AIBU to think school closures ignore parents' work commitments?

[OhNoItsThePinkyPonk]

AIBU to think that the school doesn’t take much account of parents’ need to work? Primary school have just announced they won’t be opening for the rest of the week, but it’s OK because they’ll be sending us online work for us to do with the children, and whilst they are sorry they have had to cancel sports day we shouldn’t be too upset because they’ve have rescheduled it for a couple of weeks time. Like, I totally get they have to put the safety of the children first and if it’s too hot it’s too hot, but what do they think I’m
doing when the kids are at school, preparing beautiful dinners, ensuring the craft box is topped up, pining wistfully for the moment they come home? FFS, my job obviously comes second to my children and of course I’ll cancel planned surgeries and clinics where I need to. It’s not the emergency that bothers me, it’s the blasé way in which it’s communicated as though it’s a
minor inconvenience, not a major major f’ing headache with serious second and third order effects.

phew, that’s better. Now to go and get the little darlings…

I get it OP. My child’s school hasn’t decided yet if they will be closed tomorrow, we will be informed first thing. You mention cancelling planned clinics and surgeries so I’m guessing you’re a surgeon.
Obviously the safety of the children comes first but we also have to acknowledge that surgeries can’t go ahead if the surgeon is at home looking after their kids.
I’m a medical dr so whilst my clinic will be cancelled first thing if school is shut that’s probably less distressing for patients than having an elective surgery cancelled that they’ve waited months or maybe even years for. Nothing we can do about the situation I totally appreciate though!

the crazy thing is the kids will be outdoors playing in it getting burnt. It's a no win situation

Agree totally. I get parents have to work but we are employed to educate. Most of us have to arrange childcare during inset days etc. we are often parents too but I do not expect teaching staff to mind my kids.

I hear you, but very few schools are closing and remember teachers are parents too. So many will still be working and may get the same notification from their child’s school.

many schools do not have air con and Prinary age are more vulnerable.

The reality is most peoples homes will also be hot with parents trying to WFH because they can’t get short notice time off. As a result there will kids wandering the street in dangerous temperatures or swimming in rivers unsupervised.

You said plural parents.

Well they can still flop on the sofa with their feet in a basin of water and have an ice lolly and just spend the day doing nothing.

Schools are not there to provide childcare. They are there to provide an education in a safe environment. If they cannot do that safely then they have no choice but to close.

Our local schools are all victoriana buildings with crappy insulation and no way to keep them at a cool enough temp to keep the kids safe. They are currently remaining open for the juniors but they are closing at 1 for the infants.

Having been in a very hot classroom today with 30 youngsters and facing an even hotter day tomorrow, after a hot sleepless night, then yes YABU. Today I've comforted hot, tired, tearful and sick children. Quite honestly very little quality learning has happened.Tomorrow my own children will not be going to school, despite their schools being open.

I wouldn't apologise for inconveniencing you by sending your child home sick or if there was a gas leak in the building. These things happen and are beyond our control. In the same way, if I could safeguard my class and send them home when temperatures are extreme, I would. Parents are the backup plan when school becomes unsafe for children. British buildings are not suitable for this weather and children find it harder to change behaviours to keep cool.

If your child gets heatstroke and faints at school you'd have to take the time off anyway and would probably then be coming to mumsnet to complain the school didn't safeguard your child properly. Yes, its inconvenient schools are closing but safety is paramount.

We got a message at 12.20 to collect the kids from 13.20. By the time I got there at 3pm 75% of the class had left and they’d spent the entire afternoon watching tv. Nightmare. But tomorrow I’ll take DC to work with me.

@OhNoItsThePinkyPonk I, like you, am a key worker and, by the sounds of it, you're medical too therefore needed to be at work in business continuity. I think schools should remain open to KW children, as they did during covid.

You know that closing the school is a "major major f*ing headache" for the school too, right? They aren't all giggling into their cocktails and rubbing their hands because they aren't in the next 2 days...........the logistics around making sure children in reciept of free school meals are catered for, that high risk children will be safe etc doesn't disappear because the guidance from the DofE says close the schools.

I can assure you that 99% of the time they are not fit for purpose. Our school infrastructure is crumbling.

Bang on. Don’t have kids if you are going to view them as an inconvenience.

School is for education, not childcare.

We've unfortunately got to a place in society where, often, childcare is all it's deemed to be but, nevertheless, school will be prioritising the students and their staff (as they should do!)

My kids' school is currently open, offering for them to wear PE kit and re-timetabling if certain rooms are problematic. Some are in very old buildings with poor ventilation, like being in a fish tank and the heat is unbearable.

If it gets to a point where it's not safe for them, I'd rather they be at home. No, it's not convenient but it also wouldn't be convenient for children and staff getting sick and being at risk.

What would help, is if as a society we finally properly acknowledge the impact of global warming and the extreme weather we're having and actively plan for it e.g. making schools adaptable to the changeable weather, better ventilated, option of AC etc.
If only...!

School is education, not childcare! And the fact is that we are managing to teach on the mornings... Just about.... But there is no learning going on in the afternoon this week... In my opinion we should shut or finish at lunch time but I fortunately our school feels too much under pressure from parents who think of school as childcare and not only don't want to pick up at lunchtime but expect after-school club too!

It's most annoying for those of us whose children are in the same school as we want to pick our children up early but can't because we have to be with other people's kids. A teacher friend couldn't believe how many I had in my after-school club today.... Her daughter was in for about half an hour due to the juniors finishing later than infants and she flew out the door to pick her child.

We have been celebrating the fact we now have air con in the hall this year... But classrooms remain scorching.

Well at home they can be naked / in pants, take cold showers, sit in the paddling pool, go and sit outside under a tree in the breeze. In school they're in socks and shoes and shorts and tops, no going outside, play time and lunch time sat in the same classroom, potentially long walk to and from school

She's already said in the post she understands why it's closed. She's annoyed at how the school doesn't seem to realise how much of an inconvenience it is.

It's similar to when they introduced the 2 week 1/2 term in Oct.
The presented it as "yay, you get a whole extra week, you could go on holiday when most schools are still open".
Yeah...sure, cos my employer also gave me an additional week of leave. 🙄

The best one was when we were asked to consider the teachers who had children and had to juggle childcare when the 1/2 terms didn't coincide across county boundaries. I think that was meant for the staff memo, not for the parents, most of whom have to juggle childcare and work for most of the school holidays.

Of course I do but we are raising a bunch of wimps by closing the schools at the drop of a hat. The whole country is becoming wimps. We close things for heavy rain, high winds and a bit of heat.

some people don’t have the luxury of being able to take a day off at short notice in their workplaces because there is nobody else to cover. Some people dont have family who can babysit when schools close at short notice.

relax uniform and allow kids to have plenty of breaks and free access to cold water. Reduce lesson times so they can have comfort breaks and go and run their wrists under cold water. That’s what I’ve had to do at work when working in 38+ degree heat in a small room full of electrical equipment and several bodies and no air in, also with windows that didn’t even open an inch, for 10 hours, far longer than being at school.

Absolutely agree OP. My child’s school used to talk to us as though none of us worked. It was very annoying. Now there’s a new head, and she has been acknowledging it in all of her messages, for example, “here are the plans for Sports Day. I know many of you work and are unable to take the time off, and that is absolutely fine”. It just makes such a difference to know they’re actually taking it into account.

I can't work out why you find this unreasonable. Your children still had the same number of days holiday in a year.

Making it easier for teachers also doesn't sound like a terrible thing to me.

It’s not a bottomless pit of money. It’s hard enough employing enough staff.

Ok cos theinthibknits more the memories talking about making it easier for teachers over ONE week when non teaching parents have 12 weeks of holiday to deal with

But you had 12 weeks before and you have 12 weeks now. You seem to hold a lot of resentment towards people who have basically no flexibility during term time.