The government is trying to make you think schools will be socially distanced

[noblegiraffe]

The government are currently running a (well publicised) propaganda campaign to say that schools are safe. They are using social media influencers, journalists and friendly scientists (firmly ignoring any unfriendly ones like the Royal Society). Branwen Jefferys of the BBC tweeted “So how high is government anxiety about school return? A PR company acting on behalf of the Cabinet office is now emailing media offering experts to support the “messaging”. Strange way to approach news journalists ..”

And just about every news outlet running stories about schools seems to be rotating stock footage of half empty classrooms with teachers miles away from the kids. There have even been photos of kids getting temperature checks (not allowed). I was watching Sky news where a commentator was saying how awful it was that kids would be sent back to socially distanced schools. The PM gave a rambling speech to carefully spaced kids in a library. And in a visit to a classroom it’s clear that the kids were all shoved down one end in order to give some lovely spaced kids at the other end for the PM to pose in front of.
metro.co.uk/2020/08/27/boris-johnson-staged-school-visit-social-distancing-13188600/

Matt Hancock was on the news saying it was really important for teachers to stay 2m from the kids to avoid spreading the virus between all the bubbles they’ll be working in, despite knowing that this will be utterly and hopelessly impossible.

Why are the government lying? Why are they sending the ‘right’ experts to the press? Why are kids being spread out for staged photo shoots instead of honest pictures?

And why are the press largely going along with it?

Schools are going back, in a lot of cases to an estate that is unfit for purpose. Old buildings, no ventilation, large class sizes. Pupils will be crammed in facing a teacher who won’t be able to stand 2m from them. If it’s so safe, why aren’t they showing and acknowledging the reality?

YABU: what they are doing is fine and there are perfectly reasonable explanations for all the suggestions of socially distanced classrooms and schools in the media

YANBU: the lying liars are lying to us again

The most important thing a government needs, when dealing with an outbreak, is the trust of its populace. We have seen this over numerous occasions with Ebola outbreaks in Africa. Unfortunately, having lost the faith of the English population, our government is now trying to win it back with more lies.

It didn't need to be this way. We could have had politicians who spoke to us honestly and like adults, as Merkel did in Germany. Of course, in order to get that, we would have needed to vote for someone with integrity.

Do people really expect schools to be 'covid secure'? How on earth would that work?
I don't expect schools to be Covid secure, but I do expect them (like any other organisation) to have a reasonable amount of health and safety in place that's appropriate.

For example, I don't accept that it's reasonable to have 32 children in a poorly ventilated classroom designed for 28, nor do I accept the virus is clever enough to know what schools are and be considerate enough not to spread in the way that seems to be accepted in other workplaces.

Giraffe comes across to me as far less hysterical and upset than lots of her detractors to be honest.

Yes noble - a Union - presumably you are already a member of one. What are they advising you to do?

I assumed noble was the union rep - she doesn't strike me as the nervous type.

@Kaktus

I never voted for the charlatans in charge, maybe that’s why I have no expectation of them dealing with any of this shit show in an honest and trustworthy manner. I get my information directly from the source, I don’t trust that any of the bullshit propaganda they show on the BBC news is in any way representative of the actual situation. That applies to many things, not just schools and Covid. People know that their kids are travelling to school on public transport. They know that the kids at school have siblings. They know that teachers will be teaching multiple classes. Therefore they should be able to extrapolate from that that the bubble concept is bollocks (particularly at secondary schools) regardless of what the government is telling them.

Do you think it would be better if they weren't doing it this way though?

I do wish we had just normal levels of government bullshit, it's too much now!

The most important thing a government needs, when dealing with an outbreak, is the trust of its populace.

Indeed. This morally bankrupt shower lost control over the Barnard Castle affair. People had been willing to give them a go up till then.

What the £80 per pupil catch up funding, that will pay for a laptop!

Pupil Premium already budgeted for.

Why can't you answer the question why the Government didn't provide all requested, or say to the media that actually they weren't going to provide to all pupils in need, just a few? Follows on what the OP is about, misleading the public.

In the local MAT it is across all year groups and all schools both Primary and Secondary.

Did the Government provide laptops to their employees WFH?

Of course I think it would be better if they weren’t doing it that way. But if people think this situation is the only one that they’re using propaganda for to push their agenda then they’re very much mistaken. It happens all the time.
I’m surprised that any parents wouldn’t be able to figure out for themselves that the bubble system is essentially bollocks, despite what the media are telling us.

Once someone questions the mental health of the op, even with a tilted head, they've basically lost the argument.

There’s always going to be holes in information - but at the end it’s either compulsory return to school or de-register and long term home school, alone or with help from private tutors. If homeschooling isn’t an option for people based on their personal situations then the law is going to require you to send your children to school, just as it does when norovirus and every other nasty lurgie is doing the rounds and regardless of what information you have and whether people like it or not, same as with the workforce generally.

Given that rebuilding every school to have enough space for social distancing would cost billions, I assume you're chomping at the bit to pay more taxes? No? Pray tell what you suggest happens then.

@Clavinova

Yes noble - a Union - presumably you are already a member of one. What are they advising you to do?

I assumed noble was the union rep - she doesn't strike me as the nervous type.

I'm actually going to take that as a compliment from you, Clav!

And totally agree that if anyone thinks social distancing is going to be happening in schools they are very naive

Do people remember when the Tory government rebranded its Twitter feed to "FactcheckUK" during the general election? And when a website was put up with a fake Labour manifesto? The company behind that was Topham Guerin. They have been given, without tender, a £3 million contract to aid with Coronavirus messaging. This is the level of propoganda this government sinks to.

www.theguardian.com/politics/2020/aug/03/topham-guerin-pr-firm-covid-19-contract-conservative-party

I do not like dishonest people and I do not like their corruption of democracy. I especially hate how we all just shrug and look the other way.

This government have spent more money on propaganda about schools than they have on making schools safe.

@LolaSmiles

Do people really expect schools to be 'covid secure'? How on earth would that work? I don't expect schools to be Covid secure, but I do expect them (like any other organisation) to have a reasonable amount of health and safety in place that's appropriate.

For example, I don't accept that it's reasonable to have 32 children in a poorly ventilated classroom designed for 28, nor do I accept the virus is clever enough to know what schools are and be considerate enough not to spread in the way that seems to be accepted in other workplaces.

From January to March of this year (and very likely earlier) covid was spreading uncontrolled. Schools had no social distancing, no extra handwashing, nothing. It was noticed by some that a nasty illness was going around but on the whole nothing major happened. It was only when China pointed out a new virus had been identified that testing started and it was found - before that it spread mostly unnoticed. Who knows how many people had it in that time - possibly thousands. Now, we're aware of it, there's improved hygiene and good testing. So the situation is better.

For the vast majority of people the risk is very low, even with no social distancing at all. It does no harm to try to reduce that risk even further, but it doesn't make sense to disrupt everyone's lives completely and deny children an education.

I wish people would get it into their heads that there isn't a massive and deadly threat just waiting to get them.

@Tootletum

Given that rebuilding every school to have enough space for social distancing would cost billions, I assume you're chomping at the bit to pay more taxes? No? Pray tell what you suggest happens then.

I'd pay more taxes to improve education. Wouldn't you?

I'd also look very closely at people and companies who are dodging their tax bill. Money to be found there, I think.

In the local MAT it is across all year groups and all schools both Primary and Secondary.

You still haven't said how many pupils need laptops in your MAT - 20 pupils, 200 pupils? Not all year groups were included in the scheme.

Pupil Premium already budgeted for.
Personally I would have reallocated some of the money.

I'm actually going to take that as a compliment from you, Clav!

I agree with @noblegiraffe . I the reality of the school environment compared to what is being sold to the public are two different things. I think they need to be open but I don't appreciate the deceit. If it's as safe as they say, there should be no reason to lie.

@TheDailyCarbuncle yep that's the real problem. Not massively harmful virus for general population, but needed the fear factor to protect older people. Now too late to have any credibility on how dangerous it isnt, and everyone believes they'll be struck down...

@Nellodee

This government have spent more money on propaganda about schools than they have on making schools safe.

Yes, quite.

Which tells you who they care about - themselves.

[quote Tootletum]@TheDailyCarbuncle yep that's the real problem. Not massively harmful virus for general population, but needed the fear factor to protect older people. Now too late to have any credibility on how dangerous it isnt, and everyone believes they'll be struck down...[/quote]
Exactly. It's really awful IMO that healthy people in their 30s and 40s are genuinely terrified of a virus that they may already have had without even noticing. I totally agree with trying to prevent more vulnerable people from getting the virus but the fact remains that even a 90+ year old with multiple health problems has a better than 85% chance of surviving covid. If you're in your 30s/40s your chances of surviving are very close to 100% - as in, you're almost guaranteed to survive. Yes, some people have long term issues, but that is true of every single virus in the whole world. Sometimes when your immune system fights an illness things go wrong. That's always been the case, but people act as if covid is the first and only virus to ever cause problems.

The misinformation and the scare mongering have been horrendous.

Ok, let's assume the thesis that government massively oversold lockdown and we're now all petrified of a minor illness and need to be lied at to get back to normal.

How does that explain what is going on in the rest of the world? Schools opening and closing all over the place. Kids behind screens wearing masks or being offered the option of remote schooling for a year.

Are you suggesting that the entire world was convinced by Boris's ' Stay home' message?

I’m so tired of the endless whinging.

It is what it is, there is risk but we all have to start living our lives.