66% of my daughters reception class are in school this week

[Crazyoldmaurice]

We live in a very affluent part of South West London, avg house price 750k+

Turns out that 66% of my daughters reception class are due to attend school this week. There are 75 kids in her year group and all 48 keyworker child places have been taken (I was too late to book her on so have had to send an email!).

Hardly seems worth keeping the 25 other kids off at this point.

@ceeveebee presumably keyworkers want to get paid. That only happens if someone is running payroll and doing the accountancy work.

Both me and EXDH are key workers- teachers we didn't use our place last lockdown and juggled childcare between us. We taught online and have one DD who has SEN and is quite demanding. It was tough but we managed.
This time more people are sending their key worker/ vulnerable children in to our schools, currently approximately 10 times more students. We will need to use the provision for our own DD, as we will need be in school more than before. EXDH has health issues and is concerned, as we are putting ourselves at higher risk with more contacts across 3 schools.

Yes - so do people working in the private sector. Unfortunately our finance team will be homeschooling kids in the day and working weekend and evenings as they aren’t classed as key workers, and luckily finance and payroll aw those types of tasks that can be done easily from home and outside of working time....

And we have to pay for lots of bills in order to maintain a school setting, provide equipment. I also have to sort FSM, PP, pensions all sorts.

@ceeveebee Have you done finance in a school or the NHS?

@BustopherPonsonbyJones

From this thread I can see some people who definitely need places and others who are taking the piss. Those of you who are taking the piss (and you know who you are) need to think very carefully about the impact of the loss of school places for genuine key workers. If schools have to close for all because they are STILL too full and infection continues to spread, not only will you be back to home learning anyway but you will struggle to be treated in hospitals, have your food delivered and so on. Choose very, very wisely.

The pisstakers should be ashamed of themselves.

So many people trying to justify why they are 'special'. Shameful. They are no different to people who are flouting the rules in every other way.

@JigSaw879

This all feels like lunacy. Threads on mumsnet have been baying for days for schools to close. Now that they have, everyone wants a key worker place. The whole reason we are in this mess is people not following tier rules. It’s fucking sickening.

Yep

Although closer to what people say irl

No - work in private sector for a FTSE100 business. Classed as nonessential so we all just have to struggle through to keep the business afloat. One of our biggest shareholders is the teachers pension fund ironically, we will try to protect your investment best we can whilst juggling the kids

JigSaw879

This all feels like lunacy. Threads on mumsnet have been baying for days for schools to close. Now that they have, everyone wants a key worker place. The whole reason we are in this mess is people not following tier rules. It’s fucking sickening

But if you look closely, it was the parents that secured a space at school (keyworker status) were the ones who wanted them shut.

@selflove

Whilst schools have been told to encourage parents that it needs to be two key worker parents working outside of the home, they can't enforce this. Even one key worker parent entitles a child to a school place. And the key worker category is so broad it's almost every profession.

Two kids out of my daughter's class of 30 are in, their mums are childminders staying at home every day looking after other kids. Some parents just feel their kids have missed too much and they can't cope with the idea of home school again, so they're sending them.

I am a childminder and sending my ds in. He does have Sn's but stayed at home last time. His mh really suffered so is going part time.
The age difference makes it much harder as he is in secondary school

One thing that may need to be considered is that masks may become more widespread. I know our local secondary school is going to make them mandatory in classrooms. I wonder if they may think about it for KS2 children too if they have a large number of children in. This might put some parents off.

But if you look closely, it was the parents that secured a space at school (keyworker status) were the ones who wanted them shut.

Yes, it's very interesting.

Sorry I'm confused are you saying I am not a key worker? Because I very much am & due to the stringent red tape & often archaic ways public sector finances are run I can't physically do a lot of my role off site. I've worked in finance for the private sector & that's what DH does, its a completely different ball game.

Mental health issues are real and are not 'piss taking'.

How are the teachers and unions going to handle this? If the classrooms are nearly at capacity what material difference has it made?

I am suggesting that a finance role for school (and with a DH who is in a non key worker role) does not sound like should be high up the priority list for a place.
Certainly wouldn’t quality in our school. As they are obviously keeping places to the bare minimum to, you know, reduce transmission as that’s the whole point of it?

One of our biggest shareholders is the teachers pension fund ironically, we will try to protect your investment best we can whilst juggling the kids

So you have a problem with teachers?

Anyway, must get some sleep if I am going to be working 18 hour days for the next 6 weeks. Nighty night

Absolutely not. I think teachers need to be protected hence why I disagree with people bending the rules and taking the piss

🥱

My dds will be in school 2 days per week. I didnt need to use it last time but with the announcement early years can continue to open as normal im at work whereas last time I wasn't. Dh works in a supermarket and due to times of isolation for him and dd2 he has no holiday time left.

I assume they will set limits. They may have 66% if reception class in but only 20% of Y6 in, so will end up having mixed year groups, which again might put some parents off who could really homeschool but would rather not.

So you are accusing me of bending the rules?

@lorraliks

One of our biggest shareholders is the teachers pension fund ironically, we will try to protect your investment best we can whilst juggling the kids

So you have a problem with teachers?

Where on earth have you got that from?! The poster didn't suggest that at all.

These children will all be spilt up an put in separate bubbles might be 48 in her class and none in year 1 an 5 (example) they will not have a normal school day it is just a babysitting service. (Hence only key workers) Our schools last lockdown had 19 children they formed 3 bubbles an done games in the big hall most days.