1 in 10 nursery staff positive for Covid in last 7 weeks!

[J371172]

Sorry I don’t know how to do links but if this article on ITV is to be believed, then that makes me pretty nervous about going to work! I wonder if that’s waaaaay above other workplaces or if it’s pretty standard.

We had 3 members of staff test positive in the space of a week at DD nursery. We pulled her out for a couple of weeks and it seems to have calmed down now. When do nursery staff get the vaccine? I hope they're high on the list

You are aware that 10% is lower than the 12.1% of the general population, right?
"One in eight people had Covid antibodies in England in December | Coronavirus | The Guardian" amp.theguardian.com/world/2021/jan/19/one-eight-people-covid-antibodies-england-december-ons

@MRex no I wasn’t aware of that which is why I put in my OP that I wondered how that compares with other workplaces. Thanks for the info.

Two different things. The guardian article is about the % of people who would test positive for antibodies, i.e. who have had it at some point. The other one seems to be about people who would test positive for the disease i.e. have got it at the time of testing.

Sorry, it's just all shit everywhere. As long as lockdown isn't eased too soon and vaccinations increase, it will end right?

@MaMaD1990

We had 3 members of staff test positive in the space of a week at DD nursery. We pulled her out for a couple of weeks and it seems to have calmed down now. When do nursery staff get the vaccine? I hope they're high on the list

The same as everyone else.

The Guardian article is about who has antibodies, so probably people who have had it over the last 5 months not over the last 3 weeks. We really need to read the ITV article to know what it says.

@MaMaD1990 Nursery staff aren’t on the list at all unless they fall into one of the other categories such as age.

Are you clinically extremely vulnerable or living with someone cev? Or are you a white women under 55 with close to normal weight and no serious underlying health conditions?

What is making you "pretty nervous" to go to work?

I'm a paramedic and I haven't felt nervous about going to work since, proberbly, April, when it became clear that the virus was not a threat to me anymore than other random risks out there.

I really feel for nursery staff and childminders. They just seem totally forgotten about.

@J371172

Just read that article. Here's the link for others to have a look:

www.itv.com/news/2021-01-21/covid-nurseries-forgotten-by-government-as-cases-soar-among-staff

It's very concerning.

We really should only be open to vulnerable children and the children of those whose parents are critical workers, in line with other educational settings, but this would need to be alongside financial support from government to supplement income lost from other families unable to attend. It would be unfair to expect parents to pay in these circumstances, but without financial support from the government, I fear that many settings would not stay afloat.

I also recognise the impact this would have on working families and think government really need to knuckle down on employers of working parents to provide legal protections for those put on furlough due to childcare responsibilities.

Going forward, school and early years staff should be prioritised for vaccination, alongside other keyworkers such as NHS and care staff, in order for schools to reopen to all as quickly as possible, without the risk of them closing due to staff shortages, which is a major issue at the moment.

However, that's all in my ideal world. In the real world, our sector truly has been thrown under the bus. We are the only educational settings...only profession (that I am aware of) who are expected to carry on like it's 2019. Up to 40+ households mixing in close contact for prolonged periods of time inside, with open windows being our only line of defence. No PPE, as the DfE has not permitted it.

Under five year olds (quite naturally) do not socially distance...or wipe their own noses...or cover their coughs. In the last week alone I have had a child cough in my face, as I helped them to zip up their coat, another wipe their nose on my hand and a third spit at staff when they have become upset.

We try to stay on top of handwashing, but with three sinks to be shared between staff and children, this does not feel adequate.

There is no way of knowing which families have or have not stuck to the guidelines, but many children delight in telling us whose house they are going to play at.

Parents send their children in trying to hide covid symptoms by dosing them up on calpol and then seem aggrieved when we ask them to collect their child, isolate and get tested.

I personally feel at this point that it is inevitable that I am going to catch Covid through my place of work and if/when I do, I just pray I will remain well enough to look after my DD, as we have been completely alone throughout this and there will be nobody coming to see if we're ok.

@Cyw2018 I’m in my late 40s and not clinically vulnerable, my dh has underlying health conditions, asthma and diabetes and is 55 which I think makes him more vulnerable.

How do they know this? When you do a test you dont put your occupation!!

At our setting a 2 year old has tested positive for COVID.

Yesterday I was helping a child put on her boots and as I reached round her, she sneezed on my hands
I was pleased that I had decided to sit her on my lap and help her from behind because if I had helped her the other way round she would have sneezed directly into my face
We don’t wear masks or gloves when working directly with the children, as per the government guidance
Because of the layout of our nursery, in a portacabin with gates and panels, I had to wait until my colleague returned from helping children in the bathroom before I could go and wash my hands
It’s then worrying to read that the cases of children testing positive in the 0-4 age group is increasing but we are not priority for the vaccine
I have no issues with being at work, it’s my job and it’s important that parents can go to work but I do feel forgotten

@Remmy123

How do they know this? When you do a test you dont put your occupation!!

I did.

Also, I imagine if you test positive, they ask.

Frim BBC news website;

Half of all staff at nurseries, pre-schools and childminders "don't... feel safe at work", with about one in every 10 having tested positive since 1 December, according to an Early Years Alliance survey of more than 3,000 staff. Providers in England have been told to remain open to all children during lockdown and the government says under-fives are "unlikely to be playing a driving role in transmission".

That's1 in 10 testing positive since first of December, not testing positive for antibodies which show they have had COVID-19 at some point.

I really feel for staff in nursery classes. So many small children in one room and staff are expected to continue as normal.

[quote J371172]@Cyw2018 I’m in my late 40s and not clinically vulnerable, my dh has underlying health conditions, asthma and diabetes and is 55 which I think makes him more vulnerable.[/quote]
And that is, possibly (depending on your DH approach to reducing his own risk), a valid reason for you to have a discussion with your manager and to risk assess your situation.

But it's not a reason to try and whip up a frenzy in favour of closing nurseries.

It is very worrying. Having commented on a few threads like this i can tell you that unless someone is actually a nursery worker people just dont get it! No ppe, sneezed on, coughed on etc yet we are never mentioned by the government. We're just supposed to carry on as normal. Big hugs to everyone like me who works in a nursery doing the best job they can in exceptional circumstances.

I don't think the OP is whipping up a frenzy, just raising her concerns.

I think nursery staff have really been forgotten about. I can't think of any other job right now where having someone sneeze in your face while you aren't wearing PPE isn't a major concern.

I can’t find the actual survey, only press articles about it.

From what I can gather it’s based on a survey of 3,000 members implying 300 cases in the sample.
Was this a random representative sample or self selecting? If randomly selected then fair enough but if self selecting then I don’t think it would be possible to extrapolate this. If I had contracted COVID I think I’d be much more likely to reply to a survey

Just doesn’t seem to reconcile with the reported numbers of nursery outbreaks and closures

@ceeveebee I hadn’t thought of it like that. That makes me feel much better and you’re right, hopefully it’s not a representative sample of the whole sector.

When you do a test you dont put your occupation!!

You do now. They've really expanded the questions, including: whether you travel to work; occupation; type of organisation; first line of your address; if you're had a vaccine dose.

But it's not a reason to try and whip up a frenzy in favour of closing nurseries

@Cyw2018

No it's not, but that's not what the OP has done, so why be like that?

As a parent of someone in this age group - in this past week alone amongst my friends with children the same age, we have my daughters pre-school closed with 3 staff positive, 2kids and their families, my friends son nursery closed with 1 staff member and 5 kids and 6 of their family members and my other friends childminder closed with her whole family positive. From my personal experience, it seems to be spreading amongst the early years and family and staff.
I’m a key worker (law enforcement) and have no choice but to send my child (once her current self-isolation is over!) but feel awful in doing so. I feel for the staff too.