They are going to close the schools again aren’t they.

[Amithetoxicone]

😱

@80sColourfulChristmas

Am I the only one who is hoping they go back??? I'm a single parent with disabilities with a child with behavioral issues. If I don't get a break very very soon I'm going to have a breakdown and I'm not being lighthearted. I've been sat on the floor crying today, wishing I could drive off on my own and never come back (obviously would never).

The thought of even more weeks of this Groundhog Day of HELL & torture would send me right & truly over the edge

I would think in your situation you could speak to the school about getting your child in to school under the 'vulnerable' category. There are 2 pupils in my class who have been offered attendance places to give their mums a very much needed break due to their mental health caused in part by behaviour issues of their dc. Take care and hope you get something sorted. Speak to the school, they will want to help.

[quote 2020out]@80sColourfulChristmas

Please talk to your school and explain your circumstances. I would hope that they would support you by having your child in if necessary to avoid this. I know mine would if we knew that you were in danger of mental health crisis.[/quote]
As per my previous replies, I tried this during first lockdown. The headteacher wouldn't even entertain it. Even when I said that it was reaching the stage where I was considering putting her in temporary foster care as the situation really was becoming that bad.

No EHCP = No place. (She doesn't need an EHCP)

[quote Thefeep]@80sColourfulChristmas - no you’re not alone. I have a disabled child, well he’s 22, so not actually a child but The thought of school being closed again doesn’t bear thinking about. It’s hell for him and double hell for us. Thankfully An email yesterday confirmed He will return on the 4th, fingers crossed![/quote]

This is all utter bollocks.

@Willyoujustbequiet

Its an absolute shitshow

They must close them. Parents will vote with their feet anyway.

Totally agree with this.

Government need to support parents with mandatory furlough for childcare reasons, and with greater crackdown on employers who are still insisting staff cannot wfh when they can (if the staff would prefer this to furlough)

Keeping schools open has cost us dearly in terms of death, illness and the economy.

@80sColourfulChristmas

It sounds like your local authority have really let you down.

On all the reports I’ve seen SAGE only seem to be recommending shutting secondary schools. I think many people are talking about the difficulties with primary schools shutting. I do think schools should be compelled to take those who are eligible for a place though.

@rothbury are you including keyworkers in that?

Schools are compelled to take keyworker chn and always have.

@FatGirlShrinking

Teachers and schools should already have home learning packs prepared and ready to go so why should parents who are genuinely scared be punished.

I want my child in primary school but have already had covid that’s left my heart damaged and really don’t want it again. I also don’t want teachers to have to risk them selves any more than they already have done.

@80sColourfulChristmas
Habe you been in touch with your LEA? I know that things changed massively at our school when one of the parents contacted the LEA with regards to their child's provision. We are the opposite in trying to keep ds, (classed as vulnerable so with a place, but also medically vulnerable so needs to be home) but many of our friends are desperate to ensure their children with complex needs and/or behavioural issues have a place if schools close to the wider population. Good luck.

So we’re not bothered about the safety of keyworkers’ children or the staff who have to look after them?

@Benjispruce2

Schools are compelled to take keyworker chn and always have.

If they don't have the staff then they can't. A school near here had more than half the staff off before Christmas.

Now they're refusing to confirm it'll only be a two weeks closure. Oh I can just see it being like March. Months off school, it's a nightmare
Online learning is okay but not great and what about mental health and social interaction?
I don't want teachers dying of Covid but I don't want teenagers killing themselves because they can't cope either.
I'd love to say I'll support my children's learning (mostly my eldest as middle one will be at school and youngest in nursery) but I can’t. I have to go out to work and look after baby when I'm at home. It's not practical.
Doesn't seem like there's any answer to keep everyone safe.

80sColourfulChristmas
You need to approach the school and be honest about how tough it has been. They should offer to help unless they have a covid outbreak amongst staff. In the school I work, we had some of our kids with behavioural problems in last lockdown to help the parents who could not manage them at home. Ask to speak to the head or send an email requesting a place.

No EHCP = No place

And to add to this, EHCP and a place at school doesn't mean the child will actually get the support needed while there. DS has an EHCP and could have had a place at school in lockdown but we declined because keeping him at home meant one less potential infection point and there was no provision of the support set out in his EHCP as the government had instigated "best endeavours" meaning he would not have his 1:1, his intervention programmes, his support equipment, his exercises, his safe spaces, etc. The children in school weren't getting any additional teaching, they were on school laptops getting the same online learning as the children at home, the only difference was that they had teaching staff in the room with them (staff who were also logged into the online classroom setting and marking work and providing virtual teaching support to the children at home).

Then another school has to take them.

Not all children with an EHCP were able to go to school in the last lockdown either ,my son's at a special school every child in the school has an EHCP every child is considered vulnerable due to their disabilities ,school was still closed from march to September , I hope special school,s are not forgotten about again .

[quote LadyPenelope68]@Littlewhitedove2
This makes me so angry. How can you home school when you are trying to work full time? Are kids just meant to have to teacher input? How do they complete work if they need help every 5 mins or help with the laptop and both parents are working from home? What if you have 3 kids and only one laptop? What if you have a baby (or twin babies) at home and also kids to home school. What about those kids who’s parents are out all week working, or those who’s parents couldn’t care less about encouraging them to learn. You have no clue how online learning in other countries is getting on. You have no clue how online learning in your own country is getting on. No one does and no one will be able to measure this impact to our future generation yet. Online is a very very poor substitute for in person classes and teaching and there is no way to dress that up

There are many countries in the world where children have not been back to face to face school since March. Children in those countries are progressing well and online working is now very effective. It seems like parents in the U.K. are so fixed on the fact that it won’t work and think it should all carry on as it always has that they’re failing to recognise that we’re in a pandemic, things can’t stay the same at the minute. Time for people with views like you to take a reality check and adapt.[/quote]
Are you forgetting parents did homeschool for a significant portion of this year??

Maldives2006
Home learning packs do not always exist ready to go at any moment in case the government decide tomorrow that we are all online for all year groups because schools have been told to ensure they are covering the curriculum and offering more than just 'packs'. Even if I was allowed to produce a pack that could be done at any point in the year, it would be roundly trashed on here as being worksheet and paper based when the school down the road is doing live lessons. If the government gave schools better notice then more could be done. If I have most of the class in, I am going to teach them as normal. I can't then give the ones whose parents choose to keep them at home a pack that replicates that because it won't be worksheets, it will be teaching. Some parents want packs; some want live lessons; some want recorded lessons; some whose key worker children are in school want face to face proper lessons whilst everyone else at home is doing something different. It is impossible to do all 4 and please everyone. In our last round of remote learning for isolating kids. Some parents thought the kids had too much work and were stressed out. Some wanted more. Some kids expected the teachers to respond to their questions during the day when the teachers were teaching other kids in school. It really isn't as straightforward as you would think. Some parents want google meets; some don't. Some parents want regular phone calls; some find it intrusive and annoying. Some ask for paper work and then don't come and collect it. Some want feedback; some say they have done the work but can't hand it in and will give it in at some point in the future. Some drop in and out of the lessons so might do nothing for a week and then suddenly start working. They then find it hard as they missed the previous lessons in the sequence.
I will do whatever I am asked to do by the school but I think it needs to be understood by those who want to keep their kids at home whilst others are in school that this is not a case of just putting together a 'pack' and sending it home.

Now they're refusing to confirm it'll only be a two weeks closure

They can't confirm something in the future that can't yet be known.

I think that the government has sadly left it too late to close all Primary Schools, from a child care point of view.
If they do close them so last minute I fear it will affect so many ( mainly women) negatively financially and career wise.

It won't be two weeks. People need to mentally prepare themselves for that.

I really get people that say the hope schools dont close, but do people realise if the appropriate action isnt taken now all that will happen is cases will drastically increase and harsher measures will have to be put in place. I'd rather schos shut now, necessary lives that dont need to be lost are saved, and we can flatten the rate of infection whilst it's still some what controllable. Not wait until schools open up, it spreads like wild fire then panic and have another full blown lockdown. It's been made clear schools is one of the most highest cause of cases, this needs to be dealt with. We need to protect those that have family members that are vulnerable. Even if it is an inconvenience for others.

We need to protect those that have family members that are vulnerable. Even if it is an inconvenience for others

Exactly. Health and lives should always be first. Inconvenience can be lived with just like all other inconveniences that we face.