To think that high levels of children being sent to school are the beginnings of lockdown resistance from the working age population

[NoIDontWatchLoveIsland]

I keep hearing widespread reports of high levels of children being sent to school under key worker provision. In the first lockdown many people did what they could to keep children at home, and employers tolerated this, but this time almost everyone I know even vaguely connected with a key worker occupation has been given a letter from their employer and told they must get their children to school. In almost all cases the parents are happy about this.

AIBU to think that this is the beginnings of resistance from younger people at continued school closures & lockdowns, when the statistics continue to be clear that few people under 50 who are not CEV are getting severely I'll with Covid?

YABU - no, people are supportive of school closures & wider lockdowns
YANBU - yes, younger people are becoming less tolerant of school closures/wider lockdowns

And watch the bloody hospitals close their doors to everyone who is sick.

Have you watched the news tonight?

My DS happily walked to school this morning, book bag in hand clearly visible and his uniform on. So it was clear to everyone nearby where we were going.

I wonder how many people had a cats bum face while they drove past/walked past.

It’s almost becoming some sort of taboo for children to go to school! My DS is going to school because he’s a vulnerable child.

It’s almost becoming some sort of taboo for children to go to school

This. A thousand times over.

@sassbott

It’s almost becoming some sort of taboo for children to go to school

This. A thousand times over.

Yep. For non KW to go to school

I see threads for same for nursery non KW too

It’s awful to watch demands that other people take the hit

The list of KW has been written by the govt. it is a lot longer than the April list. Why? Because Govt wants the economy to continue. It was also pressurised by business leaders to add new groups of staff to it. Therefore, yet again it isn’t anyone’s fault. It is the govts fault.

@Coffeeandcocopops

The list of KW has been written by the govt. it is a lot longer than the April list. Why? Because Govt wants the economy to continue. It was also pressurised by business leaders to add new groups of staff to it. Therefore, yet again it isn’t anyone’s fault. It is the govts fault.

Should be mandatory that both parents need to be key workers

The list of KW has been written by the govt. it is a lot longer than the April list. Why? Because Govt wants the economy to continue. It was also pressurised by business leaders to add new groups of staff to it. Therefore, yet again it isn’t anyone’s fault. It is the govts fault.

...And do you know which profession is 2nd on my DC primary school priority list straight after NHS workers? Teachers! After it was teachers (union) who claimed that schools need to be shut a as they are unsafe.... And I know of several schools with only teaching assistants on site with teachers that work from home. (... that's what schools told parents.)

But really, what government did, is to keep the back door open so parents can go to work.

Because they know damn well the infrastructure (internet) cant cope with it all Home schooling WFH Zoom Face Time online shopping etc.

It's selfishness people were worried about themselves/children in march.
Now they arent you now see how little crap they care about the little people keeping everything running.

Although obviously not including actual key workers in this.
But they have had to acceot any dangers already so for them say playdates etc seem lower risk.
Also knowing you womt get a vax makes a huge difference. If you are low enough risk they wont even do yours.
However as time goes on there will be a new wave of kong covid. And that 10% will be an issue not just from a gmhealth perspective but mentally knowing theres a vax but you may be actively prevented from having it. So have to risk going through that again and again every few months (it will come round much quicker with no restrictions.
I feel sure personally that realisation/reality may well prompt some suicides. It really is the sort of thing you domt want to keep getting.
So yes i think there is an issue with the vsx and messaging.

And the lies about imolying most people dying were pretty unhealthy. Lpt of 40yo will be overweight or high bp or on the way to diabetes.
Some of those gleefully shoving kids in when wfh are likely pretty overweight for eg

It is winter. So no schooling or wfh in the garden.
It is six weeks. Though nobody believes it will be only six weeks.
Children have already had more weeks away from school than would have been the case if the government had acted promptly last March, as if they had some summer term school could have happened for all.
Dominic Cummings was not sacked so people are less willing to make sacrifices.
Lack of a consistent policy if one parent is a key worker, one is not.

So no wonder parents are using this provision.

@Coffeeandcocopops

The list of KW has been written by the govt. it is a lot longer than the April list. Why? Because Govt wants the economy to continue. It was also pressurised by business leaders to add new groups of staff to it. Therefore, yet again it isn’t anyone’s fault. It is the govts fault.

Which ones are new?

Employers are less willing to let people work from home this time around. So some keyworkers (like me, for example) were able to work from home 2 days a week last time, but this time, it's not been offered. We're all in, all of the time. So therefore, rather than have my 11 year old child at home alone for 5 days a week, I'm sending them into school. And the school are saying 5 days a week or nothing so I don't even have the option of keeping them at home on the one day that their father is able to work at home.

A lot of it this time I think comes down to employers.

For example, there's a lady I know who works in Gregg's. Her kids are in school because technically she's a key worker this time and her employer is refusing to furlough because they are open and expecting people in.

Now we can all argue that Gregg's isn't essential. But what are the individual workers supposed to do if they are being told they have to go in? Just quit the job that pays their bills?

absolutelyspaffing exactly
No one works in Greggs for shots age giggles. No one is getting rich working in Greggs.

But let me tell you, if that mum were to give up her job and get benefits the same people hounding her for working today will be hounding her for not working tomorrow.

I don’t blame anyone in Greggs situation for working and sending child. If the guidance allows it people will use it.

I do really feel for those in same situation who can’t though, how are they coping

We're in Scotland. You can only get a key worker place if a single parent, or if both parents are key workers. I this is sensible. One difficulty with allowing too many children in school is that it encourages even more people to do it, as they don't want their child to become of The few who doesn't attend. In my local school, they're expecting approx 8% of pupils to attend next week

@notanothertakeaway

We're in Scotland. You can only get a key worker place if a single parent, or if both parents are key workers. I this is sensible. One difficulty with allowing too many children in school is that it encourages even more people to do it, as they don't want their child to become of The few who doesn't attend. In my local school, they're expecting approx 8% of pupils to attend next week

But surely a potentially discriminatory policy? As statistically, men are more likely to be in work than women, or to be in higher earning or key worker type jobs. So it appears to be indirect discrimination on grounds of sex. This has been around for years, I'm surprised the SG hasn't assessed their policy better for potential indirect discrimination. Be aise it is women who will bear the brunt of this policy.

Well, if they are, then all they are doing is prolonging the lockdown because the more children there are in schools, the higher the rate of infection will be.

I think it would be easier to get my head around if there was an end date. If returning was definitely after feb half term I could deal with it but I’m fairly sure it won’t be and the thought of a post Easter return or longer is miserable.

@Anjo2011 I am just trying to think of this is a 6 week stretch, anymore and my mental health wouldn't hold up I don't think. Six weeks of juggling and that stress is enough to try and cope with right now.

Yes both parents should have to be CW's. A lot of SAHM's are sending their kids in because husband/partner is a CW!!! That's not OK.

I wanted to only send my children in 2 days a week but was told its all or nothing.
We're both key workers though. Saying both have to be KW can cause problems. What happens if neither of you are KW or one of you is but you both work outside the home? Even if you WFH you can't do that and homeschool.

If you have a shit employer like I do, you will have been told you are a key worker (since every role at my very much non key workplace has been) and that you must make your child go into school so you can go into work when during the previous lockdown you worked perfectly well from home.

This issue is being largely driven by unscrupulous employers who give no shits about their staff.

The media hounded and hounded for schools to be closed (as did some parents). The government didn’t want to. So I believe that the government have done a half-assed job of it. Meaning the school ‘closures’ will have little impact on slowing down the spread of the virus, ALL children are disadvantaged because none of them, in or out of school are getting the education they deserve, and teachers are absolutely run ragged trying to provide teaching for those in school and those at home. Do the government care about this? No, I doubt it. They wanted to keep schools open. I know the NHS is overwhelmed, but I think as things stand, schools should have been either limited like they were in March, or just stayed open. The current situation is good for absolutely no one.

@Murraytheskull unreasonable employers I think are a small part. The 'work from home if you can' should have been a stronger law/rule and named some professions/jobs where it was obligatory or at the very least only in an office for a limited number of days a week.

I don't blame parents for wanting their children in school and using rules or guidance to do so. I blame the government for not thinking about this in detail.