If your child qualifies for a school place through keyworker status have you taken it up?

[yefh]

I'm a keyworker but fortunately can wfh. Dh is not a keyworker but both our jobs are incredibly stressful and busier than ever. We have one child. Last lockdown we muddled through but dd yr2 was largely ignored whilst we worked all hours day and night and were on calls all day. We felt so guilty. Essentially the tv babysat. We nearly made ourselves ill with the hours worked and I am sure dd suffered too.

There is no chance of furlough for either of us.

We have contacted the school and they say we qualify for a keyworker place for dd but we are so torn as to whether to send her in. On one hand it will be good for her as she needs interaction with other children and she wants to go in and the alternative of being on her own all day whilst we both work is pretty miserable ( even with one hour of zoom lesson) on the other hand we are so worried about exposing her and us to risk. We are early 40s and in ok health.

We have no alternative support. GPS are far away and in vulnerable category

Just wondered if anyone else in this situation and what you did?

[quote SquashedFlyBiscuits]@sparklestar1 16/30 in that's dreadful. I can see that you have to have a place. Let's hope some of the others can reconsider.[/quote]
I know! I know for a fact some of these don't need it, makes me mad especially when they laugh about not really needing it but the "kids will do my head in at home" I have no choice! My children's father is shielding, my mum lives over 100 miles away and I really have no choice.

The schools are going to be so busy with so many keyworkers, I think they should just allow schools to open for all the children. I feel so sorry for my kids, they have fell so far behind this year. So many kids are the same. There are so many parents with the keyworker status it’s just getting silly now. The majority of them shouldn’t be. Even sahp getting to go in some areas. I’m sitting looking at the school chat on fb thinking wtf how some of these parents have a space.

Well seeing how many people are sending their kids in when they don't really need to, I might just contact our school tomorrow.

Work is super stressful at the moment. dH is out of home key worker. I can look after kids to an extent.

And I can educate them when I'm not working & DH is a super help too.

So we will do our jobs & we will educate our kids (youngest KS1).

But now thinking why should I put myself out when so many others have no intention of doing it. Probably many have much less stressful jobs, and kids who are older and a lot more self sufficient.

I know it will probably add a few months on to lockdown and school closures and will definitely increase the deaths, but why should my kids be the only ones missing out? And plonked in front of a tablet all day as I am working and in meeting majority of time.....

We've juggled things so we only need one day a week. I'd rather not send him at all but I suspect he will enjoy it.

I know we should be thinking of the teachers too but most schools are going to be chock a block. They should totally blitz the keyworker status list so it’s min children at school as possible. It seems pointless when the whole point of the lockdown is to stop the spread of the virus.

We are both key workers. Neither can work from home so no choice here

no

any child without difficulties and over age 13/14 really shouldn't be in school as its childcare only

The dds went to educare last time and hated it. They pleaded not to go this time. It is Creche and nothing more. It's not school.

Exh is having them this time

DH is a keyworker and one of our children sees CAMHs. I'm at home so can have them here. It would benefit all of my children, particularly the one with SEN, to be at school but the childcare without usual classmates or teacher on offer would not.

I didn’t last time, but I’ve requested places this time. Last time round a lot of my job was restricted - hadn’t worked out how online training delivery might work, wasn’t carrying a case load. I’m working from home but now I have live training sessions to deliver and am having very sensitive conversations with families and professionals that aren’t appropriate to have around my kids. I’ve been really torn about it but other than not work, I don’t have a choice. I’m just hoping that I get a place and that the provision is suitable for my daughter who has complex learning needs otherwise I’ll be back to looking at not working.

No. We are both able to work from home so no need but to be honest, even if we couldn't I would probably feel they are safer at home alone (secondary school age, not primary) than in school.

I’m a teacher and there are so many taking a key worker place that there is no point in schools “closing”. I’m just waiting to see how many teachers refuse to work and send in section 44 letters when their classes are barely smaller than in normal open times! The unions are unhappy with the current situation with too many key workers sending children in! This might make things difficult for our frontline workers who need the childcare to be able to attend workplaces not WFH.

@Wakeupin2022 please don't. Your child could be the one that carries the virus into the house of a healthcare worker so they can't work and a patient dies. Your child could be the one that gives me long covid or part of the transmission chain that kills my child's dad. Please do the right thing. It's tough, it's exhausting, it's depressing but we've got to try and hang in there even when others are taking the piss.

No, DS is shielding and, although we're both working, we're trying to do it in shifts to keep DD home and give her place to someone with no other options.

Both key workers and DD (yr 1) has gone in. There were supposed to be 8 in her class today but she said one didn't go in. For numerous reasons it is the right decision for our family.

I just can't decide. I am a critical worker but DH isn't and in fact he could look after DC at home. It would just make him and us and maybe the children happier if they want to school.

Mine are staying at home, and did last time too.

DH works from home, so they have to get on with home learning themselves, but at least he is available for quick explanations/tech sorting.
They are both fairly self-sufficient most of the time.

Dc1 was quite enthusiastic about how things went today with lessons on Teams.

I do think they miss out on the social interaction, but since we can facilitate them being at home, we probably should.

Hopefully it won't be so long this time.

Squashed don't worry i won't. Although the chances of my kids having it are very slim.

Just really sickened though at the comments, here & all over the place.

We are never getting out of this mess.

Just popping this here
www.tes.com/news/exclusive-coronavirus-schools-teacher-covid-rates-333-above-average?amp&__twitter_impression=true

I can’t believe what I’m reading - parents who are WFH are sending their kids to school?! Because last time ‘homeschooling nearly broke them’ and ‘it’s better for the kids to be in school’ well of course it is!! But what about all the thousands of people who are keeping their kids at home and juggling (key) work and homeschooling because that’s what we’ve been asked to do!

KWS should be only for those children whose parent(s) cannot WFH not because it’s more convenient for them to be in school! If everyone took that attitude 80-90% of kids would still be going to school and the whole bloody lockdown would be pointless. I fear it may be anyway with the amount of people who kept them at home in the last lockdown but found it hard so aren’t going to do it again!!

I am not sending mine reception child in, but mainly because I think this would just make him more anxious to be there, but without his friends, maybe different teacher, different routine etc. He is very sensitive to changes though, you child maybe be happy with that.

No, we will manage. I want these restrictions over as soon as possible and the least amount of contact we can all have, the quicker it will happen.

We are a 2 keyworker household, DH has to be in everyday and I WFH. I have meetings back to back for most of the day. I’m stretching my working day at both ends to enable me to keep my two DC home. Wasn’t an easy call, but I have help from my childcare bubble two days a week which will help.

I know we should be thinking of the teachers too

Yes, you should.

We qualify as both KWs. Got offered a place a last time, but didn't take it up because we were able to make it work between the two of us until mid May, and child went back to school in June just as we were about to need it.

She's got a place now too, but after this first week of me being on food delivery for FSM kids, and sorting out work packs, we'll take her out again unless I'm in school. It's going to be awful trying to do live teaching with her around, so she'll get loads of screen time.

I'm torn, I'm am a key worker, husband isn't but work have told him today that apparently he is! So technically we can send DD to school but not sure how I feel. Again like you I can wfh majority of the time but see patients face to face once or twice a week.