Schools won't be reoping on 1 June, and if they do, I won't be sending my child

[effingterrified]

Unions will be doing what they exist to do and protecting the health of their members.

Until Boris can provide teachers with a safe workplace ie PPE for all staff, adequate social distancing, etc, unions will be telling members not to go in.

And if they do open, I won't be sending my child in as they wouldn't learn anything in the last few weeks under these conditions, and the health risks not only to the children, but to the teachers and parents, are not worth it.

Plus my child relies on a school bus to get to school and there is zero way of socially distancing on one of them. Or of running 3 school buses, say, per route, at an affordable cost.

Also, my dc is happy as Larry off school, and learning as much or more. Let's face it, how many kids object to longer school holidays? I know there are some eg vulnerable kids, but they can already attend at present.

Fed up of threads pretending all parents can't wait for schools to reopen. Not among the ones I know.

Well there is a solution to you not sending your child to school.....take them out of school permanently and home school . You'll never have to worry about your child's health or education again through mixing with others.

Most parents will be doing their best. But I do know that there are plenty of parents who can barely read and write themselves, let alone teach their children.

I totally agree, however, I'm sure those aren't the ones on here bashing teachers. They are getting on with it and trying their best.
Taking THEIR responsibility seriously.
Exactly my point.

So when do schools open? There won't be a vaccine in September, or in January.

No, but hopefully infections will be lower then (if schools don't open now) and there will be more time for schools to plan this so that children are going to be educated without a massive rise in infections and deaths. Two weeks to prepare doesn't seem long given that it's going to be extremely difficult to teach children while keeping them relatively far apart.

If you’re not sending your child in then de-register.

I bet the people refusing, are furloughed workers. In the real world, millions of people have been going to work through this and are fine. I’d love my DS to be in school. Can’t wait until he is

Boris has said that if childcare is an issue you can refuse to go in to work.furlough is now in place till October so children don't need to be rushed back to school for childcare purposes.

^I totally agree, however, I'm sure those aren't the ones on here bashing teachers. They are getting on with it and trying their best.
Taking THEIR responsibility seriously.
Exactly my point.^

Well we don't know do we? They could be sat rocking and crying in a corner not coping at all for all we know.

You won’t get furlough just because you don’t want to send them into school. If you can and you refuse, then no way should you be furloughed.

@effingterrified
"mollycoddle, no according to the excess death figures, the only reliable ones, there have been around 59,000 deaths so far."

So there are something like 51000 excess deaths it seems, but you can't just claim the extra deaths as covid deaths, just because it suits your argument! They may as well be due to the actual lockdown - people not getting treatment when they need it, suicides etc. Which would support my argument for being a little bit less scared of things that are very, very unlikely to happen, and more willing to work out ways of getting society and the economy back on track.

Yeah my employer doesn't care that I have children they still expect me to work a full time job

So what's your solution then OP? Keep kids at home for how long? There won't be a vaccine any time soon. And the ways out of this are vaccine, therapeutics or herd immunity....there will be many more deaths unfortunately.

They may as well be due to the actual lockdown - people not getting treatment when they need it, suicides etc. Which would support my argument for being a little bit less scared of things that are very, very unlikely to happen, and more willing to work out ways of getting society and the economy back on track.

In some cases people aren't getting the treatment they need because it will make them more susceptible to infection. e.g. many cancer treatment suppress the immune system. Letting infections increase will reduce their chance of treatment not the other way around especially if they are full of people with COVID because infections have increased.

Glad you've told us will sleep better now some random on mn has told me what they will be doing with their child
If it's alright though I will decide about my own child

there will be more time for schools to plan this so that children are going to be educated without a massive rise in infections and deaths. Two weeks to prepare doesn't seem long given that it's going to be extremely difficult to teach children while keeping them relatively far apart

I think this will be extremely difficult to implement no matter how long we have to plan to be fair though.

I think this will be extremely difficult to implement no matter how long we have to plan to be fair though.

Yes, it will be difficult whenever they do it but probably impossible with only two weeks notice.

It disgusts me to read people on here belittling children of other posters who are in distress.

Early years is a vital time for a child's brain development and children need to learn how to communicate and interact socially with others at that age. Only children are particularly affected.

I do understand the genuine concerns teachers have, but we need to remember that our children have their entire futures ahead of them and parents need to put their children first.

Funny how many new accounts on here spout lines straight out of the Dominic Cummings rulebook

I absolutely support the views of all mums to make whatever choice is right for them

Absolutely

I don’t like those who seek to influence or bully others with spin and propaganda whether their accounts are real or not.

We’re all different. We’re all allowed to come to our own decision of what’s best for us

Too such subtle and unsubtle influencing going on and it’s not healthy

I have also noticed there are a lot of posters who automatically leap to defend the government's policies

Boris has said that if childcare is an issue you can refuse to go in to work.furlough is now in place till October so children don't need to be rushed back to school for childcare purposes

Boris did not say that. He said you could work with your employer to find a solution. Furlough is still at employers digression, and is not a right or entitlement. Come July employers will also have to contribute towards the furlough as it no longer will be fully funded. If you want to "refuse to go in", well bull on but you cant expect the government (and soon your employer) to fund that for you. We are moving and taking steps to get back to some sort of normality, we are going to have to learn to live with this as there is no magic cure or vaccine. If you want to keep yourself locked away, that's fine. But it wont be funded for ever, and you've been luckier than a lot to have had that cushion there in the first place. There have been many out every day having to mitigate the risks.

Well said OP. My DS has learnt 10 times more being at home than at school. Apart from social reasons, there is literally no benefit to him attending school. Why risk him catching the virus for the sake of a month or two of schooling which could be condensed into 2 days of education at home. I would rather he learn loads more in the safety of home.

Boris has said that if childcare is an issue you can refuse to go in to work.furlough is now in place till October so children don't need to be rushed back to school for childcare purposes

I’m surprised how many people think furlough is like benefits. It’s not. Your employer does not have to keep your furloughed, it’s their choice. There is no entitlement. And Boris didn’t remotely even say this.

Some posters have questioned the difference between June and September.
I think in September: the R number will be reduced, and will have stabilised - so more certainty about keeping it low; track and trace will be up and running and testing will be quicker and more efficient. "Hotspots" will be found quickly, and different regions that have a higher number of cases can be identified and lockdown will rapidly happen in that region until the R number comes down.

So, I work in a school (went in today on rota) and I want to get back properly. But that's the issue - because whether it is July or September, it will be very different for all of us. Small groups, very little student interaction, reduced timetables, part time studying and some home learning too.

OP - do what you feel is best for you - you won't be fined for keeping your DC off, so crack on. But please don't judge or assume how any one else feels - everyone is entitled to use or ignore the offer of schooling when and if it happens and whatever form it happens after June 1. Their business, their choice, their decision.

And as for nits - well, if the cap fits...

By the way, I am the OP and am not furloughed, I am working at home through this.

Still much rather that than risk sending my child in to a school where the dcs can all spread the virus to each other/their teachers and other dcs' parents.

This is so unhelpful and unsupportive op! I have seen posts like this all day on social media. I am a sahp, ex teacher and my dh is furloughed. We are in a very fortunate position, Some people HAVE to send their dc back, some people NEED to and some people WANT to. You just do you.

Furlough isn’t for you to sit at home until Oct! If you told to come back in it’s not for you to decide whether you will on it. If schools are open then I fail to see what your excuse would be.

I heard a barrister talking earlier on LBC today and a caller said they were trying to get workers back to the DIY store and they were either not answering the phone or stating elderly relatives had moved in with them and they were self isolating presumably until Oct! Barrister said the scheme is for the employer to run not for the employee to use for their own ends.

All I've seen today on social media is post pretty much bullying people into keeping their kids of school. Almost as if its orchestrated............

A few though have given me hope. And these are from people who will be directly impacted by schools/ childcare opening.

No parent should be made to feel bad about their choices. Just like teachers should not feel bad about the choices they make.

I do wish though that people would at least accept schools are not closed for the safety of the kids. Quite crudely put, kids are not dying in high enough numbers for this to be a concern.

school staff / parents - then there may be some merit to closing schools - but let's not pretend the decision was made to save kids.