Are the unions going to kick off about back to school in September?

[Flippetydip]

Is there going to be a big hoo ha from the unions about the "everyone back to school at full capacity" announcement from the PM today?

Any teachers on here care to give a view?

Weird, isn’t it, when posters come on to air their mildly-worded but really rather offensive views in a Classic Dom kind of a way immediately after pmq ?

A union asking for clarity on the safety of its members and that of children is not a ‘hoo ha’ and ‘any teachers care to comment’ is straight out of the Ladybird book on passive aggression. Our teachers and our kids deserve more than your hoo ha @Flippetydip.

And fwiw, my kid goes to a private school that has had to run itself ragged to get them in for one week. Something about not getting any clear guidance from the govt.

Fripp
yes they did

www.personneltoday.com/hr/neu-teachers-union-school-reopening/

But enjoy the rubbish you're sprouting

www.theguardian.com/education/2020/may/12/plans-to-reopen-schools-on-1-june-in-jeopardy-as-education-unions-tell-staff-not-to-engage-with-prepartions-1

www.thetimes.co.uk/article/national-education-union-tells-teachers-not-to-engage-with-planning-for-reopening-schools-ck2st7fzs

I could link a load more, but they all say the same thing.

hash you said “Didn't one of the teaching unions tell its headteachers not to engage with the government about how to make the return possible?”

Which is not what that article says.

Actually headteachers were incredibly frustrated that the DfE wouldn’t engage with them and instead made stupid announcements without consulting them about all primary kids back before the summer, as this article says www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-53013602

Well done @Flippetydip I'd been missing shitty apologies that aren't apologies. You reminded me nicely of how fucking annoying they are.

I think teachers were rightly angry when BJ ignored SAGE advice to open 2 weeks later when the risk would be halved. The unions were not wrong to agree with SAGE

OP in terms of political games I think the biggest one on this issue is the game politicians have played on you (and similar parents).

They've done a terrible job in leading education during lockdown and they've managed (it would seem) to convince you and others that it's not their fault but 'the unions'.

Its shameful how they have acted, but also more worrying how easily they've blinded some parents and the general public.

Are schools open for children in years N, R, 1 and 6 as per government guidance? Yes.

Could schools open for further year groups as per government guidance? Some. Because of the limitations of the government guidance.

The unions were absolutely toothless in this situation.

I hope they continue to protect my right to a safe working environment. I would fully support a 'hoo haa', and would support strike action if safe working environments can't be provided.

My old school closed today because a pupil and a teacher in a bubble tested positive. Take a look at last week's data on outbreaks in hospitals (where you'd expect it, but where people are wearing PPE), and in schools (where you'd expect it, despite cautionary measures, and people aren't allowed to wear PPE). You might find it interesting.

Meanwhile questions that amount to 'any dead teachers yet?' are unhelpful.

I think hashtag you have a misunderstanding about unions. Heads are in NAHT or ASCL. NEU And NASUWT represent teachers. Unison works for other school staff.

It actually was meant as an apology as I've obviously offended a great many people. I generally don't intentionally mean to be unkind. You will note, I hope, that it has not been me name calling and swearing.

I thank you all for your input. I've taken on board your comments but will now hide the thread because actually, I can do without this sort of discussion, which is nothing but a pile on.

I stand by what I've said, but I'm sorry if the way I've said it has upset you all.

I am not a teacher but I don't blame the unions for getting the hump. The problem is the government doesnt bring the unions on the journey, so quite naturally they have a lot of questions. I'm no fan of unionism, but their job is to represent the interests of their members, and making sure that schools can operate safely has to be at the heart of their concerns.

When the Government brings out it's rules inappropriate few weeks' time let's hope it is the result of consultation and feasibility studies, not just a whole lot of flannel. Schools don't need to be sent over three dozen different directives all overlapping each other. It was virtually impossible to decipher from what I gather last time.

Isn't the main problem that if the Government says 2 metres distance it is very hard to get all the children back into school , if they reduce it to 1 metre it will still be hard. So normal schooling can only really take place if social distancing isn't required in schools. Has the Government said this is going to be the case in September ?

Lots of schools aren't open for all three of the expected years groups, some have remained open exclusively for keyworker and vulnerable pupils.
I think it's important to remember that we are all really frustrated and worried about this huge interruption in our kids education. We all want there to be a safe way that school is back to normal in September. The government have been a shambles on this but the lack of consistency in what schools are offering has added to parents worry. Even within schools the quality of home learning has been variable. However the buck stops with Boris.

The unions were never about providing kids with an education, the unions are not teachers

The unions initially told teachers to say they were waiting for further Union advice before engaging in further opening plans - this was in March, when the go to were pushing forwards plans and refusing to engage at all with unions - remember that the unions are the representatives of school professionals.

This was intended to apply pressure to the government. It worked.

Since seeing the evidence, every single thing the unions have done has been a practical step towards getting schools open safely.

The unions were never about providing kids with an education, the unions are not teachers

Absolute nonsense.

If general cases and deaths start to creep back up I think Unions would have to represent staff to keep them safe.

The vast majority of people going back to work have safety measure in place but they aren't allowed in schools.

People working in shops, pubs and offices will have much more protection than teachers, who have been told they cannot wear masks etc. No plastic screens, no masks, no anything.

Yes, the kids are at very low risk of severe illness but staff aren't and it's a bit unreasonable to demand teachers go back full time/take all kids in full time when parents going to work will get much better health & safety based covid measures than school staff.

Year six remains closed at the local school here, and that's not particularly unusual.

The government have been a shambles on this but the lack of consistency in what schools are offering has added to parents worry.

The lack of consistency in what schools are offering in terms of home learning is down to the DfE not actually stating any requirements and leaving schools having to make it up as they go along.

The lack of consistency in which year groups schools are open to is down to the ability of each school to open according to the government’s own guidelines. If you don’t have the teachers or space to fulfil the ‘bubbles of 15 but no rotas’ requirement after opening to keyworkers, then what can you do?

The whole shitshow is down to total incompetence on the part of the government. It has been absolutely shocking.

I think most union reps ARE teachers. And the National union leaders will have been teachers.

It’s more like 2mm to overlapping on our corridors for social distancing.

The lack of consistency in what schools are offering in terms of home learning is down to the DfE not actually stating any requirements and leaving schools having to make it up as they go along.

Noble what sort of pressures or reasoning would a school who provides very little have? If you know.

1m would mean my class of 24 could only have 16-18 back.

My Tory worshipping father in law blamed the unions for the poor take up of school places which was strange being as the schools were open and teachers were there. I’m fairly sure it was parents not sending them and not teachers not teaching.

Hairdressers = visors, just listening to Johnson

Do the same in classes