Just realised why schools are not closing

[NearlyGranny]

Going by the Spanish experience, half the London chatterati would make a dash for their closed-up holiday homes where they would strip our supermarket shelves and no doubt create a virus hotspot among us privileged year-round residents. I'm pretty sure the unmanageable spike we're all fearing would only be hastened by a general school closure.

If we could rely on people isolating at home, it would be a different matter.

Police, hospital workers, fire service all work shifts. I’m wondering who their childcare out of school hours. Most likely grandparents. Let it spread through schools and these grandparents get it. Shut them now and the grandparents are less likely to get it.

The schools as childcare logic is bullshit.

It will lead to more key workers off sick and more risk to their parents.

We are probably heading for a massive crisis as our government is not taking enough action soon enough.

Early years is much much easier to control than upper ks2/ high school.

You can’t stand over teens to make them wash their hands. My son's school has no soap....

What a ridiculous way to have a dig at Londoners! I've lived in London more than half my life and I don't know of anyone who has a second home.

Schools have just closed until 20th April where I live (southern Germany, a couple of hours drive from Austria and via Austria Italy). We have thousands cases though very few deaths - two deaths per thousand cases atm. Theres a case in a family who live about 100 meters from my work.

I work in a health care context and will have to work whatever happens, unless I'm ill myself.

My employer is offering emergency childcare from Monday for any employee.

The state is also setting up emergency childcare for health care workers but with strict limits - either both parents must be essential healthcare workers or in a single parent household the single parent must be.

Yes that's the reason @NearlyGranny

There are other options rather than blanket closures or forcing everyone in education to limp on until they, drop. Bearing in mind school staff have their own dc, they maybe grandparents, many gp are going to be forced to do a school run and under current rules, even a self isolation mum has to get her dc to school because the rules say, the whole family shouldn't isolate.

Austria, Belgium are doing Skelton staff opening for those that need it.. It also means the poor teachers have less exposure from dc and they can be more flexible.

Surely that is the most sensible compromise?

If they do close the schools then my 2 will be home doing learning. We will maybe go out for some fresh air and exercises, but I won't be taking them to any soft play or any other inside possibly germ infested place as that totally defeats the point of us all being off in the first place. Plus I have a child in a high risk category and while most child may only get a mild case I'm concerned he won't.

It’s not the only reason but yes this has been a secondary effect in Italy, they closed the schools so people went elsewhere and took the virus with them. A bit like why the government didn’t advise stopping sporting events, if people don’t go to the game they gather at the pub or at home where they actually transfer the virus more effectively than they would in a stadium.

And the wealthy people in my company who do have homes in London and the countryside, can easily take their kids out of private school and hunker down in their country home. They are not worried about school fines or childcare.

Are they going because they want a jolly holiday or because they feel a city is a more dangerous place to be. Presumably it is easier to practice social distancing in the countryside.

I’m a teacher. I feel we are being used as they poor bloody infantry’

Why are we being placed in a situation like this. In a place teeming with unseen germs? Plenty of school staff are older or have health problems. But let’s just kill off the teachers so everyone else can survive

God this thread is so Mumsnet.

When did just living in London mean we're somehow privileged? I don't own a second home, can barely afford my first on my salary (NHS band 6, get paid the same as any other band 6 anywhere in the country plus about 5K a year London Weighting which pays for sod all).

If we're all so wealthy just by living here why don't you come too OP?

One of the main problems of closing all the schools is that people like me who have to work and can't afford ridiculous childcare costs then put their kids with their grandparents...

Who then become 'super spreaders'
If you're vulnerable from a health standpoint, it's your responsibility to ensure you're not infected. I don't think it's right to stop life for the 99%.

@Fruitsaladjelly Have you actually been to a football match? I have. You are in much closer contact in a stadium than in a pub. If you got so close to strangers in a pub there would be strong words.

Closing only rural schools would make more sense. Ours has a catchment area of about 400 square miles with children travelling miles before they even get to the bus stop.

City schools have a much smaller catchment and I always assume that most can/should walk to school.

If you really do think that cities will evacuate, maybe this would be the way forward? (and yes, I am aware of the many reasons why this is an insane idea, and it would never happen)

I know families planning to go to their Devon or Cornwall boltholes if the schools close. Parents will take laptops and work from home, so I think you’re right.

But an infected person in a city is worse than having an infected person in a more sparsely populated area. It doesn't matter the geographical area of sufferers. The fact is the uk has the virus. So if a person goes to their holiday home, they might spread it to their 3 neighbours. Leave them in London, they'll infect a tube carriage and an office full, and a waitrose on their way home.

Volunteers to do the childcare.. I didn't think that could work in UK coz everyone supposed to be DBSd.

Does someone have a link to which occupations count as critical workers, who get the childcare (was it France?)? HCPs & delivery drivers ok... what about supermarket staff? nursing home staff, people who maintain the gas-lekki-internet network. Emergency responders.

Who scrubs the toilets used by the emergency responders?
Which engineers are on the list, the ones who keep the software and ventilators & home-boilers running? Do photocopiers count as essential equipment -- who sends out the spare ink cartridges?

Are epidemiologists or politicians or at least some civil servants on the list of critical workers?
What about car mechanics, train drivers & train guards... someone to maintain the transport to get the HCPs to work?

Post office counter staff, are they essential?

@TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince I agree. I have a friend who is a teacher with serious underlying health problems. She is really frightened. She is mixing with kids every day who are deliberately coughing, and think this is all just a laugh. She is at real risk of dying if she gets it. Teachers health is just being ignored.

I live in London. No one round here has a second home.

I think it’s safer having children in school. Vulnerable children and staff should be able to choose to self isolate but there are many children who have a higher quality of care in school.

Emergency plans that are already in place will have a list of critical workers. We really do not need to list them on MN. This work will already have been done.
There will also be plans in place about how to meet childcare needs.
This is what emergency planners do.

My father used to be one of the personnel who was there to be called upon in an emergency under emergency planning done. He never was, but he knew that he could be drafted in to help in an emergency.

Germany is closing 90% of schools from Monday. They would close all but education policy is operated at federal level in Germany. Schools remain open on the UK so that every family in the country has an infected person/carrier within a matter of months. Welcome to loony land. Apparently this is “delaying”. ROFLMAO. Hysterically.

@TheEmojiFormerlyKnownAsPrince Yes i agree. There has been no acknowledgement of the risks teachers are being put in. As you say many are older or have health conditions so should be able to take steps to protect themselves.