88]

I think that schools should remain closed for face to face teaching 2-3 weeks after the end of the period in which Boris will allow families to all mix.

I don’t want to be in a classroom with 30 different kids 5 times a day who’ve mixed inside with all different family members and friends.

I say online learning until mid Jan, if Boris will allow us all to mix at Christmas

Simple just don’t mix. The poor kids have been through enough.

My daughter missed out on so much learning as her school would not allow her to attend, even though I'm a key worker and husband was focused on work at home. If schools remain closed, my daughter can't do home learning, due to both of us having to having to work. Neither hubby or I have jobs where we can just take 2 weeks further off, we would lose the roof over our heads or go without food. I would want to schools to open as normal. I may get shot down for this, but its a no win situation for us with further support from family.

Er, no thanks. I want my DD back in school. She won’t be mixing with anyone different to usual at Christmas.

In answer to the question, I don’t want to mix widely at Christmas because I don’t want to potentially pass the virus on. I’ve been more upset about some of the other things we’ve missed this year. I think it’s reasonable to allow single people to mix with another family (not necessarily their support bubble as they may have chosen a neighbour or somebody nearby rather than family). I also think anyone end of life should be able to mix with whoever they want. I’d actually chose the very elderly and unwell seeing family above everything else, prioritise them for rapid testing etc

The situation in my school is deteriorating. Three new cases today so 3 more large groups of children isolating from 3 different year groups.

This is happening during “lockdown“. We were in tier 1 before, and had had only 1 case. I absolutely dread to think what it’ll be like in January.

It can't be an individual choice though. It has to be all or nothing.
And I can see that people with no links to schools in terms of their children being grown, or not having got to that life-stage yet, are not going to vote for a lockdown Christmas just so schools can remain open. IF it came down to that straight choice.

Tbh I don’t think anyone should be allowed to mix just because it’s Christmas. What about those who celebrate Eid, Diwali, Thanks Giving? They haven’t been given “time off” the rules.

Shop workers are working all over Xmas and hundreds of people pass through the supermarket. Doctors and Nurses are working in hospitals full of sick people, Nurseries are remaining open too, also bin people, Firemen, the Police

I find it strange that so many teachers feel it’s unsafe to go into work, when so many other professionals worked throughout the pandemic (including in the beginning when even hospitals lacked appropriate PPE!) Maybe it’s because the schools were closed for so long, now they’re open teachers are experiencing risks too! Just like all the other people who risk covid on a daily basis. If you’re clinically vulnerable I understand why you don’t want to risk it. But if you’re fit and healthy covid isn’t a huge risk to you. Most of my (NHS) team have had covid, we were antigen tested and a few of us had positive results despite no symptoms.

We don’t lobby for hospitals, shops, emergency services to close for 2 weeks, why schools?

RattleOfBars I presume you haven’t read any of this thread. Or indeed any other thread about schools.

@HipTightOnions

RattleOfBars I presume you haven’t read any of this thread. Or indeed any other thread about schools.

Shop workers are working all over Xmas and hundreds of people pass through the supermarket. Doctors and Nurses are working in hospitals full of sick people, Nurseries are remaining open too, also bin people, Firemen, the Police

I find it strange that so many teachers feel it’s unsafe to go into work, when so many other professionals worked throughout the pandemic (including in the beginning when even hospitals lacked appropriate PPE!) Maybe it’s because the schools were closed for so long, now they’re open teachers are experiencing risks too! Just like all the other people who risk covid on a daily basis. If you’re clinically vulnerable I understand why you don’t want to risk it. But if you’re fit and healthy covid isn’t a huge risk to you. Most of my (NHS) team have had covid, we were antigen tested and a few of us had positive results despite no symptoms.

We don’t lobby for hospitals, shops, emergency services to close for 2 weeks, why schools?

Yes it’s hard for lots of different types of workers at the moment, this thread is about schools and school staff, We don’t need the comparison, it won’t help anyone. You could start a thread about them.

I am lobbying for school closure For 2 weeks if the PM Insists it’s ok to mix families for Christmas.

Bubbles will burst throughout Jan, if the plan of mixing goes ahead. Your children will miss school regardless.

@RattleOfBarsattle. Because we have little or no protection apart from open doors and windows plus masks on corridors. I teach 6 classes and 4 have had positive cases. I've interacted with those pupils in confined spaces with no masks allowed in the classroom. I go shopping and Im expected to wear a mask at all times and keep my distance. All we want is better protection.

The good news is that cases are now plateauing and even decreasing, even with schools open. So it is possible to keep schools open and see a decrease in cases if rules are followed elsewhere. It's a shame that this will all be ruined if people fuck about over Christmas.

The good news is that cases are now plateauing and even decreasing, even with schools open

Are they going down in schools though? We are getting more cases by the day.

I would dearly love to see a breakdown of infections in schools as a proportion of the whole. Because everything I'm hearing (anecdotally, but significant) is that it's RIFE in schools and spreading by the hour.

The way we beat this is to follow the science, we're told.
Covid is in a majority of primary and senior schools here now. If we mix over Christmas, there's a good chance positive cases in school will increase immediately afterwards. The ensuing level of disease and disruption may amount to more than 2 weeks of planned closure.

I have no data projections for this. Does anyone have anything?

Hip no idea. It certainly seems to vary by school. DS's school isn't, there have been 2 cases in his school since going back, both pupils. Mone in staff. We were a tier 2 area pre lockdown.

None in staff that should say!

We’ve got our year 9, 10, 11 and 13s all self isolating, 250 ish in each year group and 300 in year 13

Well, I'm in what was a Tier 1 area. According to one of dh's colleagues, who has direct dealings with several hundred schools, it is spreading at a shocking rate.

We've now got 11 teachers off with Covid. Also got 3 Year groups out.

Cases rising by the day.

Understand where you are coming from but if nurses and hospital staff had the attitude of not wanting to be in a place where they may get infected where would we be. Most of the health workers didn’t choose to work in an environment of infection yet are doing so with good grace and professionalism.

It's rife in schools.

Really bad.

"Most of the health workers didn’t choose to work in an environment of infection yet are doing so with good grace and professionalism."

And PPE.

Our kids will be off for 2 weeks prior to Xmas.. kids have had enough time off school..