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 One of my sixthformers has withdrawn her university application as her mum has lost a lung and a leg and now can't run her home and care for her younger children on her own.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.

Why wasn’t there a spike 3 Weeks after kids went back in June?

With so few kids in, my (secondary) school was able to give them loads of room by using only the very largest spaces (including the hall) for teaching.

There was plenty of time for them to wash their hands on the way in, and use hand sanitiser regularly. Only one student at a time was allowed to use the toilets.

There was also a high enough staff/student ratio to monitor them at all times.

None of this will be the case in September.

Why wasn’t there a spike 3 Weeks after kids went back in June?

My secondary children went back in really small bubbles of 6 or 7 sat at single desks (same one throughout) and 2 metres from the teachers. No mixing between bubbles and frequent hand washing & sanitiser etc. The behaviour policy was tightened and any pupil breaking the rules deliberately would be sent home.

Why wasn’t there a spike 3 Weeks after kids went back in June?

Only 25% of y10 and y12 could be in the building on any one day.

Our school is 240 per year so 1680 students total. 25% of y10 and y12 is 120 kids so less than 10% of the school population.
Assuming 32 kids in a class (to make the maths easier!) no class was bigger than 8 students.

@OverTheRainbow88

Why wasn’t there a spike 3 Weeks after kids went back in June?

Every morning I saw 100s of kids walking to school; mine went back- their classes/groups were full.

Yet in the local news I didn’t see one story about covid in a local school amongst kids or staff.... ok I lie one sxhool about 45 min away was closed one day for a deep clean as A kids parent was covid positive

When mine went back in June, one was in a class of 7 and one in a class of 10. Only two days a week, no mixing with other classes, strict 2m distancing from each other.

www.standard.co.uk/news/education/belfast-royal-academy-ban-pupils-face-mask-a4521961.html

Grammar school Belfast Royal Academy ‘to ban pupils not wearing face masks from classroom'

At least some schools are taking common sense Covid health and safety seriously despite possibly being in a relatively lower Covid region of the UK.

Has anyone seen this in Thailand?

www.standard.co.uk/news/world/thai-nursery-school-pupils-perspex-boxes-coronavirus-a4521146.html

And parents are complaining about masks in this country @canigooutyet

[quote canigooutyet]Has anyone seen this in Thailand?

www.standard.co.uk/news/world/thai-nursery-school-pupils-perspex-boxes-coronavirus-a4521146.html[/quote]
And we have hand washing .....

I know people post in horror at any plastic / Perspex screen on here. But if they put that here, fine.

@KatySun

DDraigGoch i presume you have been in your customer facing role with adequate PPE and/or social distancing. This is not the situation in schools so you are not comparing like with like. I am not a teacher by the way.

No, and no.

@walksen

"Now we find ourselves dealing with thousands of people who are packing themselves in to go to the bloody beach. No social distancing at all, completely flouting rules on mask wearing etc.

Lots of people flouted SD rules outside for beaches BLM etc. All that has shown far is it is difficult to catch outdoors (in summer at least).

Greater Manchester and the northwest have produced tangible evidence it spreads easily inside when social distancing isn't possiblee/followed.

And unless all those people at the beach were teachers I don't see how that makes them unworthy to SD or ppe themselves like everyone else.

Last time I checked, public transport was a pretty confined space.

Yes hand washing a flight of stairs down in most schools in the UK. Do some still have toilet blocks outside the school building?

Visited a school a few years ago and completely forgotten about them from my old school days. But then doh of course, the school didn't have the money or even the space to magic them into the building.

Schools can try and stagger various times as much as they want. If the government still try and insist everyone will be fine and no masks are needed. The bubbles will explode during the first mandatory fire drill. It's been a long time and will need to be done asap.

Your "save" one way systems around the school. Gone. Using different exits for different year groups. Gone. Your meeting points for your staggered starters, gone.

Anyone like to explain this logic to your typical kid from what year 5 onwards?

Any parents got any ideas they would like to share about how they are dealing with the questions from our kids about these blatant inconsistencies?

My youngest hasn't believed in the magic of rainbow food for reindeers, the magic of fairy dust or the magic of Hogwarts for years.

We have an open honest policy here and at the moment all I have is I haven't got a clue, if you manage to find the answer, let me know and I will share. He was there like many were when this was going in schools. He reads the news. He is concerned about his future not only the education fiasco but the debt his generation will be left to pay and not of it so far has been to his benefit. Many of his peers have similar thoughts.

My concern with enforced face masks is that some schools will see the financial benefits to them and introduce expensive logo'd ones in school colours only. At the moment the school in Belfast can give reusable
ones for free in the school colours, but realistically how long are they going to be able to finance this on top of everything else?

We will have handwashing facilities. 300 kids will share one block's loos, so that's a small bathroom for 150 kids, roughly. They won't have extra time to do handwashing, so it won't be encouraged at all, and there won't be time for all kids to do this anyway, even if it was encouraged.

No social distancing possible either. You can't call 300 kids a bubble, that's ridiculous.

The latest science (not this much rumoured study that we can only see later in the year...) says kids 11+ spread it as much as adults.

If we go out and can't social distance we have to wear a mask, incase we spread it.

But not in schools.

An infuriating lack of logic that will see the cases spiral within weeks in schools as they already have in some areas after pubs opened.

Why can't our children have the option to part time learn at home if they are able to - reducing the numbers in school will protect staff and families alike.

[quote IncidentsandAccidents]@OpheliasCrayon I'm very glad that there are teachers like you speaking out for the most vulnerable children in our society (who could lose so much it hardly bears thinking about).[/quote]
Are they speaking for the most vulnerable? What about the clinically extremely vulnerable children - they're expected to go back, no allowances made. How about children who have an extremely vulnerable sibling or parent?

Let's consider the vulnerable children that pp is referring to - what happens if they contract Covid in school and take it home and inf

@Dakiara there should be the option for parents. Eventually there will be because in those areas that see high numbers a lot of parents who sit middle of the road will remove kids. This will happen when kids at school get ill/relatives of kids at school are severely affected. There are many parents that sit in the middle, who will give school a go but the minute their school/area has issues they will keep kids home. Resulting in a likely patchy attendance and education for those remaining.

The sustainable way forward is not forcing school as normal. What we are attempting is unsustainable and detrimental in the medium term.

@Oaktree55

I really hope that things change as to the governmental policies before September. A large scale blanket policy isn't the way to deal with this, but education is so prescribed now that any lack of cover of the stated curriculum is seen as utter failure within the system.

Personally we'll be doing just as you suspect many parents will do. When the local numbers rise, we will withdraw our kids from school. We are lucky to be able to consider this as an option and though it will be hard, I am confident I can home educate should it become necessary. If those like me are given flexibility to do this, numbers at school can be drastically reduced. Thus school environments will be made safer for those who can't keep their kids at home if it becomes necessary, or perhaps even preferable, to do so.

@OpheliasCrayon

To be perfectly honest, it's nothing to do with whether I'm nice or not. I don't care what people think lf they don't know me. Also I didn't refuse to shield it's never been mandatory. I can do as I wish

However the reason I reply so vociferously on Mumsnet is I am just constantly horrified by the scaremongering and potentially damaging threads whereby everyone whips everyone up into a frenzy. And then the outcome is, that people are scared to send their kids to school ...and the most vulnerable students (who I teach by the way ) aren't there when they should be.

In real life I am very tolerant. I follow the guidelines, cover my face, keep distance etc etc and wouldn't put people at risk. I make my own choices for my family and they're in line with other consenting friends (who my kids have been at school with ).

However the reason I reply like I do - is that I feel incredibly strongly about the often ludicrous scaremongering.

If there are vulnerable children (proven by medical staff) no of course, I respect parents don't need to send kids in. If there are extremely vulnerable parents (again proven) I respect that.

But the vast majority of children need to be in school. And have to be in school. And should be subject to being penalised as a family of they are not in school as per the rules as they stand.

Corona is one virus which for the majority is not a massive risk but, the risk of children not being school is much bigger.

Posts like this and the scores and scores of panicking threads on here distort what people think, make them afraid and then THAT is putting children at risk for missing out on education.

So no, I'm not a horrible person and I respect the views of those in my life and strangers who I come across in person, and I don't risk anyone, BUT I think a lot of the things on here are very very disproportionate. And, as someone who works with the most vulnerable , I hate the fact that people online can potentially impact their right to an education.

Thank you for posting. I truly believe the majority of teachers feel the same/similar. Certainly the ones I know

There are about 5 teachers who post very frequently and aggressively with agendas which are not in the best interests of the education of children.

I am grateful to them in many respects as the more they shout down other posters and the more they make increasingly ludicrous claims, the less public support there will be for their agenda.

I appreciate non-scaremongering posts more than the opposite. Especially from teachers.

There’s been one supposed teacher talking up extremes which doesn’t do anyone any favours.

@Hearhoovesthinkzebras I completely agree that families with clinically extremely vulnerable children or other household members should be excepted and should be allowed to make their own choice in September.

The reports from gov including the outbreaks in schools increased every week from the May half term. Actually increasing despite general infections going down. It would have kept on rising but for summer holidays.
In fact as several Leicester schools had cases and shut that may have contributed to their issues.
Aside from herd immunity (of the dc) i just do not see a reason for 2 cases before closure of a bubble.

Especially secondary as they have to admit they transmit it.
If secondary dont do blended 15 per class i think it is highly unlikely certainky in towns for kids to make it to xmas.
Parents getting at work
In the pub
Days out
Kids meeting up
Links to other schools
Day trips
Clubs running

Each child in primary must then have
30 classmates
0+ siblings so other links to preschool/secondary etc/SEN schools
1-2 parents
Swimming lessons/ballet/scouts
Parties..

This is why even at primary contacts in school should be limited. Not making bubbles of year groups.

Possibly gov assumed the numbers would dropover summer like swine flu so it would seem ok.
If people want schools then after school stuff might need to be dropped.

@askmehowiknow. I’m intrigued to hear what you think the agenda of those who follow basic maths, science and preempt the likely situation the majority of U.K. schools will be in come winter is? Personally I think they are using their common sense to try and find a better sustainable way forward.! What could their secret agenda be that you are so confidently aware of?

I think if you have a vulnerable child or adult in the home then it should be down to the individual patent to decide.

However this could be around a very long time and I know not every one will take the vaccine so I think a lot of children will be deregistering.

I propose that statistically the children vulnerable (not health) are more likely to be in towns and cities as higher population so they are at high risk of family catching it but also school closure due to cases. So getting very disrupted education which would be worse than online especially. for exam years.

[quote IncidentsandAccidents]@Hearhoovesthinkzebras I completely agree that families with clinically extremely vulnerable children or other household members should be excepted and should be allowed to make their own choice in September.[/quote]
Well they aren't and that's part of what teachers are complaining about. Government has said "all back in September, no exceptions, no protection".

"Last time I checked, public transport was a pretty confined space"

Where by law masks have to be worn, numbers getting on can and should be limited by your employer and the driver has a screen separating them from passengers, not everyone has to according to the government, face you. Most passengers stand well back from the driver space even before covid.