Calling all teacher...a question for you.

[Liveandletlive3]

Just want to know how you feel about going back in feb/after Easter holidays.
What will you need to see done before you agree to go back to school to a tool full of children that will make you comfortable to be there.

The message that schools are safe needs to stop. Matt Hancock today, on the Andrew Marr show was still insisting that schools are safe for children. He is perpetuating the wrong message. Andrew Marr made a valid point - if they are vectors of transmission, then children are not safe because they transmit.
Could the government please start to separate the issues that teachers have identified to no avail.

1. Children with Covid are relatively safe themselves.
2. Children with Covid, regardless of being asymptomatic or with symptoms, will pass it to others.
3. Schools with full attendance will maximise the potential for the virus to spread. The return to school next time must not follow the pattern it did last time. Over and over again we hear, in hindsight, lessons must be learnt. It will be safe when those lessons are finally learnt and teachers' are heard instead of being attacked in the media. Had they been heard the first time round and the full return in September had been on a rota basis, then the situation may still have been awful, but maybe not as much as it is now.

Not a teacher, but school staff going in and doing the admin.
Being vaccinated.
Lateral flow testing kits for staff.
Recognition that people can be asymptomatic and have/transmit the virus. I am fed up with the message that only the 'big 3' symptoms matter.
A clear national message telling parents NOT to send their child in if they feel unwell for any reason.

I'll go back when I'm told. I'd feel much happier sending my children to school when the NHS are coping.

I'd like to see restrictions as tough as possible now and a return at half term, possibly with rotas to allow the kids to distance, although with kw/v numbers so high a rota may not be a workable approach. I really hope we're fully back by Easter.

Lower infection rates. Vaccination programme well-rolled out. Restrictions elsewhere remaining so that mixing in school is not accompanied by mixing elsewhere. Money for supply cover if teaching staff get sick or have to isolate.

For selfish reasons I don't want a rota. With primary-aged DC and a teacher husband we couldn't be at school full time with our DC home half the time. He/I or both would have to reduce hours or hand in our notice. Any of those things are manageable but require time for the schools to replace us, so if the government are even thinking of introducing a system like that, they need to give lots and lots of advance warning, not spring it on people with the usual 24 hours notice.

With the very high rates of KWV children's attendance due to lack of clear guidance, we won't be able to fully open schools after half term, because by then so many staff will be so ill. The newer strain of the virus are so much more infectious .. yet schools are running without updated risk assessments which ensure greater distancing ( they can't anyway because there is no cap on bubble numbers or children attending) .
DFE are not even collecting attendance data, so how would they even know that some schools are near full.

We are still in school! Either teaching bubbles of up to 25 key worker children (in my place, I know it varies) or planning and setting home learning. For us this has to be done in school rather than from home because the files we need are saved on the school file share system.

I'm literally in school 7.45am until 5pm every day. 2.5 days a week teaching, the rest of the time with other staff.

I'm a teacher still at school every day with half my class. I don't feel safe. And then I go home and do all the online learning stuff. Yay more workload.

@Littlefluffyclouds13

I'm in school everyday. My situation is dire as my dh is ecv so is currently living elsewhere so he's safe. I'm left juggling two teens, shopping, work etc School is stressful and while I love my job, it's a hard role to be in right now. I miss dh so very much and unfortunately don't see an end in sight.

Oh mate, massive unmumsnetty hug to you.

I’m in exactly the same situation as you, apart from I’m very fortunate that my DH is not having to live away. I know that I couldn’t do what I’m doing without his support. I hope you and your DH can get the vaccine very soon.

I wish I could do something to help you, but please know that I’m sending you every good wish. 💐

I'm in school part time and working from home the rest of the time.

So, what would I like to reassure me before teaching up to 150 different students a day?

Vaccine (3 weeks before I return)
Smaller class sizes
Ventilated classrooms
Proper, regular cleaning.
Good reliable regular testing of staff and students.
Numbers back where they were in September.

I might as well ask for the moon on a stick.

Most teachers I know are still in school, many of them full time.

I’d like the plan to replace lateral flow tests with SI for positive contacts to be scrapped. It’s dangerous.
Community rates to have dropped significantly.
Vaccination for staff have got to be considered
Rotas to allow for social distancing
I’d like Ofsted to pause all inspections this year-the priority should be the children, not curriculum deep dives.

Mostly I want the government to stop lying and saying schools are safe.

@Littlefluffyclouds13

I'm in school everyday. My situation is dire as my dh is ecv so is currently living elsewhere so he's safe. I'm left juggling two teens, shopping, work etc School is stressful and while I love my job, it's a hard role to be in right now. I miss dh so very much and unfortunately don't see an end in sight.

Hopefully things get better soon for you and for all those that in difficult situations. Sending you lots of love

@Liveandletlive3 @LizzieVereker thank you both, honestly your kind words mean such a lot!

@OwlWearingGlasses

I am a TA. I am still in school every day, just as I was during the last lockdown. It's pretty scary as I am supervising 20 in the class and have 4 more in next week.

www.tes.com/news/exclusive-coronavirus-schools-teacher-covid-rates-333-above-average

Me too !!!! And during part of the Easter Holidays

Vaccination would help
Closing bubbles when needed
Possibly smaller class sizes

Personally I'd love to say I'll go back only when I won't have to put up with masks and weekly testing.
But of course I will go back whenever. I felt safe before Christmas but we had a strict 2m rule and I am not high risk.

I'm in school a bit currently on KW rota.
What would make me feel like schools were safer would be:
Vaccination of all school staff asap
Lower transmission rate
The NHS in ours and surrounding areas not being on the brink of having to ration CPAP and ventilators.
Masks compulsory for secondary students in corridors and classrooms- aside from those exempt.
Isolation for close contacts of 10 days PLUS requirement of a negative test before returning to school
More accurate tests to allow for regular testing of staff and students (where consent is given)
Better ventilation in teaching rooms
Small class numbers if case numbers remained high in our area- to ensure distancing could be adhered to
To be in rooms where my desk and me could actually be 2m or more away from students in front row.

I'm a TA in an SEN School and going in tomorrow.

@Littlefluffyclouds13 💐 I hope circumstances allow you to be reunited soon.

I’m a parent not a teacher but would like measures worked out now for a safer reopening (whenever that may be):
1)testing offered to staff and pupils before they return at primaries too ( I don’t think this is the school staffs job to oversee)
2)Routine testing for school staff
3)Vaccination priority - school staff
4)If they can’t reopen to all then rotas for all so some face to face delivery (not leaving some years without sight of teacher/classmates for months)
5)Primaries utilise outdoor space as soon as weather is good enough for group meetings/outdoor lessons
6) guidance changed to allow staff to wear masks in classrooms / possibly implement for kS2 (look at evidence from countries that have used masks in class)
7) info on whether trips / bubbles to outdoor education centres can run in summer / autumn
8) up to date info on infection rates / deaths for school staff

Some proper acknowledgement from Gavin Williamson/ DfE for the efforts of school staff - as others have said they’ve had no notice, no input, had to respond incredibly fast and received a fat lot of thanks!

I'm an SEN teacher and have to be in closer contact than 2m basically all the time, so a vaccine would be nice.

But access to symptomless testing would be a bit more reassuring, along with the Government scrapping the idea that lateral flow testing for close contacts can replace self-isolation. No thanks. If I'm a close contact then I'll be staying at home and I'd like to think the same would happen for my pupils.