1600 paediatricians have written to the prime minister

[havefunpeleton]

Demanding schools reopen or risk scarring a generation. Reported in Times today.

I am hoping this will be the push needed to ensure this madness ends and all our children can go back to school full time in September.

And is the mask is steaming up your glasses, you are wearing it wrongly.

Honestly? My initial thought is care home workers are much less likely to be able to WFH on full pay compared to teachers. They are also paid much less. Finally they accept you can't simply close care homes. Unlike schools (!)

I would imagine these factors combined mean the careers are just getting in with it

What do you think?

@havefunpeleton

Ok *@Hearhoovesthinkzebras* can you enlighten us on the 24 cases in school then?

Read up on them.

@banjaxxed we have cheap masks that we have made ourselves. They are not proper PPE like my DD wears as these are a nightmare to get fitted. But they have been proven in other countries to cut infection by 80%. So I'll give it a go. Despite how annoying they are.
And yes DD would need to carry it to give it to me. But as she is doing 3 13 hour shifts a week on the Covid ICU there is a bigger chance she might bring it home. So I will continue to protect my students. There is a reason masks are now compulsory on transport and in hospitals. They work.

14 residents died at my mums care home. 25 staff were hospitalised. I'm hoping school is not aspiring to that.

My kid is happy to be off and is working really hard.

Unless you have a kid in years 10 or 11 things will be fine.

peleton I think the low pay of care workers plus a culture of not being able to speak up led them to have no choice but to work without adequate PPE. I think they have been badly let down.

As a teacher I think education is vital. But at the beginning of lockdown schools were less vital in their educational role than care homes. Schools had other roles that were more vital than education at the start - for us it was creating and delivering food hampers. Many families would have struggled without this.

@mumsneedwine have you seen any posts from care home workers on mumsnet? Those stats are awful. Why are they not as vocal as teachers?!

@havefunpeleton

Honestly? My initial thought is care home workers are much less likely to be able to WFH on full pay compared to teachers. They are also paid much less. Finally they accept you can't simply close care homes. Unlike schools (!)

I would imagine these factors combined mean the careers are just getting in with it

What do you think?

So let me see... You’ve used up vulnerable children, abused children, mental health and now you’re going to use care workers? Stay classy peleton

@havefunpeleton I wish they were more vocal as what they have coped with has been awful. It wasn't the care homes fault as they had 2 discharged from hospital who then came down with symptoms and spread it throughout the home. They had 82 residents. It makes me so angry. Maybe why I don't want schools to go the same way.
We are on the same side here you know. Teachers want to teach and we want our students back. But we need to be kept as safe as everyone else and also make sure we keep our students safe. Mine are 11-18 so some not really children anymore.

@havefunpeleton

Honestly? My initial thought is care home workers are much less likely to be able to WFH on full pay compared to teachers. They are also paid much less. Finally they accept you can't simply close care homes. Unlike schools (!)

I would imagine these factors combined mean the careers are just getting in with it

What do you think?

And care home staff now, and rightly so, have PPE. Far too late but they have it.

You should not be demanding that anyone has to go back to work in a potentially unsafe environment just because you want them to.

Scientists and the government are watching this and will make assessments as to when they think it is safer and how to ensure that.

Interestingly watching the podcasts on the ZOE app and the drs and scientists on there are far more cautious about potential spread when schools open and also about the possibility of a second wave come autumn/winter.

They don't have you devil may care attitude.

I wish they were more vocal too. Lots of our key worker parents are carers and they have been through a lot on very little pay with little protection. They should be angry.

@jimmygrimble.

Used up? That's a vile way to talk about other human beings. Have some respect

I'm not disputing your DD is at higher risk of getting Covid - she works in a Covid ward so yes logically.

However, the chances of her getting it, and giving it to you and you going to work without any of you knowing you have Covid are small. Using terms of v likely in your example is just rubbish. It's a chain of events and the probability of them ALL happening is slim. You should surely know that?!

I think teachers should have a mask if they want. And kids. Belts and braces.

Not do I think kids should be back now, FT, without distancing.

But we have to work to getting all kids back in September, full time. The infection rate should be lower by then and so the chance of anyone in a school being infected will statistically be low

State schools were told that they could not furlough staff. Schools were told to 'close' by the Government and they were given 24 hours to sort everything and then a weekend to work out how to 'reopen' for key worker and vulnerable children and provide remote learning for the remaining children.

Teachers did not close schools.

You talk about respect peleton ... you will use anything you think will further your argument. All children back full time and teachers stfu. Admit it - you don’t give a shiny shite about anyone but yourself.

Well I'm not a school child... so no can't admit to that

banjaxxed I agree with you regarding September. I’m also optimistic that the ongoing research into transmission in schools will help this to happen. By August we should have a concrete answer t whether children transmit in the same way as adults.

I don’t think some teachers do want children back. Amazingly I think some think it’s ok to WFH indefinitely. It really isn’t and has to stop in September. Not once on these threads do you ever see thought or suggestions of ways to get all children back, not once. Just endless going over of every reason not to.

It stinks. Children are being let down by everybody. .

@banjaxxed I agree. But teachers do not make these decisions. Despite what the papers say. We are following the 42 bits of guidance government have provided for us to follow. I personally believe our school would have more years back given the choice. But no. Dear Gav said 25% of year 10 & 12. If we go against that then we are not insured, even if someone falls over.
Please blame the right people. Teachers are now teaching on line and in school at the same time.

nicenames

Thanks.

As I said it would be an interesting case.

I suppose that it would come down to

If everywhere else is still required to social distance or work in ppe (even the offer to work in ppe). Is the employer taking an unreasonable risk in removing these provisions.

But all teachers are in school where I live apart from those who have health issues and need to WFH and they are the ones who are providing the remote learning.

Not once on these threads do you ever see thought or suggestions of ways to get all children back, not once. Just endless going over of every reason not to.

What suggestions can anyone make?

For children to be back all at once government have to end the bubbles of 15 children. When they say thirty kids in a class is fine, no SD, then that's when all children can go back isn't it?

What suggestions can people make? It's for government to issue new advice and tell schools it's ok to fully open.

AppleSaf It’s not like that at my school at all. Around 70% of our pupils are entitled to free school meals and there’s high levels of social services involvement. All the staff are worried as we know our children will be the ones suffering the most. Many are entitled to come in as vulnerable now but are choosing not to and until it’s compulsory we can’t force them.

I am hopeful for September. We are on a good downward trend and there is ongoing research into the transmission of the virus in schools.

@AppleSaf

I don’t think some teachers do want children back. Amazingly I think some think it’s ok to WFH indefinitely. It really isn’t and has to stop in September. Not once on these threads do you ever see thought or suggestions of ways to get all children back, not once. Just endless going over of every reason not to.

It stinks. Children are being let down by everybody. .

If we were to do that apple we would be lying and getting people’s hopes up. I get that you’re a Pollyanna but all the positivity and can do in the world isn’t going to change the situation.