Why are primary schools obsessed with social distancing when it’s not a requirement?

[whenthejoyreturns]

I’m sure I’ll be told I’m stupid but I’m genuinely confused.
Our local primary will only allow 8 in a class because apparently there’s not enough room to socially distance more. I thought dc were supposed to be in bubbles of 15 or so dc. Why have our primaries gone down the route of sitting dc at desks spaced 2m apart?

To minimise the opportunity to spread even in bubbles?

They will have been advised to factor it in to their risk assessments, mindful of possible court action down the line?

Our primary have said they have worked it out on floor space. 10 in a bubble. Desks against the wall, kids sat facing the wall

Because children are a vector between home and school. They absorb all of the risks of all of the social contacts of each member of their household when they arrive in that school bubble.

How large are the classrooms? Schools will need to make adjustments to the guidance depending on the layout and size of their building and classrooms.

So the whole bubble thing that’s working so well in other countries has been ignored?
The suing thing is a non starter. How can anyone prove where they caught the virus.
@NotSoSimpleSally that’s incredibly sad. Actually I’m disgusted.

To protect their staff and their pupils. HTH.

Facing the wall??? FFS I’ve heard it all now 😠

Because children are grubby and are plague vectors even in non-coronavirus situations. This isn’t rocket science. Space the kids out and hopefully there will be less transmission.

Well if someone sends in a feverish or coughing dc then i imagine they could be sued for making people ill.
The y might prosecute the person who spat on the poor transport worker who died.

Maybe they are planning ahead for how they will manage when clinically vulnerable DC return? So that the whole school is on a single set of standards rather than having to have two parallel systems?

And one day, the extremely clinically vulnerable might get the OK to go back into groups, and as they are the DC who will have had the longest and most rigorous isolation, it would be a thoroughly good think if they were not ‘other’ in return because physical distancing is already set as the norm

Because the unions hold all the power.

We’re been told classrooms with 4-7 children in, rather than the usual 30. So somewhere between 13 and 23% of the usual capacity. So completely unsustainable and not scalable.

keeps them used to it when not in school too

theres a world outside 'school' you know!! kids need to be educated on the fact that they need to comply not just in school

Perhaps they have a higher number of at risk pupils or staff. It’s about looking at the risk factors for each school and acting accordingly.

facing the wall or all facing outwards?

OP I’ve been confused about the same

So this craziness has gone well beyond law. Watching people slowly commit suicide and the children don’t have a voice.

@whenthejoyreturns the DfE guidance says bubbles up to 15 and that they don’t expect nursery, reception and year 1 to socially distance. The bubbles are to keep separate to reduce the number of contacts. It is up to the individual school to decide on how to implement the guidance. Some schools are using smaller bubbles due to classroom size or the fact that they have enough staff to teach smaller bubbles. Denmark has been mentioned a lot by Gavin Williamson as the basis for this model and the bubble size there is a lot smaller than 15 as class sizes tend to be much smaller there too.

To keep the children as safe as possible while only some year groups are in and they are able to have enough staff. Why would anyone want a big group if a smaller group is doable?

kids sat facing the wall

If they have the virus and cough or sneeze, the virus particles won’t be going into the face of another person. It’s safer than being opposite.

Have you considered starting a similar thread about why supermarkets and delivery drivers are operating to the same guidelines? Or is it only those bastard teachers you're slating for attempting to keep your kids safe?

Because children are grubby and are plague vectors
How pleasant, I hope you're not a teacher.

I believe that schools are trying to make returning to school sound unpleasant, so fewer parents make the choice to send their kids in. Unions get their way, teachers get a longer paid holiday.

Yes I am a teacher.

My dc are preschool and our nursery have already been in touch to confirm that there will be no social distancing but that children will stay in their own rooms and not mix with the children from other rooms.

Outside play, more hand washing and cleaning. Walkie talkies for the staff to communicate between rooms and staggered breaks. All seems very sensible. I doubt DS will notice the difference.

@RhymingRabbit3 no I’m not a teacher of small children. But the facts still stand they kids are serious plague vectors hence why everyone including adults gets sick repeatedly in the first few months of a semester.

If the government got the track, trace and isolate system fully up and running before wider opening that would be a great help. I think people should be holding the government to account about this instead of gnashing their teeth at schools who are doing their best to plan based on guidelines which changed a couple of times already since they were released.