How long will schools be closed for?

[UndertheCedartree]

Just wondering people's thoughts on this? Will it be like last time or likely to be shorter?

14 days

Was confused about this as well.. not sure if its a definite return to primary schools 18th or the decision will be reviewed 18th

My headteacher says it’s reopening on the 18th

It is partly to allow virus testing to be introduced in schools so probably much shorter and everyone back by 18th.

But who knows if cases rise exponentially?

I think it will depend on how cases go. If they keep going up or don't decrease much then it could be longer and they might shut primary too.

In Scotland it's "at least" until the 18th
I feel we'll be doing well if we go back just after Easter.

I don't think secondary school age in England will be all back on 18th Jan. I suspect some kind of rota will be introduced.

I hope that most teens stay engaged with education.

I reckon we are two u-turns away from a six week break.

The tests they are trying to implement instead of self isolation are only 50% effective.

So it depends how long you want to be stuck in tier 4 or even 5 so that children can mix freely in school. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Well I'm back in on Monday...back in front of my 30 x seven year olds, wondering how long it will be before my bubble pops AGAIN! I am honestly terrified, in a Tier 4 area with a rate of over 750 per 100,000 and having already closed my class 3 times since October with 6 children testing positive (and who knows how many not actually being tested because they've been asymptomatic 🤷‍♀️)

I don't have an answer...and don't want to not be in school, I love my job and my kids...but I can't say that I'm not terrified, because I am 😢. I bloody hate this!

And the tests are supposed to be instead of isolation. So a child who is a close contact remains in school but gets tested twice to see if they develop a positive test.

It is going to be carnage. Imagine how few flaw negatives it takes to push the virus through and entire school community with this new strain.

It is criminal neglect if they let this go ahead. If you think hospitalisations are bad now, just wait until loads of positive cases are mixing together for eight hours a day without masks on and then going home to parents and grandparents.

If we try hard enough we can hit 2,000 deaths a day. Well done us.

And let’s not forget all the kids and parents who will have to suffer as school after school closes because of staff absence.

What a crap plan.

Are you talking about a primary school that's in one of the areas with extremely high covid rates OP?

To add to this, 2 more tested positive the day after school broke up for Christmas, so that makes 8 of my class testing positive in total.

Fortunately we were already out of school, as our bubble had popped 4 days earlier so I was teaching remotely! Had we not been off, and this had happened, our entire Christmas break would have been spent in isolation! As it was, I lost just the first week 🤷‍♀️

@BelleSausage

I agree with every word of your post.

I dread to think how this is going to pan out. What the government are proposing regarding the testing will be like watching a car crash in slow motion.

@Hannsmum

Was confused about this as well.. not sure if its a definite return to primary schools 18th or the decision will be reviewed 18th

Yes a review on the 18th. I doubt they will re open the closed schools if things are still bad at that point.

Until they get the testing sorted out. Once they are comfortable they can test children/staff and ensure negative, then they will open them.

I reckon it will be the 18th.

@Bluntness100

Those tests are only 50% accurate and this new strain is 70% more infectious.

How many missed positives will it take to take out enough teachers to close a school?

Agree with @BelleSausage - I am genuinely at how bad things will get as the Christmas mixing works it's way through and then school mixing starts.

I am completely refusing to look ahead - the government could go either way on this. They are reckless and incompetent.

I feel dreadful for teachers and encourage them all to consider getting signed off for stress if worried. The country has let teachers down and they don't owe anyone their health.

All parents need contingency plans and savings in place in case they contract long covid (1 in 5) as cases amongst parents of school age pupils will rise very quickly if schools are open.

It is partly to allow virus testing to be introduced in schools so probably much shorter and everyone back by 18th.

This doesn't apply to the closed primaries. The plan is to review on the 18th. I live in one of the hotspots and numbers are extremely high. I'm hoping that with pretty much everything closed here and no reason for mixing, like over Christmas, numbers will drop and we'll be able to open them in a couple of weeks.

I think non-exam years at secondary will be online indefinitely, round here anyway.

Assuming that by 'open' you mean DC attending site

4th all ages, pupils vulnerable and key worker families

4th for primaries

4th online, 11th some groups 18th for all in secondaries

Except in the contingency plan areas - primaries already online only (indefinitely) and unless numbers are brought under control, I don't see secondaries opening onsite beyond the exam year groups until they are. Announcement on this on Friday 8th at about 3:45pm?

(Testing instead of SI is a recipe for disaster in schools)

@inquietant all parents need savings? Haha. Do you really think everyone can afford that?

[quote BelleSausage]@Bluntness100

Those tests are only 50% accurate and this new strain is 70% more infectious.

How many missed positives will it take to take out enough teachers to close a school?[/quote]
Statistics show teachers are no more at risk that the rest of the population, Ie there is not a higher case rate. So it’s moot.

[quote Waxonwaxoff0]@inquietant all parents need savings? Haha. Do you really think everyone can afford that?[/quote]
Of course I don't. But I think everyone is at risk of long covid. Don't have a go at me - I'm not the one putting all teachers and parents at risk.

But if anyone can prepare they should. With rates as they are, and the government confirming long covid is a big risk - lots of people will need practical and financial support.

One of the many things I don't get in this testing farce, is why should it be schools testing students before they return? Exactly when? The day before, the morning of the return? The week before? How?

Williamson said something about testing prior to return for all year groups...so if this is days before (which it would have to be to get through all of ours, because even with Gavin's fairy dust we can't administer 1700 tests in half an hour) then surely the students could go onto to get the virus between their test and return?

Why is it school's responsibility to test students before they return, is what I'm asking?

Wouldn't it be a whole lot easier if testing was done at home, and proof of result was sent to school and students only returned when this was received?

My dd high school is in an area where primary schools are staying shut. So I'd say indefinitely. They should have rolled out testing earlier, they should ALL be back on rota. It's disgusting our middle age teenagers have been dumped yet again. My eldest dd didn't even get a welfare call first time round and now she's been back doing a levels for 4 months before being cast aside again. They'll be shut and it's disgusting when neither of my children have even had a bubble collapse

Is it not too late to test the kids upon return? Unless your you have symptoms there’s no logic in testing as the result with be inaccurate.