How will you cope logistically / financially / mentally if schools are still PT in September?

[Bollss]

Just wanted to ask, really... Get an insight into how many families this will totally fuck things up for.

For us, if school is PT whatever we do we will be under massive financial / mental / logistical pressure.

We both work FT, and neither of us can WFH. I have so far been furloughed but am starting a new role where I won't be able to do that (NHS).

I guess there's a possibility key worker provision will still exist but I'm not certain.

If it doesnt, and we get say 10hrs a week (based on Scotland's plans!) Then really our only options are... One of us taking unpaid leave (which we cannot afford), finding a childminder for the 3 days a week ds isn't at school and having to leave work early for the other 2 days (no childminders pick up from his school) which will cost us more than a full time nursery place does now. Or keep him in ft nursery until school goes ft (which we could only afford to do if he keeps his funded hours half of which we haven't been able to use)

How will you cope? Will it affect you? Do you have any better ideas than my crap and expensive ones

Well I'm a LP WFH from home so if they're par time or not at all then who knows, have a nervous breakdown?

The hardest thing will be if you have children in different classes in at different times

I work PT (NHS). DH is currently furloughed but I really hope he’ll be back to work at least PT by September.

There is no way that schools in Wales will be open to all FT in September.

Our dc are 12 and 14. It wouldn’t be my choice but depending on which days they will be in school and if DH and I can’t stagger our days in work, one or both of them will need to be at home alone.

I have worked PT for the last 10 years to avoid this situation but I count myself very lucky at the moment compared to a lot of you.

My DC are 14 and 16. Their (private) schools have been providing something akin to a normal timetable from the word go. DD (16) is supposed to be switching to a stare sixth form college. I’m undecided whether to force her to stay at her current school for sixth form or try and find some tutors for her. Fortunately I’m at a point in my career where I can throw money at the problem.

So logistically and financially we’ll be fine. However I’m struggling mentally with everyone being at home all the time (it’s been 12 weeks now). There’s no mental space. DH and I already know that we’ll be WFH for the rest of 2020. I really hope we get some respite from the DC being around come September.

I'm a teacher and I think just bring them back in . No one wants this. It's an absolute logistical nightmare for staff and parents . Staff without children themselves or older children just don't understand in my school. They are saying apply for a place in a hub......but then keyworkers children will be in school full time anyway?! With lots of different children each day.
It's a shit situation. In R is dropping so much now, especially in Wales. I just fear that so many jobs wil be lost already and the majority will be women

OH is a keyworker so my DS will be entitled to a keyworker space for the days "proper" school for his year group are in. However, I do worry that the ability to provide keyworker childcare will be lessened when more kids are back. It's already struggling.

I’m self employed and have already cut my hours and income in half. Dh will go down to 4 days. We’ll survive (just) if I claim the self employed support grant. Obviously we’ve cancelled all holidays. Not going out. Not buying anything. Surviving. Not living.

We won't survive. I will probably have to give up my job, which we can't afford, so will need to try and sell the house ASAP and find somewhere cheaper to rent wich will be obviously impossible. So probably will end up being declared bankrupt and having the house repossessed. So yeah, there you go. Lots to look forward to for us.

@frouby - totally agree. There’s too much emphasis on “under privileged” kids- as if other kids and their education doesn’t matter. I’m sick of it.

Also agree re working parents being given priority - if that happens, this country will really have lost the plot and totally fucked over kids’ human rights.

I can cope if schools are part time as long as the two children are in on the same days. I am still likely to be WFH in September.

I am moving my youngest to the school nursery to hopefully make this happen. House we are temporarily in is small so nanny wouldn't really help much and there are no childminders round here.

I will probably drop my hours further and it will be okay.

Problem is if they are not in the same days or don't go back. The school is on a small site. That would be really tricky and I would need to consider if I could carry on, or maybe go super part time.

Perhaps in some cases parents can organise among themselves and try to help cover for each other?

We are meant to be moving back to the UK in September, I think we will be ok as luckily DH works shifts and I can work from home a lot. I'm already talking to a friend about having one of her DC one day a week.

@Weepinggreenwillow

We won't survive. I will probably have to give up my job, which we can't afford, so will need to try and sell the house ASAP and find somewhere cheaper to rent wich will be obviously impossible. So probably will end up being declared bankrupt and having the house repossessed. So yeah, there you go. Lots to look forward to for us.

Oh @Weepinggreenwillow I am so sorry to hear that I sincerely hope that doesn't happen.

[quote cocopops]@frouby - totally agree. There’s too much emphasis on “under privileged” kids- as if other kids and their education doesn’t matter. I’m sick of it.

Also agree re working parents being given priority - if that happens, this country will really have lost the plot and totally fucked over kids’ human rights.[/quote]
I do see what you mean.

Imo they all need to go back ft, as you rightly say they all deserve an education.

I really think schools will open with either a 1m rule or no social distancing. The infection rate is dropping all the time and the focus will be on containing local outbreaks. School will be one place where the Govt realises the rules need to be different.
So sad to hear so many are thinking of quitting work

I don't really understand the argument against prioritising some kids.

Like I said, we are very lucky in that we can manage if DC is not in school. I would never insist he has a place over some other child whose parents will go bankrupt and lose their house if they don't have a school place.

Ideally the government would sort it out so all kids have a place -- that argument I get. But if there are limited spaces, it's only fair to look at the overall needs of each family.

Surely it will be part time for a while? Our school need 48 bubbles.

@louise5754

Surely it will be part time for a while? Our school need 48 bubbles.

I'm really hoping not. I don't think 10 hours a week is enough. I don't think home learning is ideal by any stretch and this thread illustrates the whole host of issues it throws up. Our children will suffer be it emotionally, educationally, financially.

I hope they sack off the 2m rule within schools and use some common sense.

I've said before on a different thread that because we will a lot of us be hashing together other childcare the rest of the week, that the "bubbles" will very quickly become enormous and therefore imo pointless.

Local (Scotland) schools are going to be 3 days a fortnight. For local teachers this means they will be working 9 days out of 10 at school but their children will be 7 days out of 10 at home. It looks like they won't be entitled to key worker care unless their partners are also key workers. So there are quite a few having to go part time and others who would have come back full time who now can't so there are even less teachers to cover classes.

3 days a fortnight. Jesus Christ.

And bloody hell re teachers.

This is helping nobody is it?

Ideally the government would sort it out so all kids have a place -- that argument I get. But if there are limited spaces, it's only fair to look at the overall needs of each family.

But if we prioritise working parents in September, and there is a second wave in the winter then what happens in October, November, December, January? Do those children continue getting an education and the others continue struggling on at home until schools are back to capacity? Bearing in mind that the last flu pandemic lasted for 2 years (and vaccines against coronaviruses aren’t necessarily possible in all cases). All children have a right to an education - it’s already unfair that some in R, Y1 and Y6 are back in school FT while those in other year groups are still at home all the time and missing out. If the rules become more complex to take into account family circumstances, then the inequality will only be amplified.

Madness. Has no one considered that it’s beneficial for children’s parents to actually be able to work, so that the child has a roof over their head and food in the table?

My friend is a teacher. Usually full time but she only works one Thursday every 2 weeks now. Will probably change once reception year 1 and year 6 start back.

@dreamingbohemian if the government want to prioritise working parents childcare over childrens education then they need to say that and then return all the funding for children who don't have a school place back to their families so they can use that to support their own children and declare that the UK no longer educated children but it does provide childcare for families where both parents work.

School is for education not childcare. It's an absolute nightmare for families now I know. But it needs to be solved by not prioritising certain children based on their parents jobs. All jobs are equally vital to the longterm recovery of the economy. You could argue those in the private sector even moreso.

And all children deserve an equal education. Vulnerable children aren't the responsibility of schools either and we should be seriously asking why they seem to be. Schools are educational facilities to provide an education. Yes they should play a role in safeguarding but that should just be highlighting issues. Social services are the ones responsible and we should realise that we are being grossly unfair on schools and teachers by making them responsible for vulnerable children even in a pandemic.

I’m SAHM (DD has additional needs) so I can keep her at home but it’s quite hard mentally.
I don’t believe that schools will go part time. I’ve got feeling that the government aims to open all schools and then use temporary closures if cases rise locally. It will be easier solution especially with track and trace system working already.

They should just reopen the schools in September. At some point, surely someone with a basic grasp of risk assessment has to be able to weigh up the risk the virus presents versus the massive damage that all of this faffing around with part time and bubbles and social distancing is creating both financially and in terms of the children's long term well-being.