Schools closed for the Queen’s funeral

[Notme1980]

First off, Queen Elizabeth II was an amazing ruler and an inspiration, we are a forces family and my husband has served her for 30 plus years.

but - I do not want the schools to be closed for her funeral (or for any reason at all), I want us to do what I believe she would have done, press on.

"My sister's a teacher too and her school can't close because they are a boarding school and it's not an exeat weekend. They might close to day children I guess, I don't know."

Ds attends a day and residential special school. The school will shut to day pupils but staff will still be needed for the residential pupils so staff will work as usual.

I want us to do what I believe she would have done, press on.

Given that she was consulted on and involved in plans for the funeral, it seems highly unlikely that a national holiday has been imposed against her wishes. When Prince Philip died, we were told that there would be no holiday because that only happens on the death of a sovereign. The Queen was quite a stickler for tradition, it seems highly unlikely that she would have insisted on departing from it.

@UndertheCedartree that is true and not everyone will want to watch but this is the best way to give the majority a chance
We can't please everyone just not possible
But maybe staff who don't want to watch will swap places with those that do etc
I know I would

'Once years ago'...exactly, YEARS AGO!

This just wouldn't happen now though. We had 2 inset days (30th/31st August) which started at 8.15 and finished at 5pm. Full on training/CPD days with barely time to pee! We came out of these days exhausted, heads exploding with information and lists of things we had 'to do' (which we have no idea when/how or with what resources!!). Children started back on the 1st, so no time was given to implement the changes and procedures they threw at us the day before 🤷‍♀️😫

Teaching is not for the feint hearted...it's exhausting, and Inset Days are no picnic! Not a chance we could 'swap out' a day for this. And actually...why should we, when it's a Bank Holiday for others?

School is NOT a child minding service!

Having your kids home isn't likely going to make it easier to watch though is it?

but the schools could have put screens up in the hall to watch it

So hang on, having your own child at home will make it too difficult to watch the funeral and yet Schools can magically make several hundred children sit quietly on a hard wooden floor to watch it....that's not particularly logical is it?

But again, my Ex is a police officer. He works shifts, he works weekends, he works BH’s - that is the job.
When we had DC’s we had to plan childcare to suit, we had to adapt, not just for one BH or weekend but for many.

Surely the vast majority if those staff who work shifts or BH’s would already have arrangements that suit their needs. ( maybe apart from a minority where a serving police officer is having to work extra shifts in London just now).

Most people I know don’t get bank holidays. I don’t think they’re such a big thing in Scotland. I work in finance and only the high street banks typically close.
My company won’t, neither will DH’s or any of the friends I’d usually ask to mind DD. I’ll have to magic up childcare from somewhere.

Well, that’s tough because you don’t get to choose. I’m over the moon! I can watch the whole thing at home in peace.

So you want to watch it in peace without your children, but you’d like the school staff who actually like their children to miss out on the family occasion to look after yours?

Yes but trying to organise unexpected childcare at just over a week’s notice is totally different to ones you know about where you could eg make sure one of you wasn’t working that specific day (and that’s assuming you’re not a single parent when it’s even harder).

You do realise that a huge amount of people are in jobs where they still have to work when it's a bank holiday and will be in a position where their childcare will now be closed but they have to work still and might not have provisions in place to help?

@mumsneedwine

"You are v lucky if you came through the pandemic knowing no one who was affected. "

+++

Sadly I most certainly did not come through the pandemic knowing no one who was affected. A close friend committed suicide as a result of the Covid lock down measures, another friend has had a late prostate cancer diagnosis because of lock down measures, my friends mother basically gave up on life and stopped eating during 10
days solitary confinement at her nursing home because she had gone for a minor hospital appointment.

All of these were a result of Covid lock down measures not Covid itself and I remain convinced more people will die, have long term health impacts and the country and population become economically poorer leading to shorter lives because of the measures taken against Covid than actually died from the Covid disease itself.

I wonder what will happen with doctor or dentist appointments that people might have been waiting a long time for, and would not be able to be rescheduled without another long wait….anyone know?

What do people do for random sick days their children have if they’re struggling with this bank holiday? I don’t know of any formal childcare available for sick dc.

My company has been hit hard by the energy crisis after only just recovering from the pandemic. We are struggling to survive. We can't afford to lose another day's business and certainly can't afford to pay our staff for a day of lost business. We could try to stay open but everybody will think we're being miserable and many of our suppliers will be closed.

If our staff work then they won't have any child care. If they don't then they won't get paid - which most people would struggle with at this time.

Bank holiday and schools closed is fine if you're in the public sector or work for a big company with lots of resources. Less so for everybody else - we just seem to have forgotten the cost of living crisis that we were all talking about last week. Surely better to have the funeral on Saturday when schools would be closed anyway?

Thrilled - it’s my busiest teaching day so I’m happy.

YABU.
Mind your kids. They are your kids after all.

Either DH or I take an Emergency Care of Dependents day, usually after an early morning argument about whose day can more easily be cancelled

They get rescheduled and you get to wait another period of time.

During the Covid lockdown there was the best part of 9 months of cancelled doctors and dentist appointments so I can see the cancellation of one day making much difference.

"Bank holiday and schools closed is fine if you're in the public sector or work for a big company with lots of resources."

Well lots of supply teachers will lose a day's pay too so people in in the public sector will lose pay too!

That was in reply to a query about sick days - messed up the quoting! 🤦‍♀️

Ah yes the early morning hissy spat about whose day is less cancellable. Always so much fun.

Schools closing is fine as a BH and I agree that children should celebrate national events.

My concern is for those families that financially it will effect. I know some where if it's a BH they won't work but won't be paid.

So for me it's a tough one. Whilst I agree it should be a BH due to the nature of the event and it's part of our constitution as the UK I think in the currently climate their should be due consideration to the financial effects on families which will affect those children.

Not sure what the solution is to that though.

I genuinely think that’s the other way around. The majority of households do not have children young enough to require childcare or are self employed.

Exactly not everyone can drum up childcare like that