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Anyone not sending there kids back to school

259 replies

Kmx123 · 29/08/2020 12:32

Majority of posts i have seen are kids have to go back to school now Ect
But
Is there anyone keeping there kids off school for longer and what are your reasons its not a judgemental thread
I think every parent has the same worries risk to them/grandparents/teachers numbers going up
A friend has told me there keeping theres off until Christmas and if they need to deregistering and said there kids have thrived being at home they are both working from home also and have 3 kids
Is anyone planning on keeping them off for a few weeks to see how it goes
Or are most people against these ideas
I have a 4 year old starting reception going in to a large school with 800 pupils in london a few people have said to me to defer him he is a summer born so is not 5 until the end of next july i am in two minds of what to do is anyone in a similar situation what have they decided

OP posts:
Vinoonasunnyday · 30/08/2020 15:40

I think the point is that many unhealthy and at risk people die of complications such as flu every day and we don’t lockdown the entire country to stop it

So many kids have been killed by their parents the last month already and almost all linked to lockdown stress

Do we not care about them or don’t they count?

Oldbagface · 30/08/2020 15:42

Ah yes @Shitfuckoh my Ds is Sen. He's done well during this period too. His mental health has really improved and he has told me himself he prefers to learn at home.

I have heard many sn parents day the same.

Oldbagface · 30/08/2020 15:44

*say

latticechaos · 30/08/2020 15:48

@Vinoonasunnyday

I think the point is that many unhealthy and at risk people die of complications such as flu every day and we don’t lockdown the entire country to stop it

So many kids have been killed by their parents the last month already and almost all linked to lockdown stress

Do we not care about them or don’t they count?

Of course they count, and the government should be protecting them.

What the fuck does a family happily home educate have to do with that?

Don't blame decent parents for problems in other people's homes.

Shitfuckoh · 30/08/2020 15:51

@Oldbagface

Ah yes *@Shitfuckoh* my Ds is Sen. He's done well during this period too. His mental health has really improved and he has told me himself he prefers to learn at home.

I have heard many sn parents day the same.

Mine wasn't impressed to learn school is starting back. He had quite a few questions about it and then his final point was he'd like to go back next year! His school haven't been the best at understanding but have arranged staggered starts (for all the school). It's a case of see how it goes here but I'd be making a different decision if any of us were (known) medically vulnerable.
Time2change2 · 30/08/2020 15:53

If you defer for a year can your child start reception or do they then have to go straight into Y1? I would never want my child to miss The reception year. It’s so important and all the other kids in the year will have a huge advantage and this gap most likely will never close

Shitfuckoh · 30/08/2020 15:55

@Vinoonasunnyday

I think the point is that many unhealthy and at risk people die of complications such as flu every day and we don’t lockdown the entire country to stop it

So many kids have been killed by their parents the last month already and almost all linked to lockdown stress

Do we not care about them or don’t they count?

I'm not meaning to sound insensitive here - of course they count but I struggle to see what exactly that has to do with people who can & are able to educate their children at home?

The ones doing the best for their family aren't to blame for abusive parents - none of us caused this lockdown nor did we make another parent kill their child(ren).
Aren't we all just doing what we think is best for ours? I've made a different decision to some here (all be it reluctantly) when it comes to my school age children (I will be keeping my preschool age child at home though) but that does not give me to right to judge their decision.

Alex50 · 30/08/2020 15:56

@MilesJuppIsMyBitch I have read the link you posted but it is for shielding individuals, what if you are not shielding and don’t want to de register, what happens? How do you go about it, could you be fined for not sending your children to school?

Shockingstocking · 30/08/2020 16:00

So many kids have been killed by their parents the last month already and almost all linked to lockdown stress

If someone can't help killing their child without the benefit of daily school, they shouldn't have them at home in the first place. That's an SS matter, not education.

Alex It's polite to say thanks or acknowledge when someone answers your question. Not respond with a series of curt questions.

Alex50 · 30/08/2020 16:02

I’m sorry to sound curt, just would like some answers? No one seems able to answer my questions Confused

Pinkflipflop85 · 30/08/2020 16:06

@Alex50 yes, you could be fined for not sending your child to school.

Alex50 · 30/08/2020 16:10

@Pinkflipflop85 thank you so much for your reply, so just to clarify you can only officially take your children out of school and not de register and home school if you have a consultant (medical) letter or you will be fined?

Shockingstocking · 30/08/2020 16:11

Speak to the school and see what they say, Alex. I don't think there's a standard procedure yet except maybe fines as usual but explain your reasoning to the school as a starting point.

RockPaperScissorLizardSpock · 30/08/2020 16:17

Joining the conversation a little late, but here are my thoughts...
If someone asked you to go and walk around in a poorly ventilated room with around 200 people, shoulder to shoulder, no mask, I expect very few of you would be willing to consider it. So, why is it acceptable for us to put our children/teaching staff in this EXACT scenario? We social distance/wear masks in shops, so why is it suddenly ok for these safety measures to be abandoned?!
Sadly, I no longer trust what the government are telling us about how safe schools are.

Although I’m not worried about my children contracting the virus, I don’t want my husband or I to get it. Why risk it? Waiting to hear back from one of the schools but may well have to de-register.

hopsalong · 30/08/2020 16:17

I don't want to annoy you, and entirely understand why you would make mistakes in a language that isn't your first, especially if you have dyslexia in addition. But if you don't send your child to school you would need to home school, and so the 'situation' depends, in part, on whether you're able to do that.

I write very quickly on Mumsnet and often make typos. But I'm bothered by a thread title that contains the phrase 'there kids' along with a question about education, followed by a post that entirely discards punctuation, uses incorrect capitalisation ('i'), and contains further grammatical errors (it ought to be 'they're' contracted for 'they are' in the phrase 'there keeping'), spelling mistakes, incorrect acronyms ('etc' not 'ect', and English not being your first language doesn't excuse that one!). My primitive response is a kind of silent inward scream of 'get thee to a school!' And there's a suspicion in my mind, even in the case of a second language learner (because I know I wouldn't make all of those mistakes in French or German or Italian, languages that I don't speak well at all) that the writer undervalues education. Is this unjust? Possibly. But, realistically, I think you need to recognise that many people in our society care a lot about these things. If you are dyslexic (so am I), it isn't a licence to ignore all the rules of conventional written English; it means you have to work harder than other people to get it right.

Either way, the fact remains that your child has more to lose from not going to school than many others because you don't have the level of written English required to home school effectively. (My son who is about to start year 1 makes the 'there' / 'their' mistake, but soon I hope that he won't. He does use basic punctuation.) Of course this is no reflection on your intelligence or capacity for teaching other subjects.

If you are clinically vulnerable then your child also has more to lose from going than other children, so it might still make sense to keep him off.

We all have cost/benefit analyses to make. For some parents, school is necessary to keep both parents in work and able to pay the mortgage / keep afloat. Some people were already homeschooling. A family where one parent works as a nurse in a hospital is unlikely to be increasing the risk to their family (or wider set of friends) very much by sending the children back to school.

I would send him.

latticechaos · 30/08/2020 16:25

[quote Alex50]@Pinkflipflop85 thank you so much for your reply, so just to clarify you can only officially take your children out of school and not de register and home school if you have a consultant (medical) letter or you will be fined?[/quote]
See what statements have been made by your local authority. In England there have been a variety of statements now, some councils saying they will only fine as last resort etc.

The legal threat of fines remains. I wonder if there will be a challenge by someone somewhere. Due to exceptional circs.

So stupid and counter productive fining parents at this time. Wales are doing this right.

MilesJuppIsMyBitch · 30/08/2020 16:30

[quote Alex50]@MilesJuppIsMyBitch I have read the link you posted but it is for shielding individuals, what if you are not shielding and don’t want to de register, what happens? How do you go about it, could you be fined for not sending your children to school?[/quote]
I don't know, you'll have to talk to your school, or read the DfE guidance.

Pinkflipflop85 · 30/08/2020 16:32

There has to be a line drawn somewhere though. I teach in an area where some parents will use this as an excuse not to send their child to school. Not because they are worried, but because they do not value education.

Alex50 · 30/08/2020 16:33

Thank you for all your replies. I will contact the school and see what they are able to comply with.

latticechaos · 30/08/2020 16:37

@hopsalong

Parents usually get tutors for gaps. Dyslexia doesn't prevent someone becoming a teacher, let alone home ed a young child.

schoolsweek.co.uk/embracing-my-dyslexia-makes-me-a-better-teacher/

latticechaos · 30/08/2020 16:38

@Pinkflipflop85

There has to be a line drawn somewhere though. I teach in an area where some parents will use this as an excuse not to send their child to school. Not because they are worried, but because they do not value education.
Yes, but two wrongs don't make a right.

Wales is correct on this one.

Forcing parents to deregister benefits no one.

Alex50 · 30/08/2020 16:49

How much are the fines? Is it a different amount for different councils? Are the fines per day or say £100 for 2 weeks, say like a holiday, will it be a different fine for each child if you have 3 children at 3 different schools?

latticechaos · 30/08/2020 16:54

@Alex50

I think your local school and council will have their policies online, minevdo.

Look under attendance policy.

Shitfuckoh · 30/08/2020 17:09

@Alex50 ours is £60 per parent if paid within 21 days. Goes up to £120 per parent if not.
No idea how many days absence that is for though.

1 of our headteachers said ''We won’t be dishing out FPNs but obviously we want as many children in school as possible'' she said a lot of heads nationally have said the same.

formerbabe · 30/08/2020 17:13

I'd quite like to fine the LEA for every day of school my dc missed.