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Original poster

Neil Ferguson saying schools may close

312 replies

Orangeblossom7777 · 24/10/2020 18:15

On the BBC - older ones he says. Will they listen to him though now he got kicked off Sage? I thought the plan for for part time in secondary not closing if cases rose very high? Hoping this doesn't happen DC mid GCSEs and already missed loads.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-54673558

OP posts:
noblegiraffe · 26/10/2020 19:43

The happy birthday link is from a couple of weeks ago.

Slightlybrwnbanana · 26/10/2020 19:47

Yes they have dropped the insistence on children being entirely unable to catch the virus now at least.

3littlewords · 26/10/2020 19:47

They do seem to have some extreme views and arguments, however I dont think that every parent who wants their child to be in school holds the same radical ideas. Its possible to want both children in schools and better safety measures even if you don't say it in every comment. I mean I dont particularly want my child wearing a mask either ( I wish no one had to wear one) but I appreciate that my wants dont supercede what's required

Barbie222 · 26/10/2020 19:48

They'll have to update their model letter as well, half of those assertions have fallen off the DfE's own guidance now.

Barbie222 · 26/10/2020 19:49

Its possible to want both children in schools and better safety measures even if you don't say it in every comment.

Absolutely, and teachers agree! That's the whole point of the threads @noblegiraffe started.

noblegiraffe · 26/10/2020 19:54

Its possible to want both children in schools and better safety measures even if you don't say it in every comment.

Absolutely!

'Schools must stay open' is an Us4Them mantra though, so people understandably get itchy when it's wheeled out, because for so long its been followed by shit about how teachers are lazy and don't want to go back to school and that's why they're raising safety concerns.

The amount of times weary teachers have had to post 'No one is arguing that schools shouldn't open' on thread after thread after thread.

They also claim that anyone arguing for improved safety measures actually wants schools to close (see this thread for examples).

Elladisenchanted · 26/10/2020 20:16

I'm a teacher in Manchester. I guess I'm in a hot spot area but it's been a constant cycle of partial bubble closures and whole years groups going home and one teacher after another testing positive in all the schools around the area. Definitely ramping up over the last few weeks as well.

My primary age child is in the middle of his second isolation, which started less than a week after the first one finished. Both times the teachers were ill with covid. I've minimised as much as possible but I've had to take off a bit as well which affects the school I teach in too.

One school has so few teachers as so many are sick, the year groups are coming in on a rota system.

Stress levels are through the roof!

I am utterly committed to keeping schools open as it is 100% the ideal for the children, but reality is in a hot spot with the best will in the world schools are only partially open.

noblegiraffe · 26/10/2020 20:20

Flowers Ella it sounds really awful to be working in areas like Manchester, Birmingham or Liverpool. No one seems to care about the disruption to education there.

I hope the half term at least provides some sort of circuit break to lower infection levels.

starrynight19 · 26/10/2020 20:31

Elladisenchanted Flowers
A very similar experience here. Not to far from you and today we have been told we are the second worst place in the country.

Am literally dreading next term.

3littlewords · 26/10/2020 20:36

I'm in the Liverpool area my eldest high school hasn't had any year closures, although some teachers have been off, my youngests primary has had only 1 bubble closure, typically it was his class. There does seem to be some schools in the area that have had repeated isolations and I know of 1 secondary and 1 primary thats had a full school closure, and theres schools similar to my DCs schools that have had minimal disruption. I doubt in terms of "covid measures " they are doing anything different to each other it does seem to be pot luck around here at the moment.

Barbie222 · 26/10/2020 21:05

Ella - sending Thanks- it must be so frustrating for you all. I hope the teachers all recover well.

GoldenOmber · 26/10/2020 21:24

Why though? thats madness! I can only assume they are people who just like to argue and protest about anything and everything just for the sake of it without giving a toss about what it is they are fighting for

Can't speak for England, but here in Scotland they really picked up steam as a campaign group over the summer when we were told school was going to be 'blended learning' for the rest of the academic year, and 'blended learning' meant kids in school less than half the time, sometimes not even a third of the time. So UsForThem got a lot of angry/worried parents back then. I wasn't in the group but loads of parents I know were, it was turning up on my facebook feed all the time.

Then blended learning was dropped and schools went back full time, and most parents thought that was fine so didn't see the need to be in Facebook campaigning groups any more. So now it's shrunk to a much smaller group of people who are unhappy with the current situation, because they don't want kids wearing masks on school buses or whatever else. That's going to be a very different group of people and a very different kind of group.

I just looked at their Facebook page and they're discussing whether or not they'd take children out of schools if masks were mandatory in classrooms, so I'm guessing they're not THAT fussed about keeping schools open...

3littlewords · 26/10/2020 21:41

Who is "Us" and who is "them"?

GoldenOmber · 26/10/2020 21:54

I believe 'us' was parents and 'them' was children?

monkeytennis97 · 26/10/2020 22:08

Re us4them I just find it sickening that the very parents who sit opposite us in parents evening, who chat to us in the playground, who leave their kids in our care day after day, don't give a flying crap about our safety or the safety of the wider community. Sickening.

3littlewords · 26/10/2020 22:10

@monkeytennis97 I hope you know they are a minority not a majority Flowers

monkeytennis97 · 26/10/2020 22:19

@3littlewords thank you Thanks

Summerfreeze · 26/10/2020 23:35

I know two separate people involved in ‘Us4them’ and can categorically say that they’re both simply petrified of having to look after their own children at home again. Both WFH, kids not little, plenty of money but just not used to coping with their own kids and were floored in March. Suspect there’s a lot like them in that group. Pretending it’s all about the kids but actually it’s about them.

Slightlybrwnbanana · 27/10/2020 00:14

To be fair to them (not words I thought I'd use!) I was floored by having my dc at home too Smile

monkeytennis97 · 27/10/2020 04:36

@Summerfreeze

I know two separate people involved in ‘Us4them’ and can categorically say that they’re both simply petrified of having to look after their own children at home again. Both WFH, kids not little, plenty of money but just not used to coping with their own kids and were floored in March. Suspect there’s a lot like them in that group. Pretending it’s all about the kids but actually it’s about them.
I think there are a lot like this and you're right but if we as teachers suggest it we get our heads bitten off so I'm going to agree as a parent.
motherrunner · 27/10/2020 05:09

Interesting article on BBC this morning: www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-54695618

This is what we teachers are really concerned about - the disparity of continued education. I’m in a Tier 2 area and my school have had 4 year closures since Sept. We are not unique - I don’t know a school in my city that has gone untouched. One school closed completely as over 20 teachers tested positive. This is just the first half term and anyone who works in a school know the real illnesses haven’t started yet. Going to be a tough year.

monkeytennis97 · 27/10/2020 05:15

Absolutely @motherrunner it's such a messSad

3littlewords · 27/10/2020 05:23

@Slightlybrwnbanana

To be fair to them (not words I thought I'd use!) I was floored by having my dc at home too Smile
Same! Having to work full time and make sure 3 unwilling dc did some sort of school work and try to keep them occupied was neigh on impossible. Whilst we have to accept this may become a reality again at some point not many would actively choose to be in this position.
RedToothBrush · 27/10/2020 07:06

From the BBC

In mid-October, Bury, Knowsley, Liverpool and Manchester all had more than 40% of schools with confirmed cases - some of these were among teachers.

According to the report, which is based on a snapshot of 16 October, there were 710 teachers with a positive test for coronavirus in the North West - this was 35% of the total of confirmed cases among teachers across England on that day.

It pointed out that some areas in the North had attendance rates for secondary school as low as 61%, whereas others in the South were close to the usual national figure of 95%.

RedToothBrush · 27/10/2020 07:11

I hear from friends that 40% is a conservative number.

One head has told them 75% in their council area. On the exact same measure of one positive case for a school. (67% for primaries).

I'd like to see a proper breakdown of this for exact numbers. I actually fear that the BBC are focusing on the wrong place...