Four days in and a school with pupils with COVID.

[Roxburgh]

www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/coronavirus-cluster-linked-glasgow-school-22511547

Fortunately at the minute pupils with mild symptoms but I think an early sign of what is to come around a 'stop - start' Autumn term for school closure and for pupils having to stay at home.

The more interesting one to me is the school in Peterhead which closed due to one (now two) staff members testing positive.

No pupils had been at the school yet, as it was shut due to bad weather yesterday (first day back). However, it is closed because a large proportion of the staff are now self isolating.

Does this mean it will be shut for 14 days? Will teachers be able to avoid contact with each other sufficiently that this won't happen in every school where a staff member tests positive?

@CaptainMerica yes I wonder how many staff are isolating for the school to be closed for the rest of the week? I wonder if the staff had been in for an inset day or had they met outside school? Lots of questions???

A further 3 cases from the high school have been confirmed today, making 11 from the school.
Did those 3 attend school today, it doesn't say. Not promising though, is it?

Link

Really, REALLY crappy reporting - the school in question had NOTHING to do with how/where/when the kids in question acquired the virus

The Briefing Room on R4 just now had an interview with a Prof from Sweden talking about their experience (schools only closed in Sweden for the > 14s). Teachers had no more occupational risk than any other occupational group under their control measures that allowed schools to stay open. Also mentioned the stats for severity of illness in Swedish children (very low severity).

Very good if that experience can be replicated in UK. I am Xing fingers hoping for best.

I think the papers are outrageous for having worded the article like this. Total scaremongering

To be fair, it's the Daily Record who are notoriously anti-independence and take any opportunity to take a pop at the SNP/Nicola Sturgeon.

@SengaStrawberry

For a start, it’s not “four days in”. Most schools only started going back yesterday. Many aren’t going to have all kids in til next week. Secondly, they did not get the virus at school, nor has it spread there. They were hanging out in the holidays together and have not returned to school. What it does clearly show though is that teenagers spread the virus and that behaviours outside school have an impact. Not sure why the disaster mongers are frothing about it. We’re always going to have outbreaks in schools. Overall cases in Scotland are very low. Time to bite the bullet and deal with outbreaks as they arise.

This

Some posters seem to love the drama don’t they. Of course there will be more cases but we have to live with this and closing schools is not the solution.

Not only a totally misleading headline but they couldn't even get the name of the suburb correct, it's Baillieston not Ballieston! It's not particularly an area of deprivation or one with a high percentage ethnic minority population either.

@lljkk how do you think that experience will be replicated in the UK, given we are sending young people over 14 back in, without masks and with no social distancing?

Swedish schools have no masks and no social distancing.
They made a point of keeping the class sizes the same as normal.

I would have liked to hear about their > 14s plans.
There's nothing magical about turning 14 that makes the risk bracket skyrocket for everyone present.

A further 3 cases from the high school have been confirmed today, making 11 from the school.
Did those 3 attend school today, it doesn't say. Not promising though, is it

Shows how this will spread amongst teens, whether in school or out together. If it spreads to 11 out of school, god help us when they are in bubbles of 240, travelling on buses with pupils from other schools, 30 to a classroom and moving around school.

Same with staff at the other school. In March it was lack of staff that made continuing to keep schools fully open, difficult. How is it going to be different this time around?

My friend who teaches in a secondary school told me she has had several pupils tell her that they have family with confirmed Covid at home, but were told to go to school and not say anything. (We’re in Aberdeen with a local lockdown due to an outbreak, but this school is outside the city boundaries.)

Easily fixed by sending them straight home again. Idiots if true.