Please be kind to teachers

[Tiktokersmiracle]

Please be kind to teachers, heads, support staff

I often see threads on Mumsnet where teachers take a bashing.
They have been let down by the government immensely. The DofE finally released figures for Covid cases amongst teachers compared to the rest of the population and it was huge

As a result, a teacher at my DC's School has passed away. We are all as a community devastated

The government willfully ignored the stats, kept promising it was safe when they knew by October half term it wasn't.

So whilst we all want our children back in school, please know that what may result in a tiny amount of virus of no great concern if our children get it, is putting staff in danger.
And please be respectful to them doing what they can. It's the government we should be angry with.

I’m so sorry OP

I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank our wonderful teachers, TAs and support staff for what they are doing for our children through all of this.

So sorry to hear this. I do feel that primary school teachers in particular are having a tough time now. My DS is a secondary teacher and was feeling very anxious before lockdown, surrounded by infections and no masks or SD. He is now wfh which is twice the amount of work but safer.
In contrast my friend's DD is a primary teacher on her knees with stress and exhaustion trying to teach the 50% of children that are in class and the other 50% online. She works 12 hours a day and at weekends and she has CEV family at home and is in constant fear of bringing it back to them.
It's so sad that whatever they do teachers get no public sympathy or support.

So sorry to read about your child's teacher 💐
Thank you for mentioning all school staff. I work in a primary school every day and it's scary. Xxx

Doesn’t make it right but I think a lot of parents feared it would be a revisit of the first lockdown - work sheets printed off.
I fully support teachers and all professional that have to deal with members of the general public! All at risk. My own daughter working in Sainsbury’s people without marks standing very close to her asking for help and others aggressive especially around the toilet rolls!!
But our school this time around have been soooo much better daily morning online lessons with support and smaller group work (once a week but good to have focus) I know with working this has helped so much with a better balance I can do my job without working late into the evening.
Parents still complain - too much - not enough - homework etc and I feel for the LT and teachers dealing with this balance!
Yea screen time has gone up but she’s writing reading and doing maths & is much happy doing it!

@Phymp

So sorry to hear this. I do feel that primary school teachers in particular are having a tough time now. My DS is a secondary teacher and was feeling very anxious before lockdown, surrounded by infections and no masks or SD. He is now wfh which is twice the amount of work but safer. In contrast my friend's DD is a primary teacher on her knees with stress and exhaustion trying to teach the 50% of children that are in class and the other 50% online. She works 12 hours a day and at weekends and she has CEV family at home and is in constant fear of bringing it back to them. It's so sad that whatever they do teachers get no public sympathy or support.

Because the support staff at secondary are doing the on-site looking after of the KW and Vulnerable unlike primary.

OP - do you have a link? I'm not disputing your facts but this is what I found when I googled.

@TheQueenRaven

OP - do you have a link? I'm not disputing your facts but this is what I found when I googled.

That is data released in Summer last year when schools were closed to most students. This is not a thread for questioning people's concerns with "facts" from the internet - they are real and should be recognised. This thread needs to be a kind place. @Tiktokersmiracle - more ⚘

Teachers are not permitted ppe in many schools, where is the safety in that?. Absolutely. And where is the logic in that? Why the hell can't teachers and kids be in masks all the time in class like they are elsewhere? As a minimum.
Awful to hear of this teacher's death..

A teacher died of Covid at my DCs school recently too. I am sure there are many - not publishing that data though are they.

So sorry for the loss of your dc's teacher, OP.

I have been saying for months that teachers have the right to a safe working environment. I feel so angry that more hasn't been done to protect them. The statistics that were published recently merely confirmed what many of us had known all along.

As a parent, I'm immensely grateful for the hard work that teachers and other school staff are doing to try and educate our children in this period, in exceptionally difficult circumstances. I have written to our HT on several occasions to thank her and her team for all of their efforts. It is an immensely stressful time all round.

I hope that school staff will at the very least get pushed up the priority list for the vaccine.

I am am sorry for your DC's loss. How devastating.

I am support staff and currently working full time. Almost daily I get an earful from an overwhelmed parent. Today it was because we wouldn't reopen school and we were abiding by govt guidelines to close schools and adhering to such measures.

I appreciate parents are juggling working from home, parenting and keeping a house running and it's is hard for everyone. But these phone calls add to our own anxieties of being at work and our own children being at school while we work.

It's so hard for everyone in different. Let's just be kind to eachother 🙌🏻

My garbled response shows just how frazzled I am!

But despite the typos I hope you get the gist! 🤯

Just catching up with replies
Lots of plans are on place amongst parents a d the wider community to do what we can to honour the teacher. It's so difficult because when a teacher as loved as this passes away, in normal times they would line the route but we know this won't be possible from a safety aspect.
DD was in tears. They can be a bit of pain in the arse school wise and the teacher was brilliant. When they decided to change pronouns and go with a name they preferred based on their original name, they told him first, he said "well, very nice to meet you" and shook hands.
They had so many years experience with kids it was second nature to them teaching wise. The messages online from children have been amazing.

I just feel for anyone forgotten by government right now, trying to do their best in the hardest circumstances. When you see that the commons is still distanced and still not allowing a full seating, yet everyone else seems fair game,it makes me so cross.

ONS data just released today says that the infection is increasing in primary age children and faster than at any other age group.

Huge groups of KWV children in schools; no sd and no ppe.

Teacher are at risk, that’s a fact.

I have been saying for months that teachers have the right to a safe working environment. I feel so angry that more hasn't been done to protect them. The statistics that were published recently merely confirmed what many of us had known all along.

Yep, me too. Writing to my MP endlessly to the point he no longer even acknowledges my emails let alone replies (so much for democracy).

The sad thing is, if the many many scientists, parents, teachers and school staff asking for safer schools, for funding for safer schools had been listened to, kids wouldn't be locked down now.

We'd have fewer outbreaks and teacher deaths too. It's pretty basic.

My friends live in the USA - their son (aged 6) has been in masks in socially distanced school (one week in, one week home learning the same material as in school) and guess what? Their infection rate is only slightly higher than the summer and he's still in school every other week. Not a single isolation since he started back after the summer. No cases in his school (staff or students). Everyone wears masks all the time (except when eating at your own socially distanced desk) from age 5.

Both his parents work full time from home and at least they know when he'll be home and can plan accordingly. I know they'd rather that than what we've ended up with - kids back as normal and then full lockdown.

It is BECAUSE the government FAILED to make the school environment safe that we are where we are - in terms of the devastating impacts on staff and the impacts on kids from being out of schools .

The whole idea that masks were needed in corridors but magically not needed in the classroom (longest duration of exposure) is clearly bonkers.

school staff have been woefully let down by the government.

Weekly lateral flow testing being offered now apparently...

@Nicknamegoeshere

Weekly lateral flow testing being offered now apparently...

It is, I have mine. They won’t actually stop the risk or the spread now coming from the primary age group though..

@GinJeanie

This is not a thread for questioning people's concerns with "facts" from the internet - they are real and should be recognised. This thread needs to be a kind place

Nothing unkind in asking for a link.

Apologies - biweekly.

@Itisasecret How do you feel about it? I'm not sure. Not sure if I'd consent.

To me it feels like the gov (to add insult to injury) would rather have all school staff take an uncomfortable test twice a week rather than get them vaccinated. A delaying tactic?

My OH works in social care and he's getting his next week. Whilst of course I'm pleased he is, so far this week he has done almost all of his work from home. When he does a visit he is provided with PPE which he has to wear.

Are school staff WFH nearly all of the time and with PPE when they're not?

No.

Yes we have weekly lateral flow for staff only. This was our second week and we have had 2 positives out of about 70 people.

@TheQueenRavenSorry - misunderstood. I thought you were questioning the idea teachers' working conditions were unsafe. There's a lot of people trying to minimise the fears of those working in education atm by looking for evidence which discounts it.
Apologies. Bit tetchy at the moment! 😳

Thank you for your post op. I’m sorry for the loss of your dc teacher.
There really is so much teacher bashing in here, it’s unbelievable. I remain hopeful that one day people will treat teachers with the respect and kindness that is deserved. They are the only working people that have no ppe at all. Masks are not allowed at my school.

@Nicknamegoeshere

Weekly lateral flow testing being offered now apparently...

For staff only in primary schools.

@Nicknamegoeshere

Apologies - biweekly.

@Itisasecret How do you feel about it? I'm not sure. Not sure if I'd consent.

To me it feels like the gov (to add insult to injury) would rather have all school staff take an uncomfortable test twice a week rather than get them vaccinated. A delaying tactic?

My OH works in social care and he's getting his next week. Whilst of course I'm pleased he is, so far this week he has done almost all of his work from home. When he does a visit he is provided with PPE which he has to wear.

Are school staff WFH nearly all of the time and with PPE when they're not?

No.

They aren’t accurate and the data around schools/risk/primary age transmission is pretty damning. People will always deny it but it’s clear. I’ll do my twice weekly tests, won’t stop the children catching/spreading it and taking it home. Which is why drops in cases are slowing.

It’s a diversion. They know staff need testing because they are in high risk environments, everyday for long periods, with no PPE.

I am only doing it so I don’t put my CV child at any more risk.

@TheQueenRaven

OP - do you have a link? I'm not disputing your facts but this is what I found when I googled.

I think op maybe referring to this