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?

They have an entire hub of 4 classrooms for key workers. These have numbered at 36 children.

It's a huge school. I expect it's more a staffing issue.

My friend's school is offering classes of 10 4 days a week for the entire term.

Our school is offering alternate weeks. So in total three weeks of school for each year group.

I do think the school should have said there is a limit.

Schools can make whatever arrangements they judge are the best in terms of complying with social distancing, hygiene etc guidelines and given the staff and space they have available.

The SAGE guidelines published yesterday indeed encouraged schools to take their time to work out the best way forward for them.

Also, don't forget that the govt has said that it will 'put the breaks on' if the R rises above 1 (which is is likely to). Schools may also open then have to close due to staff shortages or illness, or C19 in the school.

This could even happen the day after they open. If you remember, schools were having to close before the 20th March due to staff having to self-isolate or being unwell.

And you did say that you weren't intending to send your child back.

For all those PPs happily in reminding the OP they said 'no', every parent who said 'yes' in my DCs school also got told 'no' unless they were key workers who had used the school since March/April. Even key workers who had not been using the provision were told, at best, they'd be put on a waiting list.

They did send out a questionnaire and we said No - which is fair enough but we should be able to change our mind?

Nope. That was the point of the questionnaire. Plans have been put in place with the information you gave them.

It might be that more children are now classed as 'key worker' children - until now parents working around them to keep them home for example - and they need to be taken into account first. Also, SEND children now might be able to get in because school taxis are running (they weren't before for my school), so they come before other year groups. Whichever, you need to make the best of your original choice.

I do think the school should have said there is a limit.

I would have thought that was fairly obvious.

Even key workers who had not been using the provision were told, at best, they'd be put on a waiting list.

Same for me all along. We started off as just me being a key worker, but partner was reallocated in early April making him one too. We didn't get an option of childcare in our local school. I was annoyed, we had to work around her, and partner had to take leave on days when I was on the school rota. Blame the government, not the individual schools.

Why did you think the numbers wouldn't be limited? Bearing in mind the school not only have to staff the bubbles they still have to have staff to provide the remote learning for all the pupils still at home.

My friend's school is offering classes of 10 4 days a week for the entire term.

Irrelevant.

It might be that because we've been told we are taking back all year groups before the summer holiday, that your head has made bubbles with the year group teachers, so each child gets their own teacher for the week they are in, and has left other teachers out of school just in case they have to be used to make new bubbles with new year groups later on in the term.

Just make the best of your original choice. You can meet friends in the park, socially that ticks a box. Don't assume much useful learning will be happening in schools. Use Oak Academy if your school isn't providing what you want, and that's it.

Obviously there is a limit, I can't believe people need to be told that

Surely it’s not about whether the school is ‘allowed to say no’ it’s about what the head believes can be safely offered. Similar to a decision to open the school in heavy snow (can the paths be made safe etc).

How many children can the school safely accommodate following guidance with the staff and space they have available. That’s it.

Obviously there is a limit, I can't believe people need to be told that

It's not obvious at all. Not all schools are limiting numbers - by any means. If everyone in the eligible years wanted to come back they'd have to accommodate everyone. There are other ways of doing that such as staggered days / times.

If everyone in the eligible years wanted to come back they'd have to accommodate everyone.

That's just not true. The government have asked schools to prioritise by age if they cannot accommodate everyone, starting with Reception then Year 1 then Year 6.

The government have accepted that many schools simply cannot accommodate everyone.

Read my post @slothbucket I said in the eligible years.

And you are incorrect @slothbucket . They haven't said they prioritize those years if they cannot accommodate everyone. They are ONLY allowed to take those year.

If everyone in the eligible years wanted to come back they'd have to accommodate everyone.

Not necessarily. A lot of schools are prioritising specific year groups. Staffing and bubbles means they can't have everyone back, and the guidance suggests they shouldn't offer places on a part time / rota basis.

They will absolutely have to accommodate everyone come September anyway . Can you imagine hundreds of thousands of kids being denied an education?? What the hell.

I think this will be an increasing problem over the next few weeks. More parents who said no will decide they want their children to go back. Schools can’t suddenly change plans to accommodate more children.

It would also be unfair on those who said yes initially (and maybe organised work around this) to be then be told a load of kids now want to come in so all the plans have changed.

You said no in the questionnaire. The school didn’t say you could change you mind later.

Schools are doing the best they can in a constantly changing situation, like all of us. Schools here were all planned for a return on Monday based on the numbers they had been given but now the LA have said schools shouldn’t open so they are back to key worker children only.

If schools are to keep people safe then they need to know the numbers and be able to plan around them. Hence them asking early.

Schools do not have to accommodate everyone in the eligible years. That is what the guidance says.

"We trust headteachers to make the best decisions they can. If you still cannot get enough cover in place and an arrangement which enables eligible children to attend consistently at another local school is not manageable, schools should focus first on continuing to provide places for priority groups of all year groups (children of critical workers and vulnerable children). Then, to support children’s early learning, you should prioritise groups of children as follows:

early years settings - 3 and 4 year olds followed by younger age groups
infant schools - nursery (where applicable) and reception
primary schools - nursery (where applicable), reception and year 1

Schools should not plan on the basis of a rota system, either daily or weekly."

Yes @Delta1 but this isnt September. And I guess what happens in September depends a bit on what happens between now and them.

@Delta1 You are incorrect. Schools do not have to accommodate everyone in the eligible years.

If everyone in the eligible years wanted to come back they'd have to accommodate everyone

This isn’t true. If schools do not have the space or staff, they don’t. Some schools will only open for Key workers, others only for kw/Nursery. Some juniors are only opening for Y6. It all about staffing and space.

Ah ok @slothbucket then I stand corrected.
I still think that is terrible, notwithstanding the OP declined the place.