Every child in every year group will return to school in September, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has said.

[itswhereitsat]

I didn't catch the briefing but read the above comment in the news. The big question is, did he say whether children returning would be part-time or full time? Or did he just gloss over that bit?

Exactly that.

At the moment, a case of Covid in my 'bubble' would close the bubble of 15.

Without SD, it would close the school, a community of hundreds.

UNLESS you say no SD AND no isolation except for the initial confirmed case, which is further than I have seen anyone willing to go so far, because it is such an obvious recipe for a major outbreak.

That was what was happening in March (only those with symptoms isolating, no testing so we don't know who was positive), lots of parents voted with feet and took kids out of school. I think they have now said they think you are at your most contagious around the time of symptom onset, so if they don't isolate contacts in school it will result in major outbreaks. This benefits no one. I guess you could try to just isolate those within 2m for 15min in 48 hours before symptom onset - that would be 2 kids either side and 3 in row in front and behind - so about 10 per class. 5 classes a day for 2 days - potentially 100 students. Plus their immediate friendship group who they spent break and lunch with. And whoever they were near on the bus to school. Obviously siblings too. Maybe 120 people. Having written that, I don't think that will work very well either...

I know it’s the Daily Mail but Boris has given update.

‘We need to get the kids back into school,’ Mr Johnson told The Mail on Sunday. ‘I want all pupils back in school in September.’

Asked whether it would be compulsory, Mr Johnson replied: ‘Yes. It’s the law.’

He added that the teaching unions which had opposed the wider reopening of schools – on the grounds that it posed a risk to the safety of their members – should ‘take their responsibilities seriously’.

I think teaching unions haven’t done anything but “take their role seriously” however why should teaching staff return to a COVID insecure workplace when all other workplaces have to be COVID secure? Public Health England have already seen an increase in school outbreaks with the limited numbers that have returned, with everyone back with limited or no social distancing and autumn/winter fast approaching cramped classrooms,limited air circulation etc infection rate will only go one way.

when all other workplaces have to be COVID secure

Not necessarily happening though. Dh has had no change to his open plan office (police station) and has no extra PPE (aside from the minimal mask and gloves he carries for gross jobs anyway). He drives around in car with a colleague, has to manage large gatherings of people who choose not to follow the rules, he helps people in urgent need, arrests people, none of which can be done without close contact. Most public sector workers can’t refuse to go to work.

This is just one example, there will be dozens of others.

Please stop pretending that teachers are some sort of sacrifice that the country have decided are worth making. They are just being asked to return to work like almost every other person in the country. Changes have/will be made but like everything, there will still be some risk.

Watching the news over the last few days, I've decided that the police have the worst working conditions in the current circumstances. It looks so scary having to be so close to people with no PPE.

I still don't feel happy at all about having to go back in September to squeeze down corridors with 2000 teenagers, literally body to body with no PPE allowed.

Boris saying" I want all kids back in school in September is very different to saying all kids will be back in school full time in September.

Dh has had no change to his open plan office (police station)

He should have done. I'd be fully behind any policing union that took that up.

Agreed that police are afforded very little protection in the UK : it's all part of the public sector workers should somehow be martyrs narrative though.

My DSis (US police) practically looks like she is in full Hazmat when she goes out! Although being a US police officer is no fun.

It looks liken He is just going to apply the law and tell schools they must be open by law : that was always open to him.

Applying that law (which was suspended under emergency legislation, I believe) will also mean that schools will be expected to start chasing up absences again. That'll go down a storm in corners of MN.

Yes - its reading as compulsory schooling returns in September so people would have to send their DC’s back or decide to remove them and home school.

They better get that 'world beating ' test and trace up and running then!

Contact tracers apparently are already complaining that schools, in their limited numbers atm, are amongst their most challenging jobs with an average of 40 people to contact. That's now.

If schools go back in September , full time , with no SD, and no real bubbles, that is going to be an almost unimaginable feat.

Looks like the government already know schools won't be fully open in September.
Teachers to film 10,000 lessons in case schools can't fully open in September
With heads describing a full return from lockdown as ‘fantasy’, Oak National Academy, a new UK online school, is preparing a Plan B
www.theguardian.com/education/2020/jun/28/teachers-to-film-10000-lessons-in-case-schools-cant-fully-open-in-september

Yes, I don’t think the government would be ploughing any money into Oak if they thought it was business as normal in September.

What are employers and employees meant to do if schools won’t reopen properly in September? People have to return to work and won’t be able to do so if their DC’s can’t go back to school.

@Parker231

What are employers and employees meant to do if schools won’t reopen properly in September? People have to return to work and won’t be able to do so if their DC’s can’t go back to school.

Parker I know it's horrid to hear, but they don't give a shit. There will be so many people who have been made redundant that are looking for work, most vacancies will be easily filled.

Makes little difference overall to government which exact person is working and which is on benefits. Unless it's you on the benefits of course

I think what is going to be most difficult for employers is if schools open and close unpredictably, which is an almost inevitable result if schools are forced to open fully, without proper SD, if cases are still present in the community.

An approach where a child can e.g. reliably attend two days a week is going to be much easier for employers than parents being fully in for a week, off for 14 days, back in for a few days, then back off unpredictable due to outbreaks somewhere within the school.

its reading as compulsory schooling returns in September so people would have to send their DC’s back or decide to remove them and home school

What about parents of children with, say, cystic fibrosis? Or impaired immune systems through chemotherapy?

Opening schools fully with no sd will just make this whole thing go on longer. Employers can surely cope better with knowing some staff will have to work from home part time and come in part time, or one week in office and one week at home than all back at work only to have to go home and self isolate for two weeks every time the inevitable school outbreaks happen.

It would also allow for some continuity of education provision if it’s blended learning. Rather than all in and planning for normal school then shut and having to start distance provision from scratch again.

There are no perfect solutions in a pandemic. There’s no let’s just get back to normal no matter how fed up we are

Not all employees can work from home and with the furlough scheme being wound down, employees will have to be back in work or loose their jobs.

We have worked from home throughout (we are usually travelling internationally to visit clients) but it’s been decided that going forwards everyone is to be in the office (centrally London) from the start of September.

It does seem much more sensible though, as po said, to offer a pt offer in secondary and try to keep infection control in place and so parents can plan (very few secondary aged children need childcare anyway) than ft initially with constant closures because of one person spreading it through rammed corridors, canteens and classrooms.

In primary, full time is more possible because of bubbles of 30, if they have lunch in classrooms and do no assemblies etc.

I wonder what will be happening with breakfast and after school club?

Yes it will be of little use to parents if schools are constantly closing with outbreaks of Infections.
Also it’s going to be difficult to staff schools if staff are off each time there is an outbreak like before they closed.
Let’s hope this track and trace is fully operational for September.

It is not in anyone's interest for covid to go through a school. As a parent - remember if your child gets covid you will have to isolate for 2 weeks. Every time they get a cough or a fever you will have to isolate until they get a negative covid test. If there is a positive case in a school it could see 100s of contacts needing to isolate for 2 weeks. We need a system where testing is much quicker and also some plan for stopping it spreading through schools, go back to normal and hope for the best will only work if the levels in the community are very, very low.

I wonder if they will re-instate the rights of those with an ehcp beyond the 'best endevours' as its pretty hard core to expect children to return to school without their support and fine their parents if they dont. the watered down version isnt enough protection for SEND children right nowm