Are we a couple of weeks behind Spain and France?

[BKCRMP]

If Spain is v.likely in a second wave and France not far behind them does that mean we are also heading straight in to one again?

Will schools open regardless this September?

@AlecTrevelyan006

so long as the NHS is not overrun then we should just carry on

covid is not going away - we have to live with it

flatten the curve

Hope you still think that way when it’s someone close to you in ICU 🙄

Exactly what I wondered today. When's this ending

I'm interested in the role air conditioning plays in this, since the virus (like many others) thrives at low temperatures. In many areas of Europe the temperatures is higher than UK and a lot more buildings are air conditioned. Will this make a difference to our situation this summer?

@Helloitsmemargaret

Why is there such a rush to shut schools? Surely everything - pubs, restaurants, gyms, non essential shops should shut so that schools could stay open? The risk to children by not being in school is enormous. The risk of not going to a pub? Not so much 🤨

If you read the recent research from S Korea kids 10-19 biggest vectors but then reasoning is I guess schools don’t help the economy (apart from mobilising workforce)

No it will be handled on a local basis.schools will re open.

Our secondary school has so many plans in place with students being in bubbles, not moving around the building, gel on way in, not changing for pe etc which I am sure will be same in many other schools. Stop panicking people - and don’t forgot our fatality numbers are DOWN on average at the moment

Schools reopening don’t help the economy? What a bonkers thing to say, it prevents a great deal of parents from returning to work. Potentially South Korea has less dual working families

@Oaktree55

I’d imagine that a lot if the spread at Cheltenham was in the bars.

Exactly, so there were no controls in place, viral load outside was high with everyone milling around, none the wiser. Our country has had to do things differently.

Look at the progress made to date, the awareness campaigns , what we now know, and even what our children know (they will pick things up and adapt way more quickly than their parents in a lot of cases!) and yes a lot of people have had to be dragged kicking and screaming to the realities of living in these times, but things are changing every day.

The numbers in that cohort were not statistically significant @Oaktree55

It's clear that primary schools are not a driver in the spread. It's not yet clear if secondary schools are. Pubs/bars are - the US evidence shows that clearly.

Nightclubs are particularly bad, indoor crowd and I doubt SD (?). Dancing which raises breathing

I'm gonna go fucking insane reading this hysterical shite. Goodbye Mumsnet. Will return when the pandemic is over and sanity returns

If there is a second wave (and I don’t think it’s a given that we are weeks behind Spain and France, their reopening has been a bit different and more aggressive, eg nightclubs) then I really hope that schools and children are prioritised this time. For example, outdoor playgrounds being closed personally infuriated me as it was clear from quite early on that there was very little risk associated with these. And yet in many areas they’re still locked up all while people get on planes and go to the pub. I realise children’s well-being makes no contribution to the economy but I don’t believe squashing a Covid pandemic and replacing it with a child (and working parent) mental health crisis is an appropriate trade off.

Secondary schools will be in bubbles of 200+ inside, less than 2m distance. Masks are necessary if you want to avoid shutdowns.

The schools go back in Scotland in approx 3weeks so I think those of you in England will get a better idea then what that might do to your numbers

At the moment we are in a pretty good place with less than 18 infections a day on average and we have had a total of 8 deaths in the whole of July

I think if we see a big jump then its time to worry about the schools in England

@Newgirls

Our secondary school has so many plans in place with students being in bubbles, not moving around the building, gel on way in, not changing for pe etc which I am sure will be same in many other schools. Stop panicking people - and don’t forgot our fatality numbers are DOWN on average at the moment

Good Lord I take it you’re not a teacher of science? How will the ever cross contaminating bubbles help with aerosol spread which is infectious for over an hour? Are they eating a packed lunch at their desks? Do they have separate loos?

Do people actually think teenagers wearing masks for 6 hours a day is actually viable? My DS age 12 could barely cope with wearing one for 10 minutes in a shop today and returned to the car as he hated it so much. He's a good kid and pretty compliant.

I'm gonna go fucking insane reading this hysterical shite. Goodbye Mumsnet. Will return when the pandemic is over and sanity returns
That's how I feel. Poor school kids and young people

The kids wear masks in schools in many other countries so yes.

@musicposy

Could the Zoe app be of use with track and trace? It's so easy and quick to use. I don't know why it's not being promoted by the government.

I believe they offered it to the government but were turned down as the government said they were working on their own app (which cost a fortune only to then be ditched).

You couldn’t make it up.

Yes, this was my understanding too, but I also think the Zoe app is very different - it doesn't collect data on your contacts and behaviour, which is the big privacy issue. It would need a lot of development I imagine.

I teach FE in England. Large classes of over 16s. Most of which are part time employed on health and social care placements. Can't see how social distancing possible.
Also because I live in Wales, I can't sign up for track and trace as it checks you are registered with English GP.
Frankly very worried about returning to work in August. We have been told not to use PPE except for first aid. 🥺

@Helloitismemargaret Why should there be any difference between primary and secondary schools? To me the amount of contact is quite the same? And actually older children/ teenagers will comply better as they do understand the issue better than little ones

Why is there such a rush to shut schools? Surely everything - pubs, restaurants, gyms, non essential shops should shut so that schools could stay open? The risk to children by not being in school is enormous. The risk of not going to a pub? Not so much 🤨

This with bells on. I am so angry that golf courses, pubs and gyms are open before schools. Surely our societal priorities should be something like:

Food
Shelter
Electric/gas/internet
Care/NHS
Government/local authorities
Education
Clothing stores

Not bloody pubs and holidays to Spain.

Fully agree with you flowerycurtain

I also think when we are talking about schools, we should look at the infection rate (R number, reproductive number) as opposed to fatalities. If opening the schools increases the R number dramatically, then as a society we will need to think seriously about what needs to be done to protect the population in general.

We know that kids can be vectors of Covid as they don't generally have severe symptoms but they can still pass the illness on (to other kids, teachers and family members). I think we will see lots of start/stop in schools and as parents, we should be prepared that some 'bubbles' will close down or schools will close down regionally, as outbreaks take place. But I don't think all schools will close down again as they did this academic year.

I’m not quite sure why some people have such a tough time with reality. We’re facing the biggest health and economic crisis the world has faced for 100 years yet everyone thinks it’ll be back to normal September. We’re all going to have to adapt. There will be lots of positives to come from this eventually but we’re in for a tough few years. There’s a lot that kids can learn from this and lots of positives too. It’s not negative to be a realist and there are plenty of adaptations we can all make. The Education Sector will change as a result of this and that may not be a bad thing.