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Original poster

The infection rate for pupils last week was 2,509 out of 100,000!!

383 replies

SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 00:39

The Times today had reported that the infection rate for secondary pupils last week was 2,509 out of 100,000!! With the rate for primary school pupils close behind.

That’s absolutely shocking.

Rates of 300+ per 100,000 in the South East led to the emergency Tier 4 announcement at the weekend.

Rates among secondary school children are approx nine times this and primaries not far behind.

There can no longer be any conversation about schools remaining open. They need to close to all but key workers and the vulnerable and not reopen until the government has provided the money and means to make them truly ‘Covid secure’ or until enough people have been vaccinated.

How many deaths will we have in a months time when those infections have transferred to the elderly and vulnerable? How many more mutations will we have if the virus is allowed to carry on running through children? I for one do not want to find out that they vaccine no longer works.

It’s time to do what needs to be done. It’s tough and awful for everyone but it has to be done. The schools need to close.

OP posts:
Thread gallery
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TeenageMutantNinjaCovid · 23/12/2020 01:17

No-one is out clapping for the teachers and support staff who have died of Covid this term are they.

I wonder they exceed the NHS staff who have died of covid since September?

HMSBeagle · 23/12/2020 01:19

I'm so glad that if schools shut my kids are in private where they can continue to get a normal level of education with real time, full time video lessons. I dont pay their fees, my LA does but dont kid yourself that closing schools doesnt increases the gap between the rich and the poor immensely.

There are going to a lot of kids long term disadvantaged by this. Also it majorly fucks over kids with SEN in state schools

Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 01:19

There certainly is effective primary education online as my children received it. All children need that. It’s not as good as the real thing but...pandemic??!

I used to be a teacher. No one gave a stuff about vulnerable children generally. Now people who want schools open at all costs use them to argue their case. Schools will know who their vulnerable children are and the government needs to legislate for those children to be in school or have social service contact.

OP posts:
Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 01:22

@HMSBeagle

I'm so glad that if schools shut my kids are in private where they can continue to get a normal level of education with real time, full time video lessons. I dont pay their fees, my LA does but dont kid yourself that closing schools doesnt increases the gap between the rich and the poor immensely.

There are going to a lot of kids long term disadvantaged by this. Also it majorly fucks over kids with SEN in state schools

Why shouldn’t ALL children have the level of teaching most children at independents did? We should be fighting for that! And it could happen. All that’s needed is money! Money that we had but the government chose to give to their mates.

By accepting being fobbed off with a second class education in dangerous conditions in September we are now where we are. We should never let that happen again.

OP posts:
Mumof3andlovingit · 23/12/2020 01:26

@SoscaredforJan

The Times today had reported that the infection rate for secondary pupils last week was 2,509 out of 100,000!! With the rate for primary school pupils close behind.

That’s absolutely shocking.

Rates of 300+ per 100,000 in the South East led to the emergency Tier 4 announcement at the weekend.

Rates among secondary school children are approx nine times this and primaries not far behind.

There can no longer be any conversation about schools remaining open. They need to close to all but key workers and the vulnerable and not reopen until the government has provided the money and means to make them truly ‘Covid secure’ or until enough people have been vaccinated.

How many deaths will we have in a months time when those infections have transferred to the elderly and vulnerable? How many more mutations will we have if the virus is allowed to carry on running through children? I for one do not want to find out that they vaccine no longer works.

It’s time to do what needs to be done. It’s tough and awful for everyone but it has to be done. The schools need to close.

That’s shocking. Sad
Pissedoff1234 · 23/12/2020 01:27

I know 4 people that have caught Covid from a child at school. All primary. They were childcare support and didn't go anywhere else to get infected. Two of these died. So you might think your school is unaffected but who knows with so many being asymptomatic.

Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 01:29

@Pissedoff1234

I know 4 people that have caught Covid from a child at school. All primary. They were childcare support and didn't go anywhere else to get infected. Two of these died. So you might think your school is unaffected but who knows with so many being asymptomatic.
That’s absolutely tragic Flowers

Someday in the future all these tragic figures will come out. And I hope that some people can live with themselves.

OP posts:
Theotherrudolph · 23/12/2020 01:31

“There certainly is effective primary education online as my children received it.“

Quite honestly, at the lower end of primary, no there isn’t. There’s “giving resources to parents” online, but realistically my reception child isn’t going to get much out of online education or much out of “home learning” beyond the learning at home, through reading stories etc, that we would do at home anyway. I could and do teach them reception level maths, phonics etc anyway and unfortunately much of the really important stuff they learn requires a peer group and a setting independent of parents.

It’s not an argument to keep schools open if actually unsafe though, I accept that.

Isthatitnow · 23/12/2020 01:33

We're back to wanting children to be educated and vulnerable children to be kept safe being selfish

The definition of vulnerable. My child is type 1. There is absolutely no doubt that he is vulnerable and would be better off at home. Why does he not matter? Why are his needs continually ignored in favour of ‘healthy’ children? And please don’t tell me to keep him at home. Like all children, he needs and wants to be in school.

Pissedoff1234 · 23/12/2020 01:35

It is very tragic. My parents were affected by being the childcare for my sister. Fortunately they were the lucky ones.

I work in a school and they are doing the best they can but I don't feel safe going in which is fortunately not much (very part time job).

amaryllisu · 23/12/2020 01:36

I can’t find this statistic reported anywhere in The Times, or indeed, anywhere.

Where did you get it from?

HappyDays10101 · 23/12/2020 01:41

You sound like you’ve lost the plot. What does I for one do not want to find out that they vaccine no longer works even mean? As far as we know the vaccine does work. I’m sure nobody wants to find out it does not, but that isn’t a realistic prospect is it?

Theotherrudolph · 23/12/2020 01:47

“Infection rates in London are highest among secondary school pupils, with 715.1 cases per 100,000 for children aged 15 to 19 and 613.5 cases for 10 to 14-year-olds.“

OP, That was in The Telegraph on Tuesday afternoon in their story on schools shutting. If that’s the London rate where are you getting 2,500 from? I can’t see anything in Tge Times about it. I mean, not that 600ish is in anyway good, but it’s not thousands.

ThreeImaginaryBoys · 23/12/2020 01:47

@SoscaredforJan

There has been no Covid in my children’s school either. However I am not selfish enough to think that their education is more important than someone’s life.
Sincerely, thank you.
Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 01:47

There was a typo on there - it should have read ‘ I, for one, do not want to find out that the vaccine no longer works.’

And yes, if the virus is allowed to spread this uncontrollably it gives it a lot of people to mutate in. The more mutations the higher the chance of one which will render the vaccine useless or less effective.

It may have already happened. The scientists think this mutation is still ok but they are not 100% sure yet.

Read any of the scientists. The key to avoiding dangerous anti vaccine mutations is to suppress the virus and vaccinate the population in 6 months.

OP posts:
Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 01:50

All the data is in the latest ONS survey. The graph of school infections is attached. 2.5% of secondary and nearly 2% of primary infected. Which is 2500 in 100000 Confused

OP posts:
Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 01:51

Sorry, now attached

The infection rate for pupils last week was 2,509 out of 100,000!!
OP posts:
Northernsoulgirl45 · 23/12/2020 01:53

Unfortunately it would seem that there will be inequality whether schools are open or closed.
Our small Town has 3 Primary Schools.
Two are in mixed / deprived areas. One with a largely Private Estate/Middle Class catchment.
All schools bar the latter have had cases.

Theotherrudolph · 23/12/2020 01:56

You aren’t comparing like with like data - you cannot compare the ONS survey data with what I think is test data used in the tier justifications to say one is several times the other.

Sobeyondthehills · 23/12/2020 01:59

I am in a tier 4 area, in DS school, we only had one case, not his year (as far as I know) but that was just before the schools closed.

My friend is in a tier 2 area and had 3 years all isolating.

Both primary schools.

I don't want schools to close, but I really can't see any other choice. I can't understand the decision to not allow me see my mum for Christmas day but my son can mix with 30 pupils a day, probably a lot more.

However, I have a horrible feeling, this is the hill the Tory party are going to die on. Having said that I get dizzy from all their U turns

Original poster
SoscaredforJan · 23/12/2020 02:00

I understand that with the actual test cases there will be hundreds more unidentified cases per 100000. But regardless of that, there is no situation where 2.5% of children infected is a good scenario for schools to be open as they are.

OP posts:
Theotherrudolph · 23/12/2020 02:11

“I understand that with the actual test cases there will be hundreds more unidentified cases per 100000. But regardless of that, there is no situation where 2.5% of children infected is a good scenario for schools to be open as they are.“

I don’t disagree with your conclusion. I do think the way you have presented the figures in your thread title and OP is unfair, misleading and alarmist. Most people understand the x/100,000 numbers to be the numbers used in government briefings etc based on tests - you’ve not said until much later that your number is ONS and is much higher because it’s supposed to be a sample of the whole population and thus includes a lot of people not captured by testing. You’ve added to that impression you are using test data by saying 2,500 is so many times higher than a test data number, when it’s actually not a valid comparison. That’s a seriously alarming title you’ve put, in part because I immediately mentally compare it to my local case rate of a couple of hundred, again based on tests.

MagicMabel · 23/12/2020 02:18

*@Isthatitnow^
Couldn't read and ignore. I have a DS with T1 who has covid at the moment. They are not more vulnerable and not more at risk. People with T2 are likely to have more risk factors such as obesity, high bp etc. Your hospital team should reassure you so please don't worry. We have been told that active autoimmune (so fairly recently diagnosed) disease may even give rise to a milder disease.

herecomestheSon · 23/12/2020 02:25

@ElizabethG81

Calm down. My children's school has had 0 cases, 0 periods of isolation. Are you suggesting that they close too? Why does it have to be a blanket response?

I'd suggest the school rates are high because the overall rate is high, which is because we're in the middle of winter and the virus is doing what viruses do.

The rates are HIGHER for the children than for the community. HIGHER. MUCH HIGHER.
herecomestheSon · 23/12/2020 02:39

@amaryllisu

I can’t find this statistic reported anywhere in The Times, or indeed, anywhere.

Where did you get it from?

2.5% of 100k is 2.5k (graph courtesy of the ONS see below)