Is the world and their dog key workers!!!

[anxiouscrazymum]

So I am not a key worker, I work 3 days a week and have 2 KS1 children.
I am having to adapt my hours around my children's school work and will just have to run myself ragged over the next few months like many others!
AIBU to think that some parents are taking the P@@s and using Key worker benefits to be bloody lazy.
Why are the allowed to send children 5 days if they only work 2/3?
Why are they allowed to send in if their partner is furloughed or working from home?
Why are they allowed to send children in of the just work weekends in a supermarket normally?
We have 14 out of 30 children in my DS class at school, they have the class teacher with them and also have each other.
I feel my children are being penalised and will miss out on school and social interaction all because I am not a key worker:
If there were less children in, the teacher would be able to undertake zoom classes and online interactions. Because of the number of children in we just get set daily tasks!
Sorry for my rant AIBU x

If the dogs a police dog then yes!

Head teachers are in an almost impossible bind.

Enforce strict rules, to protect your staff, and open yourselves up to ire from disgruntled parents quoting the new KW 'rules' (they're guidelines).

Let everyone in, because you want DC in school if their parents say they can't help educate them, and you have massive staffing issues and threats of bubbles bursting.

I feel so sorry for them.

Fwiw, I am staying WELL AWAY from finding out who is in and who is not at our schools. And trying really really hard not to judge what people are doing. Even if I fail sometimes.

It's fucking tough if you're a non-KW family and you have to struggle through just like last time, but also with employers who are pressing for more than last time, because it's not the same as March when it all shut completely. I have sympathy for the OP. It's just an impossible situation we're all in, and there's no real solution other than head down, mind your own business and try not to think too far ahead.

@Whatayearalready21

I agree somewhat. I am not a keyworker, neither is my partner but he will work throughout this despite not being an essential worker.

My children have sen and vulnerable but aren’t being given any provision not even 1 or 2 days a week because the school is full with keyworker children. Some of them genuinely do need to be in but some of the children belong to families who only one parent is a keyworker and the other rid at home. Also a lot of the children are from military families due to nearby raf base. They get provision even if they have one parent at home.

Yet vulnerable children have been given nothing.

I can’t moan really. I’m not working through this so I can stay at home with them but they both have learning difficulties and have 1:1 support at school. I can’t engage and teach them the same way their teachers can. They don’t respond well to me teaching them. I’d be happy even if they went one or two days a week but for now it’s google classroom with home learning that’s too difficult for them!

Whatayearalready21

Children with EHC's are supposed to be prioritised 1st. If they have EHC's (which by having 1:1 support I assume they do), they HAVE to attend the school named in their plan or it is unlawful. You can contact your SEND team at the local council as they have to enforce the EHC's.

Some schools have been really strict on who they take. It depends on if the head is prepared to say no

It really doesn't when government guidance is so broad...

It is upsetting when some of us are making sacrifices to do the right thing.

I’m not in the UK. I am a lone parent with three young DCs and no family/bubble support. I could be classed as a keyworker because of my industry (nuclear power).

But my team only does office work (eg accounting paperwork/ nothing urgent) and we all work from home.

I had the DCs at home for months in our long lockdown. It was extremely hard for me (and them) but I wanted to do the right thing and knew it was not right to send them to school when I was home. I upgraded our internet so we could all use it at once.

I ended up at the GP feeling like I was having a breakdown and they gave me ADs to cope.

In the meantime, my teammate was proudly announcing how he was a key worker and his DCs were at school full time. His wife is SAHM. I know them both well and there was no reason for their DCs to not stay home.

My manager did the same (although his DW works two days at home in non-keyworker role).

My friend from school sent her DCs in as she is a GP and does not work at home. But her DH was furloughed and at home the entire time. I think they should have made an effort to do the right thing. Not take advantage of the key-worker exceptions

I had assumed everyone would try to do the right thing, but no, there is a lot of selfishness. It is disrespectful to the poor school staff.

The keyworker and vulnerable children exceptions are meant for those who have no options. Not for people to work the system.

What I find fascinating is lots of my ITU colleague keyworkers are doing all they can to keep their kids out of school as they feel this wave is a lot worse than the first and is not at it's peak yet.

Yes, this.

Also agree with the PP who said there's a lot of thinly-veiled "My DH cannot be disturbed from his BIG IMPORTANT JOB" going on. Which frustrates me massively.

But I know it's best not to even think about it, for my own sanity!

This is government guidance. Puts schools in a difficult position to refuse

I agree. What annoys me more is that there are parents from my children's school who have managed to get a place for their children despite not being key workers. Why should some parents have to juggle wfh and educating their children and others get to send their children as normal?! Don't get me started on only one parent having to be a key worker malarchey. If one parent is at home, working or not they should be keeping the children home.

This also going to be complicated by the fact Williamson announced in parliament that failure on behalf of the school to provide the appropriate 3/5hrs of online education (age appropriate) is to be an issue to be taken up with Ofsted. There was an implication that worksheet packs etc would not count as the online teaching.

This is going to affect the schools hugely because if you can fail an ofsted report for not providing this education to all students as announced today, then they have more to lose.
Also means parents will not be able to do the teaching all in days off and at the weekend.
The school situation is going to get worse.

Ds' secondary school - in school provision means they get allocated a computer space and attend the online classes. teacher in room to ensure on task. There is nothing different about provision.

My partner is a key worker. I think he’d love to be able to be at home on furlough or working just to feel safe and less stressed.
I understand it must be hard to wfh and teach kids but I think KW should have the support. But that said isnt it just the time they are at work??

@Whatayearalready21

I agree somewhat. I am not a keyworker, neither is my partner but he will work throughout this despite not being an essential worker.

My children have sen and vulnerable but aren’t being given any provision not even 1 or 2 days a week because the school is full with keyworker children. Some of them genuinely do need to be in but some of the children belong to families who only one parent is a keyworker and the other rid at home. Also a lot of the children are from military families due to nearby raf base. They get provision even if they have one parent at home.

Yet vulnerable children have been given nothing.

I can’t moan really. I’m not working through this so I can stay at home with them but they both have learning difficulties and have 1:1 support at school. I can’t engage and teach them the same way their teachers can. They don’t respond well to me teaching them. I’d be happy even if they went one or two days a week but for now it’s google classroom with home learning that’s too difficult for them!

I would query this with the school. Vulnerable children should be accommodated, including those with EHCPs.

DH is a key worker, and I work in a school therefore also key worker. I applied for keyworker places at school for my two DSs but was refused.
I'm gutted.
However, the refusal was because the DSs are aged 20 and 23 and are former pupils! (Lighthearted...they are driving me mad!)

Fallox that comes under "might include" which gives the heads the out not to include. But it has made it much harder for them and will damage home-school relationships if they have to say no. The government has done a massive disservice not issuing stronger criteria. Some children really WILL struggle without IT - but you're asking the heads to make the decision on safeguarding and whether Johnny X really doesn't have reasonable access to a laptop at home at all, or if their parents could make a solution if needed. It's shit whichever way.

YABU

I know a mum whose husband walked out on her and her 3 kids over Xmas. None of the other parents know this - her business. She is a key worker but only occasionally used a place previously when she Wally needed it. She has got places for her kids this time as she is now also a single parent (husband has left town). She has been subjected to jealous jibes and bitching by a pack of dicks who can’t mind their own business. No one has a right to know her circs have changed but they should bloody well consider it possible before ranting.

So, Y, included with this pack mentality, ABU

It also isnt fair to blame parents for this - in many cases it will be the employers asking them to request key worker status, or otherwise making it plain they expect workers to be working their usual hours in the office, or from home without interruptions. Do you really expect people to risk losing their jobs if they have the option not to?

@NoSquirrels

What I find fascinating is lots of my ITU colleague keyworkers are doing all they can to keep their kids out of school as they feel this wave is a lot worse than the first and is not at it's peak yet.

Yes, this.

Also agree with the PP who said there's a lot of thinly-veiled "My DH cannot be disturbed from his BIG IMPORTANT JOB" going on. Which frustrates me massively.

But I know it's best not to even think about it, for my own sanity!

So much of this. Agree that the best thing is to try not to think of others being selfish about this - nothing you can do about other people not being good citizens. It’s Especially poor behaviour when there is a SAHP (in good health etc) involved.

Be good role models for your own DCs. It’s all you can do.

I live across from a school and there are more teachers cars parked there than children,who are running about at playtime and hugging each other

@BraeburnPlace

Some schools have been really strict on who they take. It depends on if the head is prepared to say no

It really doesn't when government guidance is so broad...

It does

The head has a duty to ensure that everyone is safe. They complete risk assessments and update.

If they can only have XX children safely then that overrides the DfE broad statement.

They have to look at a wide range fo factors including building, available staffing and local risk.

You only work 3 days a week? You're laughing then!

Could you not have just posted on one of the other million threads about this?

There are a huge amount of parents in our school who have become key workers since the last lockdown

What happened in the first lockdown was that a lot of key workers didn't take up the opportunity of sending their children to school, but this time they have

I get that people are frustrated but finger pointing, blame culture etc doesn't change the situation. You do not know what is going on behind closed doors and there are many reasons a child may get a space including the mental health of the parent.

It does seem to be different rules applied to different areas (my area is 1 key worker) which adds to the frustration.

But as my mum used to say to me about school don't worry about what the others are doing concentrate on what you need to do!

Our school had 9 key worker kids in March (leafy middle class so not many vulnerable kids)

Our head emailed yesterday to say she'd had over 60 applications this time and people need to stop taking the piss. She was really blunt and said she will start prioritising and will not put her staff and kids who NEED to be there at risk.

I love her

We had to send proof in to my dc school and they have been really strict. I know one parent claimed to be a key worker and he arranges mortgages, which I suppose is important but I was a bit WTF about it.

My New Years resolution is to try to not judge( AKA mumsnet classic shut down)

YANBU. People who are taking the piss are going to risk COVID spreading more easily and possibly to the children of key worker parents, totally destroying the whole purpose of this lockdown. I would say this to those who are taking advantage. Think, really think if you need to send your kids in. If you don’t and your child attending causes a teacher to become ill, you will have that on your conscience and rightly so.