Coronovirus IS transmitted in schools

[mosquitofeast]

And lots of teachers have died

I am just clarifying this, as I don't know how many times I have read on Mumsnet that this has never happened. I don't know where this misinformation is coming from, but its rubbish

It was transmitted several hundred times in my school (secondary)before lock down. Hundreds of children and dozens of staff were affected. Some have been seriously ill and have been left with long term health problems, such as low lung capacity and loss of hearing.

I am a teacher and I was infected at school. I did not use public transport, or go into any shops or other businesses for the whole of March, and I was living alone. The only time I was in any contact with anyone else was in school

A school near us (also secondary) had to close a week before school closures were announced, as so many teachers were infected.

Thankfully, no staff or student in our school died, although several students have lost parents, and many have lost grandparents. One of my sixthformers has withdrawn her university application as her mum has lost a lung and a leg and now can't run her home and care for her younger children on her own.

However, according to the union, around 200 school staff have dies to date, so we have just been lucky so far.

So please don't repost this fake news that "no one has ever caught covid in a school" - because |I have watched it happen in front of my eyes, and experienced it myself.

@LizzieBlackwell

mosquitofeast just quit. Quit and shield. It’s the only way you are going to survive.

Oh wait you’ve already had it! Back to work then parties over...

I am not particularly concerned about myself specifically, I am concerned about the whole situation. I am concerned about the lies being told that it doesn't spread in schools.

I may resign, yes, and leave at Christmas. I have not decided yet.

@Bananabread8 of course I'm looking at it from my point of view? I can also see that children need to be at school and parents are struggling with their kids at home. But ultimately what I write or think will be shaped by my viewpoint - surely that is obvious.

If being an arse is wanting basic safety precautions in the workplace then yes I'm an arse!

Are you a teacher? Have you been in a hub?

I think they should offer teaching and school staff antibody testing to see the extent of spread in schools before lockdown. They have been offered to all NHS staff so why can't we do a similar study for education?

It wouldn't tell us anything, as in most people anti bodies become undetectable within a few months. And multiple antibody tests show no consistency in the results.

@Walkaround

Well, isn’t it just incredible that people will happily blame teenagers for causing lockdowns in Trafford or Preston, but also happily accept that this ability to transmit the virus is lost when they go to secondary school?! Coronavirus is so clever, to be so selective about where it will and won’t spread!

Weird isn’t it

I haven’t read the whole thread yet, but im fairly positive i know how its gone so far

I am happy to believe that children spread it less...maybe they do

But i don’t understand where the magic cutoff is for older teenagers

I also think that a blanket statement of ‘no child has infected a teacher’ is the stupidest thing I’ve heard during covid and there is stiff competition for that

There is no evidence...probably either way

Nobody is saying it can’t be transmitted in schools, but what is your solution, shut schools for the next 3 years?

Of course not but there ARE solutions that would keep EVERYONE safer than the "go back as though nothing has happened" which the government is going for. But it appears that no-one is willing to investigate these as it will cost money. And God forbid we spend money on education, school or kids.

BBC news. Mr Williamson also referred to the "latest research, which is expected to be published later this year - one of the largest studies on the coronavirus in schools in the world", saying it "makes it clear there is little evidence that the virus is transmitted at school".

If people were being honest, they would say, yes, coronavirus can be transmitted in schools, but it’s a risk worth taking - or “only kill Granny by going to school, but not for any other reason.”

If this was the case - several hundred times in your school - then this is huge and needs whistleblowing to your local media, with the school named so that staff, students snd parents have the information.

not quite sure what to say to this, why don't you just look it up? I don't know where it will be recorded, but many schools closed down before lock down due to mass infections in staff and students, its not particularly unusual, some were reported in the local press at the time.

Pubs are the main cause of transmission it seems currently. They should be closed at least 2 weeks before schools re-open. This will reduce the number of infections that could unknowingly be brought into schools by people without symptoms, be they parents, teachers or anyone else.

Its not children I'm concerned about, more teachers, parents and especially grandparents, given how they would be affected should they catch the virus.

As for lies, I am reminded of something (a joke) sent to me. Someone goes to the pearly gates and asks St Peter why there are so many clocks. St Peter advises these are clocks that move one second each time a person lies. St Paul's clock is at midnight, the Queen's clock has only moved a few seconds. The person asks if there is one for Boris Johnson, and St Peter points above to a clock being used as a ceiling fan.

@Trashtara

Nobody is saying it can’t be transmitted in schools, but what is your solution, shut schools for the next 3 years?

Of course not but there ARE solutions that would keep EVERYONE safer than the "go back as though nothing has happened" which the government is going for. But it appears that no-one is willing to investigate these as it will cost money. And God forbid we spend money on education, school or kids.

Slightly more from The Guardian:

believed to be a reference to a Public Health England report looking at 20,000 pupils and teachers in 100 schools across England at the end of the summer term – has shown that makes it clear “there is little evidence that the virus is transmitted at school”.

———

OK, I am trying to stay open minded about this report, but can someone explain to me how you can extrapolate about school reopenings when there were only a fraction of students attending school during the summer? Particularly in secondary schools. The data they’re using suggests that 200 pupils per school were in at the time. We know that high density is a crucial factor for spread, as well as spending more time indoors, which will be the case in the upcoming months

@mosquitofeast

If this was the case - several hundred times in your school - then this is huge and needs whistleblowing to your local media, with the school named so that staff, students snd parents have the information.

not quite sure what to say to this, why don't you just look it up? I don't know where it will be recorded, but many schools closed down before lock down due to mass infections in staff and students, its not particularly unusual, some were reported in the local press at the time.

I can't find a school named with hundreds of cases if I look it up.

As I said, I work in half a dozen secondaries in a high risk region, so am no stranger to this. But there were not hundreds of cases.

This was before lockdown?

Schools in the UK are to shut from Friday until further notice as a response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Schools will close except for looking after the children of keyworkers and vulnerable children, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said.

This academic year's exams will not go ahead in England and Wales; decisions are due to be made in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

It came as UK deaths reached 104 after a further 33 people died.

Thirty-two were in England and one in Scotland.

Confirmed cases in the UK rose to 2,626 on Wednesday, from 1,950 on Tuesday. There have been 56,221 tests carried out in the UK for Covid-19, of which 53,595 were confirmed negative.

The government says it plans to more than double the number of tests being carried out in England to 25,000 a day.

Copied above. Your school had hundreds of cases and many deaths when the overall number was that low?

@Genevieva oh dear your comments are so misguided. Herd Immunity is something that is achieved via a vaccination programme (not through thousands of deaths). It is impossible (and morally repugnant) to shield the vulnerable as they require the most interaction with high risk places.

More importantly Covid is quite indiscriminate as to who it affects badly. It isn’t just the obvious. Too little is known about it yet. Most ICU’s were full of people early 50’s.

You watch our Government say in October/November “well we opened schools but too many fat people went out, too many people went to restaurants, too many people got their haircut at the same time last Thursday. Therefore unfortunately we have an issue with spread in schools and they have unfortunately been closed in 70% of the uk”

It’s so obvious what’s unfolding 🤦🏽‍♀️

@sonicbook if you looked beyond your own opinion you would of gathered I’m not a teacher. I do however try to understand the reason for NO PPE other than money of course. I did ask this question....
I don’t think because I’m not a teacher that I can’t look at their view point as well as my own

NO my job is based on a Covid ward and I wear a blue basic mask that you can find any where.... usual latex gloves and a thin basic apron.

I also have been poorly (back in March) and I tested positive for the antibody test recently.
Since then I have been fine.

I don’t believe you.

You overshot it with before lockdown

What purpose is this imaginary situation?

Surely no school though is actually going back as if nothing has happened.

My sons primary school trust has sent out a 46 page document setting out the differences and procedures in place.

My daughters secondary as well has staggered start times etc throughout the day

Neither have lunchtime or afterschool clubs running.

Nothing is going back to how it was in March surely. The question should be is this enough. Should we be starting it with part time and some mask wearing (at least in corridors at secondary schools).

@Ethelfleda

Have nursery workers reacted the same as teachers? Just curious as I would imagine that nursery is an even more perfect environment for the spread - toddlers and babies licking each other’s toys - nappy changes - very close proximity etc etc and yet nurseries have been open since June and there has been no noticeable spike in infection due to this 🤔

Anecdotally speaking of course but our nursery had no problem opening the minute they were allowed to either - doors flung open and children welcomed back straight away...

What’s the difference?

Nursery workers generally have poor working conditions anyway - they are poorly paid, often unqualified and young, and not organised. Of course nursery workers are scared about covid but they are also scared about losing their jobs.

Plus, there's something of a difference between coming in to close contact with 8 toddlers in a nursery and 300 teenagers in a secondary school

Of course your nursery has wanted your business asap - the owner won't have been doing nappy changes or being licked by toddlers

Are you just going to look at this from your own point of view? Your being a bit of an arse

That’s really uncalled for. So fed up of people attacking posters because they can’t answer a question. Is a school with 1200 students in daily potentially more or less risky than a school with 6 kids? Or 40 kids in daily?

And once more:

NO ONE IS SAYING SCHOOLS SHOULD BE CLOSED AND CHILDREN SHOULD NOT BE EDUCATED. TEACHERS ARE ASKING FOR THE SAME SAFTEY PRECAUTIONS AFFORDED TO OTHER WORKERS SO SCHOOLS CAN STAY OPEN AND YOUR CHILDREN CAN GET AN EDUCATION.

Can anyone explain why they wouldn’t want that?

The report Williamson is referencing is based on socially distanced schools with few attending. Worth noting.

They’ll be full with no distancing nel month.

@abersoch11 totally agree indoor pubs should shut. Infection numbers were declining but now they are not and pub gatherings appear to be a common factor.

If the government was really serious about schools coming first - and I include the Scottish government in this - they'd close down the obvious transmission vector and fast. Which would also make a lot more sense than wringing their hands woefully before locking down entire cities.

We don't live in a risk-free world

And yet, shops and services have been opened with measures in place to reduce risk. Schools won’t have any measures in place to reduce risk. What measures have been put in place in your workplace?

It now presents a risk profile comparable to flu and significantly below the risk profile of commuting to work by car

nonsense, corona virus has a death rate 100x that of flu.

And I pay for a flu jab every year, as do many teachers, as I would not want to take the risk of catching flu at school or inadvertently spreading it at school

Well you were not allowed to go inside the hubs. I sat in the entrance on a couple of occasions. Again this was back when no testing was available... I only went to my child’s hub but they did merge 3 schools together in 1.

If any of the hubs had children dying across the country not just YOUR hub Or MINE we would of known about it this was not the case at all. @sonicbook

I agree about pubs too. I’d feel a lot better about schools opening if a quarter of dc’s class weren’t in the pub every week some multiple times