So Gav says schools could stay shut beyond half term.....

[Coldwinterahead1]

I'm guessing after Easter. What does everyone else think?

What is it with the month of September? We had this all last year too - ooo definitely not back until September. Definitely September. Why? We’re going into autumn then and cases will probably rise. Why on earth would we not take advantage of the naturally low rates in the summer??

@Doris86

You do know that all of workers that you just mentioned have access to PPE, social distancing and in most shops/buses etc... perspex screens.

NONE of those are options at school.

You simply cannot socially distance in a school. You can’t teach with a mask on. You can’t ask 30 6 year old children to keep away from each other and you.

So, yes, as someone who works in a school, I would be more than happy to just get on with it and do my job when it is safe to do so.

Shops are banning shoppers from entering without mask but yet I had to stand in front if 30 kids without masks for 6.5 hours a day.

Hardly seems comparable. Imagine telling other key workers to do their jobs without PPE and see how it goes....

I think teachers are being amazing 👏 👏

I notice the usual union bashing posts.

Unions were after 2 weeks after New Years plus money for cleaning so this term wasn't a repeat of last term .
The government confused things by having some tier 4 schools shutting until 18th Jan but not others which was why the government has to reconsider.
The normally super safe SAGE said schools should be closed for January where as the government announced that school would shut until 2-3 weeks after Feb half term.
The question is why won't they commit to paying for cleaning etc so this is less likely to happen again rather than keeping them closed and not introducing extra measures. They could even make this cleaning fund just for this year (2021) if they are worried about having to fund this permanently

@Lemons1571

What is it with the month of September? We had this all last year too - ooo definitely not back until September. Definitely September. Why? We’re going into autumn then and cases will probably rise. Why on earth would we not take advantage of the naturally low rates in the summer??

I was hoping schools might open in July and August and shut in January 2022.

[quote Merriden]@Doris86

You do know that all of workers that you just mentioned have access to PPE, social distancing and in most shops/buses etc... perspex screens.

NONE of those are options at school.

You simply cannot socially distance in a school. You can’t teach with a mask on. You can’t ask 30 6 year old children to keep away from each other and you.

So, yes, as someone who works in a school, I would be more than happy to just get on with it and do my job when it is safe to do so.

Shops are banning shoppers from entering without mask but yet I had to stand in front if 30 kids without masks for 6.5 hours a day.

Hardly seems comparable. Imagine telling other key workers to do their jobs without PPE and see how it goes....[/quote]
The same old excuses from teachers. No reason Perspex screens and masks couldn’t be used to some extent in schools if the will was there.

Whatever happens they need to address the inequality of education provided to KW children in school and those at home. It’s only just acceptable there’s a difference in the short term, but wholly unacceptable that a percentage of kids are at an educational disadvantage in the long term. KW provision should be for childcare only. Kids in school under these circumstances should not be getting taught but being supervised to complete set work the same as children at home.

@Lemons1571

What is it with the month of September? We had this all last year too - ooo definitely not back until September. Definitely September. Why? We’re going into autumn then and cases will probably rise. Why on earth would we not take advantage of the naturally low rates in the summer??

Well exactly...they could have gone back last May but to be honest it felt a bit like, oh well, it's nearly summer holidays, why bother?!

Doris86

It is amazing how you know so much yet understand so little.

@Doris86 this is what teachers have been asking for since last March, the government says it isn’t necessary. Don’t blame teachers for the mess the government has created.

The government closed schools. They took legal action to force Greenwich Council to keep its schools open before Christmas when the council tried to close them and now Greenwich figures are totally fucked.

Perhaps this concentrated their minds. If you're going to force schools to stay open in unsafe circumstances, you may be held responsible for the outcomes.

@FrippEnos

Doris86

It is amazing how you know so much yet understand so little.

Ok well I’m listening and willing to learn if you would care to explain.

I think it's too early to say and that's why he's being slippery - no one really knows

I think it'll be staggered from half term - they won't open anything else before them will they?

Shops are banning shoppers from entering without mask but yet I had to stand in front if 30 kids without masks for 6.5 hours a day

And? Did you catch Covid? Or just the fear of Covid? It has been said time and again that teachers are not being infected at a higher rate than other sections of the community.

@HamishDent

Whatever happens they need to address the inequality of education provided to KW children in school and those at home. It’s only just acceptable there’s a difference in the short term, but wholly unacceptable that a percentage of kids are at an educational disadvantage in the long term. KW provision should be for childcare only. Kids in school under these circumstances should not be getting taught but being supervised to complete set work the same as children at home.

Ours are supervised by support staff and teacher communicates to all online. Numbers are capped in school. Last time was very bad but it seems the school has switched to other end as much better this time.

Although non KW can suffer from not being with peers so not everything can be fixed.

Theatres in London were open in December, loads of Christmas shopping, restaurants etc. And now kids are missing months of school. It is an absolute betrayal and I am heartbroken.

The same old excuses from teachers. No reason Perspex screens and masks couldn’t be used to some extent in schools if the will was there.

You can blame the lack of masks on the government guidance and batshit parent group Us4Them who had lawyers poised to sue schools the minute they went against government guidance and imposed masks in classrooms.

Perspex screens cost money and schools were given none.

Unions were after 2 weeks after New Years plus money for cleaning so this term wasn't a repeat of last term

It was more than just cleaning wasn’t it?

It has been said time and again that teachers are not being infected at a higher rate than other sections of the community.

Even the government has backtracked on that one. You can't keep peddling it anymore.

[quote Mousehole10]@user1497207191 that’s a bit ridiculous isn’t it? People can’t just refuse to work. Well they can but shouldn’t be paid. What if all supermarkets workers also refused? Once the most vulnerable are vaccinated there is no reason for restrictions to stay.[/quote]
Teachers aren’t refusing to work. In the primary where I work all staff including support staff must be on site for their usual working hours even if it they are making welfare calls using their own phone. We’ve been told no working from home never mind no working at all.

I was hoping schools might open in July and August and shut in January 2022.

I'm not taking my annual leave in January 22 I'm afraid.

@LiverColouredBitchPointer

How is this a surprise? Look at the infection rates since September. But no, obviously no-one at school spreads covid

BUT it is absolutely vital to our society to resolve it and get kids back to school. We are failing the young hugely.

@HamishDent

Whatever happens they need to address the inequality of education provided to KW children in school and those at home. It’s only just acceptable there’s a difference in the short term, but wholly unacceptable that a percentage of kids are at an educational disadvantage in the long term. KW provision should be for childcare only. Kids in school under these circumstances should not be getting taught but being supervised to complete set work the same as children at home.

The KW children in my DC school is learning exactly the same way as those at home exactly same online lesson from the teacher exactly the same tasks set. The only advantage the children in school are getting is a social one as they are still able to have a routine, leave their house every day and mix with their peers.

@Waxonwaxoff0

It won't matter. Once the elderly and vulnerable are vaccinated the rest of us will just have to get on with it. If the community rate of infection is low enough then you can't refuse to go to work until you've had a vaccine.

Apparently a lot of the serious cases are people in their 50s/60s and not necessarily with any underlying conditions. I think when those age groups are vaccinated the pressure on the nhs should lessen but don’t know how long that is predicted to take.

Teachers are not failing the young. Lack of coherent leadership at Government level is failing us all.