School coming to home to view sick child - Normal?

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I'm feeling really sensitive right now due to work stress so please be kind.

My 5 year old is off with chicken pox right now. He got the spots on Sunday, he's been quite poorly with it Monday - Tuesday, very sleepy, then very uncomfortable Weds waiting for the scabs to form. He's just started to feel better today but the school have an INSET day tomorrow anyway.

We just had a knock at the door, and it was a teacher from DS's school! He was very reluctant to come downstairs because he's only in his pants and thought the teacher was there to take him to school. She was very nice and said it's sad that they have to do this in this day and age but it's completely normal and they do it for everyone who's been off this length of time.

He's been off for 4 days? His older sister is at school so we've still done the school run every day. To be fair as it's an inset day tomorrow it will be over a week by the time he goes back on Monday. But I've never had a teacher come unannounced to our house to check on our child. Can someone reassure me it is actually normal and they don't think something bad of us! My poor boy is just ill. I've called him in and updated, updated again this morning saying he would be back on Monday!

Our school has a wellbeing officer who would do this if it was part of a pattern of lateness or other concerns.

I was a teacher for many many years (Primary). Fair enough I retired several years ago so things may be different now. Teachers didn’t visit families at home apart from one visit just before the child started in Reception. These were booked in advance. All schools in the area I worked in had Educational Welfare Officers who would contact parents regarding attendance or lateness. It wasn’t the teacher’s role to do this.

It's not normal otherwise we would all get home visits. There's a protocol that has to be followed so if OP had spoken to the school they wouldn't just rock up at her door would.

I've heard of schools requesting proof of sickness but that is usually due to poor attendance.

Especially strange as he has a sibling who is in school. I'd contact the school and check this is standard protocol and not someone overstepping the mark, and why they felt it necessary. I agree with others safeguarding is important and all that but feels intrusive and worrying if you don't know why.

I agree.

Of course it isn't totally normal.

As you'd know if you'd bothered to read posts from others saying it isn't. teachers and parents. This is not normal.

Yes, agree. My dc are at Uni now but even back when they were at Primary there was. Family Liaison Lead - though he was admin staff not a teacher. And he definitely visited pupils homes. Not just for a one off illness though, there would have to be other concerns too, I suppose persistence lateness might be one. Maybe schools have had to dish out these roles to actual teachers now if they can’t fund additional staff.

Quite unusual IMO.

Kids get ill all the time, especially in the early years of school.

Did you end up bringing him down to show her?

Does your school not start at 9, like most schools? So as long as you arrive before 9, you aren't actually late?

This is a policy in my current school. We have to have seen the child at least once every three days.
It is written as part of our safeguarding policy, and I suppose may seem a bit overzealous but we also have lots of students who school refuse and therefore it’s a good way of maintaining the connection to school.
However we are up front about it, it’s written in our policy, we have designated attendance officers. It’s just seen as normal now, but it’s been happening for years.

We did 350 such visits in January
It is totally totally normal in many many schools.

(22 years as a Headteacher, LA adviser, chair in 2 schools, trustee in 3 mats and a government adviser on attendance) But hey I should listen to parents and teachers on an anonymous thread on mumsnet!

It makes me wonder if something very specific has happened in the past with other parents and their child at your sons school.

So perhaps that’s why it’s been followed up. Perhaps it’s just a blanket thing with no allowances ie your Dd is still attending, so it doesn’t mean you’ve scarpered off on holiday.

I’ve just looked up dd school policy out of interest from this post.
we have to phone by 9am every morning of illness. If we don’t and then we don’t answer a phone call, the next stage is for the DSL or deputy DDL to visit for a wellbeing check. If no answer then social care or police to be called.

Yes he was upset and my partner had to take him down anyway.

I've messaged them asking why this was done and how I can avoid it in future if it's anything I've done regarding reporting his absence (i.e. not phoning every morning and messaging instead). I've explained that this upset DS as he thought he was going to be taken to school.

My school does a home visit if you haven’t called in for three days. If you were persistently late then that would be a safeguarding issue. I don’t know if I’m remembering correctly from safeguarding training but persistent lateness is often seen a sign of neglect.
Why don’t you drop the head an email and ask?

Yes I'd do the same, I'd be pretty mad if a teacher knocked on the door and requested I parade a poorly child in front of them, to decide in their expert medical opinion if they needed to be off? What if they were off with a headache or tummy ache and to look at appeared normal, what then? You are doing the school run with your other child so you clearly aren't on holiday or just too lazy to take your children to school, I'd be emailing them and clarifying exactly why they felt the need to show up unannounced to drag your child who was unwell out of bed? Next time you have norovirus in the house (you know there will be a next time with primary aged kids) make sure you invite them in 😁 they might believe you 24 hours later.

Is it?
I've never heard of it happening with either pastoral staff or tbut might be dependent on the school.
I would certain query this and seek clarity OP.
And I hope that teacher has had chickenpox!

Wow! We'd be on the phone all day at my school.

Ah okay it might be this. However, I messaged this morning (possibly shortly after 9) and they said okay thanks for letting us know. I would have really appreciated if they had told me that my contact wasn't sufficient instead of just saying thanks.

See my previous post.
We are a very boring Mc family with professional jobs and a DS at Private school.
Due to one stupid remark by DS, a Neurodiverse teacher (not an assumption the safeguarding lead told me), me being away with work (happens twice a year) and a new safeguarding lead who had only joined the school a few weeks ago and doesn’t know us DS was pulled out of PE and questioned
Its not a “type of family” it’s circumstances and patterns

*pastoral staff or teachers

I would say that this is unusual. I would also be feeling strange about it.

It also sounds like you have a lot going on at work... so for the thoughts running through your head... let them come... and let them go... your son is safe, you are safe, the school reacted strangely.

There is no need to see a doctor for chicken pox. The spots turn into blisters then scabs and are infectious until the last blister has disappeared. Your son should not be at school.

FWIW - when my son was in reception, he had chicken pox during half term, he spend the nights tossing and turning and the days napping. He was a very young and small 4 year old, barely able for school and needed half term to rest, so I kept him off the next week for 3 days, told school he had chicken pox and he and I had some lovely days out with his little sister before he went back. Thank goodness no one checked up on him.

My youngest is prone to stomach illnesses, often due to food tolerance challenges and usually when we have no idea what it is that causes it. If he has thrown up, I keep him off, usually for him to perk up by 9:30. He also gets asthma and when he was younger, I was advised to keep him off as he needed frequent interventions. We have had many fun outings when he has been off school including snow shoeing, ice skating on a frozen lake (supervised and permitted not UK!), and when he had chicken pox, he was as bright as a button, so we painted his bedroom, he learned how to ride a bike. Is school (again not UK) had come to check up on him.. I would have had some explaining to do!!!

“I need to have eyes on him.” What the hell? I'd be shocked. This is very ODD

It's not unusual at all, especially if the school is struggling with attendance. Part of standard safeguarding procedures too. I wouldn't worry about it at all.

Thanks - this has made me feel a bit better. I've messaged them anyway and now worry I'll be seen as confrontational! You can't win can you, I always feel like I'm doing the wrong thing.