Time to close the schools

[PaddyF0dder]

I can’t believe I’m saying this. I’m a dad to 3 very young boys. Our eldest is nearly 6 and is on the spectrum. Our twins are nearly 3. They’re hard work when they’re stuck in the house. I also work as a doctor in the NHS. Closing the schools would be a nightmare for us.

I think we need to do it, and do it early.

Watching how this virus is spreading, seeing how harmful it’s been in other countries, reading the stats on transmission, burned on healthcare etc... closing schools and nurseries really seems to be the most logical step.

The UK is at a turning point. We’re entering the stage of sustained transmission. We may already be too late. But we might still have time to enact draconian measures early as opposed to late. Closing school and nurseries. Limiting travel around the country. It seems inevitable that these things will happen, but doing it early might save the lives of the sick and vulnerable.

I honestly don’t know how my family will cope with it. We have absolutely no family support re childcare. We both work hard jobs in the NHS. I wish there was a better option. But the more I look at the facts of this outbreak, the more obvious it gets.

We need to reduce viral transmission. There are many ways, and all must be done. One such way is to close schools and nurseries. We need to do it now.

Poland has more cases they just aren't testing....like UK..

I believe the government are working a very fine balancing act between acting too soon and risking people not complying, crashing the economy and people getting pissed off and breaking quarantine vs leaving it too late and ending up in a situation like Italy...

I suspect things will change this week.

@Laura I think that is what they are trying to do. I also think they will inevitably shut the stable door just after the horse has bolted. That's certainly what happened w things like foot and mouth w animal movements.

Yes I agree @Porcupine - I can totally understand the reluctance to shut down too soon, but I do think that public opinion has shifted now and enough people can see the value in shutting down, and would comply.

The government could essentially go large with the horrendous stories from Italy, and say "we are two weeks away from this. We are going to act now to avoid this".. I think people would listen.

I agree @LauraKsWhiteCoat! Large multinationals seem to be acting faster than the government! My DH is now wfh until further notice - working in financial services in London.

If schools close, the NHS will cope even less well as staff will be off to look after their DC’s. Perhaps those who want the schools to close, should volunteer as cleaners etc in the hospitals?

I’m a teacher. I don’t want the schools to close as I can’t really afford for my classes to fall behind on their exam work. However, I will have to accept whatever PHE advise.

I’m sure that if we are closed, my management team will expect teachers to go in to plan work to send home and be at hand to provide support over the phone.

If I’m wrong, I would happily go to work as a cleaner in a hospital, as an alternative and do my best to support the health service. Or, I would offer free child care for any health care workers.

I think whatever the outcome, we need to pull together.

We’ve been told that if the school is closed staff will still be expected to go in and deal with admin, planning, help with deep cleaning etc.

I suspect they’ll close schools around Easter as it will minimising impact on learning and parents as they will already have had to make childcare arrangements

I’m working from home today: what a doss this is. 3 lots of washing done. No interruptions, Nice bit of lunch watching TV. I can see why people do it now.

staff will still be expected to go in and deal with admin, planning, help with deep cleaning etc.

Hahahahaha no. Cleaning is not in my job description and no teacher should agree to this.

Hahahahaha no. Cleaning is not in my job description and no teacher should agree to this.

I don’t know about the teachers but my contract definitely states “any other task as requested by your line manager or head teacher” ....

Nope. The effective discharge of my professional duties doesn’t include cleaning toilets. Pretty sure the head can’t direct me to pick up their dry cleaning either.

Has no one looked at the trends and stats on worldometer coronavirus. If you haven’t you should do.

Hahahahaha no

Well there's community spirit for you.

Will you all be mucking in and deep cleaning schools then too? With your community spirit?

Will you all be mucking in and deep cleaning schools then too? With your community spirit

If any of the local schools ask for volunteers then why not?

In the meantime I'm ensuring my DBS is up to date and will be offering childcare to local medical staff in the case of school closures.

Nope. The effective discharge of my professional duties doesn’t include cleaning toilets.

Nor mine, but I still took the bins out today because our cleaner didn't come in because she was off sick. And I wipe my desk down with dettol spray each day. Because it benefits us all.

If teachers are off work for several weeks, are they just to get a free holiday then? How nice for them!

Not only that but it would be grossly endangering to teachers to get them to help with deep cleaning! In the US they have brought in the military to do this with hazmat suits!

... and on another note no one is allowed in the building while deep cleaning goes on. Because chemicals. Because in the way. Because places may not be cleaned yet.

All pretty obvious...

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/300403 Petition for anyone who thinks schools should close.

And I wipe my desk down with dettol spray each day. Because it benefits us all.

Pretty sure wiping your own desk down with dettol mainly benefits you. I don’t think you’re going around the building cleaning all the desks are you?

As mentioned, deep cleaning is supposed to be done by experts.

If teachers are off work for several weeks, are they just to get a free holiday then? How nice for them!

Never said I wouldn’t set work for the kids. That’s actually part of my job.

I agree re 'deep cleaning' - that is a specialist job. However the original comment was:

"staff will still be expected to go in and deal with admin, planning, help with deep cleaning etc."

When retired medical staff are being told they may be asked to come out of retirement, and unqualified medical students are being told they may be drafted in to help with frontline medical care... are you telling me that teachers who are on 1month+ leave are too precious to go in to work to help with duties that would be outside their normal job description?

My DH is frontline specialist emergency services. He helped clean his base yesterday due to staff sickness. It most definitely isn't in his job description, but it's also not beneath him. That's what people do in a crisis.

Well... some people.

Are those unqualified and recently retired medical staff being pulled in to clean toilets?

Actually, if the teachers are busy setting work for their classes, the people with time on their hands to clean the toilets because they don’t teach very much would be SLT. I’m sure they won’t have a problem with that

Petition for anyone who thinks schools should close.

Gosh, is there a petition? If only you'd spammed the thread with it earlier...!