I'm really scared. Not allowed to wear a mask at work

[LavenderLilacTree]

It's just to vent really as I know there is no way round it.

I am really scared. I am a TA and when all the pupils are back in school we aren't allowed to wear face masks or any PPE. Social distancing is not going to happen.

The government have said only go back to work if it's safe and you can ensure social distancing, well it's not going to be safe for me. Government say to wear face coverings in enclosed spaces but teachers and TAs are not allowed to.

I am scared. I am in my 40s and have 3 children in Yr 8, Yr 7 and Yr 5 . I know it's a 3% chance of dying but to me that's not an insignificant risk. I would never take part in any activity that had a 3% chance of dying.

I just feel like the government doesn't value my life. This is a deadly virus that KILLS, i want to wear a mask. My life matters to me, my husband and my children.

It's scary at work at the moment but we only have 4- 7 kids in. When we have a full school it's going to be impossible to stay 2 meters apart so therefore you feel I should at least be able to wear a mask.

I love my job and the children at school but I don't want to give my life for it. I just think I should be able to have some form of protection. It's like my life doesn't matter.

More children are at risk from all sorts of long term problems, obesity, mental health, parental stress, poor educational.achievement, than will be at risk from contracting covid. It is scaremongering pure and simple to say children are more at risk.from attending school, once peak transmissions and pressure on nhs has passed. Less children are dying in car accidents cos of closed schools, yet we dont cite that as a reason to close schools. You cannot keep children at home, and away from their peers forever on the basis of "safety". It is not a "safe" solution.

I am a ta in my 40s too, and not entirely thrilled at the prospect of going back. However, the risk of dying is tiny. (I had calculated it at something like 0.03 percent) The overall death rate is coming down at the moment - and hopefully it will stay that way. There is a good and useful statistics thread on mumsnet which I have found reassuring.
I would be happier with everyone wearing masks too. But you can bet it won’t be allowed.

@nellodee for only 33 million adults can drive in England . A lot of them won't have cars . So that's half the population you can't compare the two the way you have .

Goats “ Oh my christ ... how on earth will society function again when people cannot comprehend simple statistics? 3% chance of dying? FGS. No.”

I’ve given up hope of sensible function of society.

The checkout woman in Farmfoods was wearing a clear visor, not a face covering or mask. I think that might be a better solution for schools/nurseries, because other people can still see your face.

People really need to study the stats and rationalise them.

No, the government needs to do a better job of communicating information in a trustworthy and straighforward way. It shouldn't be up to non scientists to interpret data, it should be the scientists telling us things we can believe. It's unfortunate for this clown show government that they've spent 4 years telling us not to trust experts. Come back to bite them on the arse now.

I am a teacher and also have the same worry. When I read the full gov guidelines for education I was gobsmacked at the fact we aren't allowed to wear PPE even if we can't maintain the 2m.

My students are college age and it looks like they will also be back in June. I know they will be able to maintain distance in class, but the thought of handing out textbooks that they will touch, taking in their work to mark, the fact they will have to use public transport to travel to college..many of which might have vulnerable family members.

Schools and colleges have so many adult staff and even the spread between adults poses a risk to me as well as the idea of young people being carriers.

It all seems too soon to me, and also really frustrating that they're saying it doesn't matter for teachers to be within 2m from students without PPE but can't see family members at a distance in their gardens?

suggest you start looking for another job as I'd be worried if a teaching assistant had such dramatics in the school my child is in

That's a bit dramatic too isn't it. Pot, kettle.

Every other worker is being told to go to work if 2m social distancing can be maintained. But not school staff!

The checkout woman in Farmfoods was wearing a clear visor, not a face covering or mask. I think that might be a better solution for schools/nurseries, because other people can still see your face.

Yep, I thought about that too. Wouldn't be perfect, but would stop me being spat on or coughed on or licked or have hands shoved in my face. A child literally coughed in my mouth back in January. A 9 year old.

Plenty of people are in work where 2 metre distance can’t be maintained.

Care home staff don't have sufficient PPE, masks for people who care in the community are very difficult to come by. In fact kindly members of the public are sewing scrubs and masks from old duvet covers.
In short there are insufficient masks for people providing personal care where the risk is greater than within a classroom.
You could make a mask but that would only stop you spreading it wouldn't prevent you getting it. But the risk in a classroom context is negligible. It's not as if you will be an NHS front line worker in direct contact with Covid and wearing out of date PPE.
Perspective is everything

It does say that teachers are not required to wear PPE, not that they are not allowed to. I think that will be down to individual schools to work out and up to our unions to defend.

@lilgreen no not every other worker. Carers in care homes aren't and most of them don't have PPE . Teachers are not a special case.

They’re given screens or Ppe.

lilgreen I don’t have a screen 😂😂

Care home staff have got it the absolute worst. I totally agree with that. I don't agree with the argument "If you haven't got it as bad as a care worker, you are not allowed to say anything."

@lilgreen if you believe that everyone in care homes has been provided with PPE you are living in a dream land.

And I got a mask on Thursday.

I assess people who need to see my face. I’ve had a visor made

Would that help?

And home care workers too. I don't forget about them.

Care home staff don't have sufficient PPE, masks for people who care in the community are very difficult to come by.

So because other people are working unsafely, another whole profession has to aswell?

there are insufficient masks for people providing personal care where the risk is greater than within a classroom

EY settings do the same things - touch bodies, deal with bodily fluids.

the risk in a classroom context is negligible

Evidence please - particularly addressing my point above about unsymptomatic viral load for the teacher.

Care workers should have ppe obviously and the ones I know, do.

Stopandlisten a perfect example of the kind of attitude TAs are up against. It has nothing to do with dramatics, it has to do with wanting to minimise risk. Or are TAs somehow a different species who magically don't need protection that all other workers are allowed?
Wheresthebiffer2 visors are actually a really good idea, wonder if anyone has thought of this?

pfrench So what’s your solution?