About schools, temperatures and coats?

[FlumpyLump]

My 11 year old son is currently wrapped up in blankets with the heating on full blast and he is still shivering and can’t get warm. He has come home from school like this.
He is in year 7 (also asthmatic) and they have a no coat policy. They aren’t allowed to wear it on the premises and it has to be locked away during school hours. They are only allowed to wear their school uniform around school.
It has been minus 3 where we live today and full of snow. They have the windows wide open in the classrooms as well due to covid. He said he sits near a window and it’s always cold. Apparently, a child was close to tears today because they were shivering that badly and couldn’t concentrate.
During dinner breaks, they are kicked outside with no coats allowed. They also weren’t allowed to run around in the snow so they were standing around freezing.
I bought him a plain black scarf to help keep the cold off his chest and he was told to remove that as well.
I’m worried about covid obviously, but my son also suffers with his asthma in cold temperatures and he gets very poorly this time of year with it. They know this.
It’s madness.

Of course you're not being unreasonable. Seems perfectly acceptable to be expected to be allowed to wear a coat when outside in -3 degrees. Some kids won't, especially if they're running around, but most would choose to wear a coat. I would be complaining that's for sure, what a stupid policy, covid aside.

I'm really unhappy my 7 year old is sat in a freezing classroom next to an open window in this weather. She has thermals on but you're still going to be cold if you're sat still. I know I wouldn't be doing my best work if I was that cold and it seems quite cruel tbh, very Victorian.

So working in 8 degrees temperatures snd trying to teach phonics in a mask is acceptable?

I don't think all adult teachers, with warm offices and electric heaters are necessarily aware how small and skinny little kids, even year 7 and 8 kids, can be.

Oh how imaginative!! No those teachers are in the same room. I do worry about people who think the teachers are not in the same room as the kids. Who the hell do they think is teaching?

As per a previous post I simply would not be permitting this and I would be telling school that.

I'll admit I do have a warm office with an electric heater. But it's the other side of the school and not where I actually spend my day. That would be my classroom with the windows open.

Its common in our local secondary schools for no coats to be allowed in lessons one won't even allow you to walk to achool wearing one and puts you out every breaktime rain or shine lots of parents won't send there child there because of this policy my sons school will allow coats and when the temperature drops they can wear it during class too

Unacceptable. Do some teachers even like children?

This is like something from the Victorian times. Absolutely ridiculous

@Invasionofthegutsnatchers

This is my life I'm a teacher with the windows flung open and freezing temperatures. It's horrible.

Mine too. It is utterly miserable.

@hangrylady

Unacceptable. Do some teachers even like children?

I think you'll find the decision about coats, etc. is not at classroom teacher level.

@FromEden

This is like something from the Victorian times. Absolutely ridiculous

It is isn’t it. Cold all day

@MLMshouldbeillegal

Of course it's madness.

But it doesn't matter that your son is freezing his bits off. Only Covid matters. And the teaching unions have decided that they want windows open, irrespective of what parents and children need or want.

Nothing to do with unions

Can you get him some base layers/thermals to wear under his uniform. I've had no heating for 3 days due to a power outage caused by the storm. Have been wearing a long sleep merino wool top with a t shirt over it and a jumper over that. Haven't been wearing my coat in the house! It got down to 8°c indoors here.

That's insane! My children are at an independent school with really fussy uniform rules normally. The sent an email out in September to say children could wear warm winter coats throughout lessons if they wished.

The also sat my asthmatic ds next to a radiator.

Thermal underwear/base layers.

It seems to be down to indivdual teachers if they're allowed to wear coats in lessons and I think the teachers are all sensible - however DD2 is next to a open window in a few lessons and still gets very cold.

I think the leadership are still anti coats more generally- the kids still have to take the off before entering the building - in morning and coming back in from break/lunch even in rain - it's an odd rule they've always and in mornings there is not any shelter before school entrance but they still insist coats have to be all black for walks home.

That's mental! I work in a school and we actively encourage kids to wear coats outside that's the point of them!

I am one of those evil teachers who has my windows open, nearly 50% of my students refuse to wear a mask, either with a medical reason which is fine but a lot of them is just because they can't be bothered to make sure they have one.

My room was 8 degrees today - I was in it all day my students move in and out of the room, not all of the rooms in our school have to have windows open due to ventilation in new parts - I have had my windows opened and closed, I wait for the CO2 level to go into the red then we freeze ourselves to adjust it!

I let all my students wear a coat if needed, but not with hoods up etc, have suggested they might want to invest in some fingerless gloves they are my saviour currently.

It is not pleasant but I am trying my best to follow the guidelines, keep large groups of students safe, as well as myself, but also comfortable.

Is it the same rule for teachers? Not uniforms, but business dress with no coats or scarves allowed inside or outside?

@kowari

Is it the same rule for teachers? Not uniforms, but business dress with no coats or scarves allowed inside or outside?

Is this a question for the OP? The one who hasn't been back?

I doubt if schools could enforce a dress code in such temperatures, as staff are employees, and have rights under the relevant Employment Act.

@echt
I didn't think it would be, but I think students should be able to wear the same warmth clothing as teachers in the same environment.

Thank you for all your replies. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who thinks it’s madness.
They have a locker for their coats and if they don’t want to put it inside their locker, they have to carry it around all day but are not allowed to wear it on school premises until home time.
I let him wear fingerless gloves today as well and he was told to remove them during lessons. Apparently, outside clothes increase the risk of covid.
I have to walk him to school at the moment as he has dyspraxia so he falls easily and needed help walking in the snow. He slipped 3 times this morning so we were 5 minutes late. I walked him into the office to explain and I didn’t get a chance to before I was abruptly told to get out of reception as I was a covid risk to all the children. (I had a mask on and freshly sanitised hands).
The receptionist even told the other children to step away from me like I was a leper.
I had to ring reception from outside in the end to explain.
I’m hoping to speak to his head of year tomorrow to sort all of this out and get to the bottom of it x

[quote kowari]**@echt
I didn't think it would be, but I think students should be able to wear the same warmth clothing as teachers in the same environment.[/quote]
I agree. The OP's school is horrendous. When cold was an issue in my Australian school, pupils could wear all layers of the school uniform, and anything under it, so long as it didn't show.

I should add the Australian school uniforms are amazingly old-fashioned and very ugly: shirts, jumpers, blazers, gloves and scarves, so they'd be hard put not to be warm, at least in Victoria.

Unsurprisingly I found that a good number would not wear a jumper or blazer, then complain about the cold. On one level I don't blame them, they are hideous. And expensive.

My son wouldn't be going in !
Playing outside without coats ? What the actual hell . No chance

Is there any, remote, possibility that your son has misunderstood the rules? I can’t believe he isn’t allowed to wear a coat outside at breaks. It doesn’t quit add up.
I quite understand needing the windows open - teachers need some protection - they are exposed to a great number of students in confined spaces for prolonged periods, and as masks are only worn in communal areas it seems their only protection is fresh air. Vaccines are great at stopping serious illness but not so good at stopping transmission. When teachers are off with COVID for 10 days education is disrupted.

My classroom was 16.3°c today with windows open.

I had on 2 fleeces

My pupils can wear what they want coat and fleece wise and even the one who took his jumper off because he was hot was left to it!

I'd ask your ds again to explain what school have said. Then I'd email to "clarify" that pupils cannot wear a coat on site at all, ever, even break and lunch when they must go outside?
That way if it's truth they have put it in writing themselves and if not you can sort out with your ds a better solution!