School have said to keep children home if they have a cold

[Oysterbabe]

Email from the school that says there's a lot of illness in the school amongst pupils and staff. They have asked that from now on we do not send children into school if they have coughs, colds, sore throats or sickness. Obviously I wouldn't send them in with sickness, if I kept them home with coughs and colds they'd be pretty much out until spring. AIBU to ignore them? My employer does expect me to actually work sometimes.

I'm a SAHP and I think that's ridiculous so it's not even a work thing. DS has had a cough for months. We're on it with the doctors but between that and the snot he wouldn't have done a day this term.

Fuck that

Hahaha nope. I doubt my kids would be in school from now to March. Carry on sending them in.

I’d assume it was a short term thing, maybe because they really do have a lot of staff off sick right now. It would make me slightly more inclined to keep them home if I was already thinking about it, but no more than that.

Ours have said they expect attendance to return to pre covid standards, to give medication if appropriate and to send children into class. Obviously if they are too unwell to learn, wrapped up on the sofa, or vomiting you would keep them home.

YABU

Most decent human beings don’t rock up to work when they have colds, so why should kids go into school with them.

That's ridiculous if I called in sick to work every time I had a cold I'd be fired. Flu like symptoms fair enough but I only ever take days off work if I really have to (sickness etc). Throughout winter everyone gets colds no one would be working or going to school if that was the case.

Maybe where you work that's the case. I'm yet to work for an employer who would be happy with a cold as being a reason to call in sick.

Haha, they’ll soon change their minds when all the pupils have attendance levels below 90%!

Ours have told us to send the kids in with mild illnesses and to let them know if needed. My son managed about 3 days before picking up a cold that he is still coughing from. Coughs in particular can linger for weeks.

I'm guessing it's because they think they may have Covid. Obviously it's better for your children to spread it to staff so that they're off sick instead 👍

My DCs school want them in no matter what now. I think parents should be able to use their own common sense.
The rest of the world are out and about with colds, the teachers could just as easily pick up colds etc at the supermarket or with their own friends and family etc. Unless the teachers are old style isolating and not going out and about when they aren’t in school, then it sounds like your school are being ridiculous.

Bonkers! Mine would also be off til spring. There's ill (feeling very poorly, temp, obvs D&V) - stay at home - and then there's slight cold - crack on with it!

Yes they do.
I work in a nursery and if we were off every time we had a cold the nursery would close down!

It’s just a reminder to parents to observe the school policy better, such is don’t send your child loaded with calpol to school when they have a temperature in the morning or keep them at home if they are unwell. If there’s no staff, there’s no teaching. You don’t have to be so negative about it, just watch some threads about covid. People are getting flamed for going to work or going out with covid, and I don’t understand the double standard. I can really understand both sides of the story. Some parents send children to school with a ranging temperature or diarrhoea, it’s not on.

Sounds like common sense, I think most parents don’t send their kids in with coughs and colds. Perhaps some children have been coming into school who are coughing and spluttering everywhere and the school is sending out a gentle reminder without singling out anyone in particular.

This is stupid

Lile, really fucking stupid...No doubt poor attendance will be highlighted in red in the next school newsletter with threats from the attendance officer.

We are damned if we do and damned if we don't.

We're expected to work with a mild cold 🤷‍♀️ (how do schools deal with repeat sick leave by teachers and TA's?)

@Rosebel
well, if you have a full class of sick children, it does make it a little bit more likely for you to get sick, isn’t it.

They can’t actually say they’ve got lots of covid cases, but that’s how I’d read it. Depends on if you’re happy for your child to spread it to teachers and other vulnerable kids, I suppose.

That's ridiculous. And I'm a teacher who has definitely caught colds and stomach bugs from kids. There are some parents who send in their kids when they shouldn't, but for the most part they're pretty reasonable.

TBH I have a bigger issue with the obviously sick kids being sent back to my classroom with a sick bag by the first aid/ office staff.

I have three primary school kids. Since school has started this September I don’t think we have have had a weeks yet where someone in the house hasn’t been ill, myself included. I have had a few days off with one of them. One was luckily at their worst on my days off, one at the weekend mostly. I’ve been ill with a virus twice. But if I had been off with each of them and my own illness I would be on a written warning by now. And I work for the NHS!

This is what we were sent with a letter attached highlighting fines for absences and a warning about low attendance = how many hours of missed learning

Damned if ya do

It's a bit contradictory given the renewed emphasis on attendance and the certificates and rewards for high attendance levels.

Of course they do. Have you seen most sickness policies? I nearly got a warning for acute pancreatitis which can be fatal, God forbid I was off sick with every cold

It sounds a bit OTT. I had a chest infection 2 weeks ago. I had a few days off work. I am still coughing my head off, especially if I breathe in cold air. There is no way I should still be off work just because of a cough. The same applies to kids. There's a difference between "ill" and "a bit off". Most coughs and mild colds come in under "a bit off" and missing school/work for that is unsustainable for everyone. Sickness I 100% agree they should be at home though!!