The government is encouraging covid spread in schools

[noblegiraffe]

Bear with me, because if they're not, you have to explain this:

1. Schools will stay fully open end of. Even when they're not.

1. No masks allowed in classrooms where teachers and pupils spend the most time. The expectation that they would be mandated in corridors is fudged at the last minute to lockdown areas only.

1. Pupils are not allowed to be tested for the symptoms that kids are most likely to get.

1. Teachers (who in secondary will teach all bubbles without masks) are not to self isolate if there is a case in a class they have taught.

1. Fudge any data that may show teachers getting ill at a higher rate than the general population and Chris Whitty lying about it

1. Fudge data that may show school pupils having a higher infection rate than the general population

1. Not permitting / trying / mass testing in schools where there have been cases in case they find out how bad the spread is.

1. Actually sending letter to parents to tell them to stop getting kids tested.

9 Fine parents who try and keep their kids off when in contact with a known positive case.

10. Launch a propaganda campaign to convince parents that schools are safe using data from schools in lockdown, which every news outlet dutifully publicises. Continuing that propaganda campaign by releasing a video of socially distanced school kids wearing masks in classrooms.

11. Hide Gavin Williamson in a cupboard so that no journalist can accidentally ask him how his aim to reopen schools safely is going.

12. Announce that one of the school safety measures will be children in bubbles which will burst when there are cases. Stop this midway through September and start sending home as few kids as possible. Remove the schools remit from PHE control and put DfE in charge to enforce this.

13. Produce a Tiered system of responses to infection levels (rotas, masks, closures) to reassure parents, and shut the unions up. Then never mention them again and in fact state that they are not to be used.

14. When Hull begs for rotas due to imminent collapse of system, send a letter to all local authorities re-iterating NO ROTAS

15. Have some strange control over the media so they don’t mention any issues, or if they do, it must be accompanied by a picture of a jumbo classroom containing max 5 kids.

16. Tell teachers to ignore the app when it tells them to isolate, or to turn off the app completely

17. No funding for schools to implement any covid safety measures

Any other explanations for this list?

Carry on posting, noble. Teachers need your voice.

I'm bewildered that there are some who still don't see how unsafe schools are. Or maybe they don't want to.

So, @Napqueen1234, you've been teaching 120 students a day since September? And you're querying other teachers' reservations about the system?

Great thread noble thank you. It's unbelievable laid out (and evidenced) as you've done.

Of course not every school will be doing everything on the list but to be honest even one of your list SHOULD BE an outrage by itself. We should be doing everything possible to reduce levels of covid, not encourage its spread.

There is a difference between expecting employees to take some risk when you've done all the easy/ possible things to mitigate that risk - and exposing employees to risks that could be easily reduced but are not. The latter is employer negligence.

I also think asking about the number of staff who have gone off with covid related stress is relevant here. And a point about the workload in relation to covid conditions and whether its managable / affecting home life / something you can refuse to do. Etc etc.

We know its a problem in hospitals and thats recognised as legitimate.

callmeangelina I actually started my email saying how desperate I was to keep schools open and how much children needed to be in school. Then followed that with how many cases we had in my own and dc school and my concerns. I was shocked how positive the response was.

My (Tory) MP has totally given up engaging and posts generic waffle “replies” to any communication on her website, generally along the lines of blah blah blah the Government is doing a super job, hooray. Coward.

I’m not saying schools are the ‘safest’ places in terms of covid, quite the opposite in face as it’s clear they are fuelling cases as are care homes, hospitals. But the solution shouldn’t that be that children’s education suffers (not only that but their ability to maintain social contact, see people in real life etc). There’s so much evidence about the damage lockdown has done to children across the board and particularly the vulnerable. We haven’t seen swathes of secondary school teachers dying (thank god, obviously) most cases are mild or asymptomatic. Obviously it’s a massive issue for people with vulnerable adults at home but that’s the same for all key workers who struggle to distance etc in their job. In my mind school, universities etc are on a par with hospitals and care homes in terms of their importance in the functioning of society so should stay open. It may not be your opinion but I’m allowed to have my own.

so should stay open. It may not be your opinion

It. Is. My. Opinion.

@Napqueen1234 I lost a 49 year old colleague. Her kids lost their mum. I know 5 teachers with long term COVID. One is 24. As a nurse I'd have thought you'd understand the use of PPE. It works. So why not give us some ?
And Unis are NOT open. My DD is a medical student and hasn't set foot on campus this term. My youngest is a vet and gets an hour a week of dissection. Not what I'd call open.

@RedToothBrush I was thinking of Lewis Goodall too.

Children's education is suffering right now with the chaotic situation in schools nap.

I’m so confused NapQueen1234 - didn’t you have your maternity leave extended until this November? You created a thread asking if it would be unreasonable to suddenly ask for your extended mat leave just before you were due back in Sept and you said they granted it? I remember the thread because it seemed kind of your school, even though it meant your colleagues would have had to pick up the slack so to speak.

@CallmeAngelina

So, *@Napqueen1234*, you've been teaching 120 students a day since September? And you're querying other teachers' reservations about the system?

Something not quite right there.

Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed.

@Napqueen1234 yes strangely enough we all agree schools are important. Which is why we want them made as safe as possible so we can keep them open.

Instead we have massive underinvestment and thousands of children all over the country missing out on weeks of education because they are rammed into tiny classrooms shoulder to shoulder with no masks on and crap ventilation.

I mean you would think they actually WANT schools to be closed - the government that is, not the teachers!

Kids at ds's school are refusing to wear face masks even though it's only in corridors and from the pleasing emails we are getting it seems that the schools hands are tied.

Teachers aren't even receiving that teeny safety measure

Completely agree with all you say. And I’m so sad and sorry for teachers, children, families and the whole country.
Thanks for posting this @noblegiraffe. The truth has to come out.

Yes but in care homes and hospitals the adults are wearing PPE. Which they've been explicitly told not to in schools.

Also, by not having proper mitigation in schools (not funding schools to be able to do this) children ARE missing school, except it's WORSE than lockdown because they can't even leave the house. 60% of children in Hull are not in school because they're isolating.

At least lockdown was consistent and you could go out. How do you think the mental health of the children on their 3rd, 4th, 5th time isolating is?

I can tell you my DD has found isolating far harder than lockdown ever was. At least then it was consistent and you could go out for walks and exercise and everyone else was in the same boat. And loads of adults weren't just denying what was happening and showing you over and over that adults are lying through their teeth. Because what they're saying just doesn't bear any resemblance to your reality (e.g. the BBC / news media photos of schools with 5 pupils, all 2m apart)

Those children who've had to isolate more than once must be on tenterhooks when they're back in school in case it happens again. It would happen less if there was better mitigation.

And care home staff and residents are tested weekly. My mum gets better care than me (for which I am v v grateful to the wonderful carers).

Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed. Safe not closed.

Yes and safe = less likely to close.

@IloveJKRowling it's so simple I don't understand why it's not being done. It's almost like we are run by idiots.

Score 7 - TA in primary in Tier 1.

I was sneezed on within 5 minutes of returning from half term :/

Social distancing is impossible and face coverings aren't allowed.

Only 1 official positive case so far.

@Napqueen1234

Well in the first lockdown we were closed when schools were but since September twice a week? We teach nurses the practical skills so obviously this is compulsory as part of their course and we can’t just not do it. So I teach 60 students in the morning and 60 in the afternoon doing practical skills including CPR where you need to get fairly close to teach it properly. We are allowed to wear masks but I mostly have to remove it as students can’t hear what I’m saying and they absolutely have to learn the skills before the go on placement. This was when there were huge spikes of student cases (up to 700/100,000). When unis closed I worked in the local hospital on a covid ward as they were short staffed. So I’m not completely clueless believe it or not.

So when you were on maternity leave from your teaching job, after just having your baby, you worked in the NHS on a covid ward?

And then extended your maternity leave to November so does that mean you haven't actually been teaching since September? That's fine if so, but why try and guilt trip the teachers who have been in the thick of it and are understandably concerned? I don't understand some people at all.

I think somebody is telling porkies...

More power to your elbow noble. The issue of the three symptoms maddens me. DD needed antibiotics last week. Telephone consultation ensued. Doctor wanted face to face to look in the ear and asked temp, cough? (not even smell or taste). No but I have headache and sore throat says DD.

Doctor says come to the surgery at 3.30. DD daughter declined 😢.