No space at school

[PinkDiamond1]

This is outing so have NC.

Our school is a large primary 3 form per year.

They've offered alternate weeks starting from the 8th June for year groups.

We were undecided on sending our DC back.

However we got an email yesterday saying they were at full capacity for key worker and Nursery R, Y1 and Y6 and can't accept anymore children!

Is this allowed?

Mistressiggi is a teacher. Think she was saying it was funny because it was a ridiculous thing to say.

Of course it’s fair. They only have a certain amount of space and staff available in the manner they have deemed safe. I have sympathy for your situation and understand your frustration but their stance is fair.

@PinkDiamond1 I'd say it was poor comms on your part!
No then yes then oh it's not fair!
I've had parents like you in my school. Luckily some of the yes's turned to no's so I have been able to accommodate changes of mind.

In my school we have a large amount of keyworkers children and children with statements so with the 3 year groups back we physically don't have enough classrooms we will be using our library and other spaces to accommodate bubbles. We can't accommodate more numbers if parents change their mind.

Here's an article showing what the school classrooms will be like and the challenges

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-52771769?utmcampaign=Bundle&utmmmedium=referral&%2338;utmsource=Bundle

@TorysSuckRevokeArticle50 it was interesting to note in the school referred to half the parents hadn’t even responded. You can imagine a significant proportion will just turn up (if not on the first day, but say a week after) and the school will have to turn people away. What a nightmare.

I have been in my DDs classroom (at pick up friday before half term) and they had finished organising it. It looks nothing like that and there is no need for any classroom to be as bare or as cold as in thst article.

PinkDiamond1

Typically it's poor comms on their part“

Tbh I’d say poor comms on your part too. Saying no when it seems you meant yes ....

I doubt you will be back I in it now... one of the guidelines expressly says parents should not be on site..certainly not inside.

Schools have been told that they can't offer alternate weeks. Let's remember the purpose of this is to get people back to work. You can't do that with alternate weeks.

The state schools have shown a total lack of agility over the past ten weeks. Every other business has had to adapt.

What about the private schools which are remaining closed?

Does agility extend to magicking up more staff and rooms?

I don't think agility is a word that should be used in a public health crisis but I do refute the idea that schools and teachers have not massively adapted ( being open throughout to Key worker children, making visors,changing the model of curriculum delivery overnight, delivering food parcels, some staff losing half terms and Easter breaks). That's pretty insulting.

Schools did not close on a whim. The government told them to.

I have a SEN child with handover inside, school have no intention to change that. Likewise our school are allowing parents in the grounds :)

This wasn't a comment about teachers.

It's about how hundreds of thousands of children have been home for almost 3 months. Many have had zero contact from the school. An email with activities to do with them (really easy with FT jobs) but not even one phone call or one hour of "lesson time". It's fucking disgraceful.

Where was the directive from the department of education on how to give children some consistency?

I've seen how the private schools have adapted. Children attending 4-5 hours of lessons via google classrooms every day.

And I work with the NHS so I understand agility.

And I am not sure that the message is meant to be kids are back because of the economy. They are very careful to frame the message that it is because of the children.

I doubt you will be back I in it now... one of the guidelines expressly says parents should not be on site..certainly not inside.

We have been told one parent only can bring a child and the same parent should collect the child.

Yes, but you should not be going inside.

@TorysSuckRevokeArticle50

Here's an article showing what the school classrooms will be like and the challenges

[[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-52771769?utm]]campaign=Bundle&utmmmedium=referral&%2338;utmsource=Bundle

This is exactly how ours is set up and this is how it looks when schools follow the guidelines as set out, without cutting corners to appease the idiots.

@Tearingmyhairout0110

I have been in my DDs classroom (at pick up friday before half term) and they had finished organising it. It looks nothing like that and there is no need for any classroom to be as bare or as cold as in thst article.

Then your child's school is not following the guidelines and cutting corners. We didn't make them up you know!

Im the only parent in the school allowed within a classroom and it forms part of her risk assessment as there is a hig safeguarding issue :) school arent just allowing it for the sheer hell of it.

All parents can go through school grounds as it's been done as a one way system but all classrooms have an external door where drop off/collections are done.

Our number of key worker spaces has grown from 20 to 80 in the last 5 days. It's an enormous increase and the logistics are now very tricky. We now need 6 classrooms instead of the / we had planned and are now pulling 6 staff instead of the 2 we allocated to cover this.

I don't think my school is in the minority and would imagine this is the case in a number of areas.

LadyGAgain

The state schools have shown a total lack of agility over the past ten weeks. Every other business has had to adapt.

You would have more of a point if you hadn't generalised with state schools.

Many have had zero contact from the school. An email with activities to do with them

So at least some contact then?

but not even one phone call or one hour of "lesson time".

How do you propose that these should be done?

It's fucking disgraceful.

Its "fucking disgraceful" that you have lumped every state school in one box.

It must be so hard for school staff who are dealing with this at the moment. Even though they are doing their best to their capacity, the parents can change their mind and get angry. If you were unsure, you should have said yes. Losing a number of children attending is far easier to deal with rather than finding a space for children who initially said they aren't coming back and there's no more space.

@ladygagain The state schools have shown a total lack of agility over the past ten weeks. Every other business has had to adapt.

This is the provision here:

a. Teachers answering emails daily and always being online during the timetabled lesson.
b. Teachers marking/giving feedback on work.
c. Teachers emailing parents to check things are ok - all parents not just vulnerable children. Each teacher has an allocated group of students to contact each week.
d. Live lessons using Teams - full safeguarding guidelines communicated to parents
e. Youtube videos with presentations and annotated information with a commentary.

State comprehensive.

Please explain how this school have not adapted?

@LadyGAgain My grandson is at a local state school. He is working to exactly the same timetable as when in school. If he logs on late he will get a reminder from teacher and parents get an email to let them know he hasn't done the full lesson. If particular schools are failing that is something that should be addressed with the school but don't make out like that is what is happening in all schools.

One of my kids and another's partner are NHS, one a nurse one a doctor on covid ward, I've heard about agility in the NHS as well. I've seen mine dropping with exhaustion and heard about the ones who are doing anything to avoid it. I think maybe it is time we stopped the pretence of everyone in the NHS is a hero. Not sure what your role with the NHS is, not sure what a role with means, are you in the NHS or not?

The agility of my local surgery when I had an urgent appointment was that I had to leave a message of my problem, was called by a doctor who said I needed to be seen, went through a long questionnaire so I would spend less time with doctor. Given an appointment so arrived at surgery to find doors locked, I could see receptionist putting on gloves, apron and mask to come to the door, eventually after more questions I was allowed in with hand sanitizing and face covering. I could see 3 doctors, a nurse and receptionist but no patients. Called in to see doctor, spent about 3 minutes with her and left. Doctor was in scrubs, apron, mask, visor and gloves. I don't see teachers being able to screen themselves like that and to be honest it didn't look very agile. Just compare it to a teacher being told they are to spend the day in a classroom with 15 kids, not quite the same is it.

I loved the agility of the NHS that sent an infected patient to my 86 year old aunt's care home to infect other residents.

People look at things in such a selfish way, yesterday there were people being interviewed on the news complaining that they couldn't get dental treatment and comparing it to the fact they could get a McDonalds or a plumber do work for them. No consideration of the danger dentists would be in if they can't get PPE. Toothache is horrible but I wouldn't expect someone to risk their life to give me a filling. I doubt the plumber is making the same sort of contact with his customers.

Schools have been told that they can't offer alternate weeks. Let's remember the purpose of this is to get people back to work. You can't do that with alternate weeks. Good that you are being honest about it, it isn't about the mental health of 4 year olds it isn't about losing 3 months in school it is about the economy, national and for the family concerned. All valid of course but rarely admitted.

I think it would be really useful if sectors of the workforce weren't being put in competition with each other. Many NHS staff are doing an amazing job but I also value the dustmen who collect my rubbish every week with unfailing good humour, the people who keep the electricity going and make sure we have clean water and sewerage is dealt with not to mention the people in the food supply chain who keep us all fed. I would add to that the teachers who are looking after vulnerable children, ensuring families who are having problems with food vouchers are getting food parcels not to mention keeping in touch with all their children. Of course that is on top of sending out work in whatever is appropriate not to mention working through their holidays (no payment unlike NHS staff, I know from my own family how much money some NHS staff are making and good luck to them but I don't see the same happening to teachers.)

To the OP you didn't want a place, you haven't got one. Not exactly a scandal.

Except it isn't about the children. It's about the economy.

Seems like your comprehensive has had better guidance than the infant and primary schools around here. And no, I wouldn't say an email every fortnight with a list of websites a 6 year old can login to is appropriate contact. At all.

I hate the way that many on here take any opposing POV as a personal slight. As I clearly stated, this isn't a criticism of teachers. It's an observation based on personal and local experience. And it's encouraging to see that not all children have been left. Makes me more cross though that ours have.