DD 1 having to isolate, how do I get DD2 to school?

[divafever99]

DD1 (age 9 1/2) sent home from school today and told to isolate for 2 weeks as she may have been been in contact with Covid. DD2 still expected to go into school.
Currently considering what I will do tomorrow, would you:
A) take DD 1 on school run, keeping safe distance from others.
B) drive to school and leave her in car alone for approximately 10 minutes.
C) leave her at home alone, I will be gone for approximately 15 minutes.
Any advice appreciated, I'm sure I'm not the only one with this issue.

I’d leave a 9 year old at home for 15 minutes.

C. for a child 8 or over without a second thought.

@PablosHoney

A disaster 😂😂😂

Think this pretty much sums up the situation!

I’d have to keep both home, I’m surprised the school doesn’t realise you can’t do the school run with a self isolating child! Imagine if it was your younger child who needed to self isolate, then what?

We live further from the school (about 15 minutes each way) so if one had to self isolate, then all the DCs would have to stay at home.

Yes I was happy to leave a sensible 9 year old home for 15 mins alone. I WOULDN'T have left them in charge of or with another, younger child.

But 15 mins alone with a screen or book is fine.

OP I would do what you feel most comfortable with. If that means taking both DDs on the school run and keeping your DD away from everyone then so be it. If you don't have anyone to look after her then that's what you'll have to do. The safety and security of your children is what's most important and for all those saying 'its ok to leave a 9 year old' maybe for you, for your 9 year old but not every 9 year old feels happy being left and not every parent wants to leave them.

I left DS for an hour or so from age 8, pre-Covid.

Definitely option c.
My dts are 10 and are left on their own to go to school in the mornings for around half an hour in the mornings and sometimes longer in the afternoons.
I think sensible children are fine to be left for short periods of time as long as they have a plan In case of and emergency.

With their parent's permission, year 5s are allowed to walk home alone from my school so I'm guessing that's true of mist primary schools?

The idea that leaving a sensible 9 year old at home for 20 minutes is a safeguarding issue is just needless scaremongering.

I'd not leave my child!! Take her with , sanitize her hands and keep her away from anyone. Go home after.

It's ludicrous .. if one kid gets it the other probably will amd they're still at school.

A 9 year old should be capable of being home alone for 15 minutes! The competitive never-everers are drawn to threads like this like moths to a flame. Obviously you don't shock her with it by just going out without telling her or preparing her though.

Can she use the land line? Indeed do you have one, or a second working mobile? Does she know your neighbours and who to go to for help? Have you practiced how to phone various numbers for help (neighbour, you, grandparents)?

In the country I live in its considered negligence not to have prepared your child with various routines and so on by that age, but so many MN posters mistake over protection for good parenting, when in fact not preparing your child for and then giving them slowly increasing chances at a bit of independence and responsibility and more importantly teaching them what to do just in case is negligence and lazy.

It's easy to say what if you crashed the car (be thankful your child was safe at home...), what if you broke down (phone them and neighbour) what if the zombie apocalypse began... but what if the only parent fell down the stairs and knocked themselves out! By 9 a child should know how to phone for help and which neighbour to go to.

Good call on telling the neighbour if you do go, but it's also a good idea to prepare children for being home alone in advance so that it's no big deal.

I'd do C and talk to her on the phone during the run
It will do wonders for her self confidence
We've had this at school. The letter is clear only the contact child needs to self isolate the rest of the family are supposed to go about their lives as normal
Our child isn't affected but I think the PHE guidance is stupid.
I think everyone should be tested on day 3 so postal kits ordered for each household the day the bubble is sent home all negatives back to school by day 5 or 7

My nearly 9 year old would freak if l left her at home.

Lovely friend has just messaged to say she is happy to meet me and will walk DD2 into school. Thanks for the the replies, I hadn't thought of this option.

^^ my last points about y5s walking home from school is just about the independence and responsibilities a 9yo can handle. I know OP is taking her youngest to school and wondering what to do with 9yo.

I wouldn't leave mine. I'd worry too much about getting delayed in traffic or something.
I'd rather park close to school or else take her with me wearing a mask.

C. No question, no concerns. And it's not illegal.

Obviously as long as dd1 is happy with it. Mine would have been.

or else take her with me wearing a mask.

That's not isolating!

This is like the corn, chicken, fox, River crossing dilemma. Only the corn may pose a possible danger to itself.

But what if you leave her for 15 minutes, a bird flies in and knocks the gas on and a burglar breaks in smoking a cigarette and the house explodes 😡 how could you even contemplate this.

Either leave the 9yo at home or drive everyone to school and ask a parent in the same class as DD2 to walk her from the car into the classroom maintaining 2m and same again at pick up, it depends on how well you know the other parents in dd2 class

@ssd

Do you all not need to isolate if she is?

Not unless dd1 has symptoms

I would leave a 9 yo at home for 15 mins unless they wouldn't want to. Otherwise I'd go with ringing & asking can you pull up in the school slightly later & leave the isolating child in the car.

While she is isolating you shouldn't have her in the car with the rest of you.

What you are meant to do to get round that is anyone's guess.