When will schools reopen?

[SeldomFollowedIt]

Purely speculative thread.

Yes I know they’re “open”, I work in one. When do we think they will all return? I’m hoping after Easter. I’m also hoping school staff get to have the vaccine before then.

What do you think?

When it's as safe as they can possibly make it, no half hearted measures and warmer weather so dc can taught more outdoors (our primary had marques on playing area) ate out, went out as much as possible.
It would be a crime to push them back before it's warmer, teachers and staff vaccinated and safe. I'm hoping by May, mid April if it's warm... By then one prays the weather and vaccine and numbers in hospital will mean we can gently ease towards some of form of life over summer!!

How long is a piece of string. Fact is no one knows.

Easter I reckon

When it’s safe to do so and we know more about variants, with measures in place not just hand washing, staff vaccinated, a good percentage of the community also having been vaccinated and capacity within the nhs for all treatments.

I think they'll try and get some primary years in before Easter. All primaries years after Easter and some secondary year groups then remaining secondary year groups after May half term. I don't think we'll get vaccinated (secondary teacher here) until May half term at least.

Thanks for your input all.

I did think after Easter but less sure now. Hopefully it will be. I’m hoping to have had a vaccine by then as over 50.

Scotland here, hoping for after Feb break so around the 22nd for all, maybe blended earlier for primary. It gives a good chance to get numbers down more and I think it may be blended on return.
I am in as normal with my class and like having the routine, but it isn't normal even for my class and anxiety is high.

Feb would be very early. Before mist if the first lot of vaccines are done. Im group 6 and my firdt vaccine should be end March. Second could be june!

I hope they now see how dangerous having schools open has been... but I susoect3they wont.

I reckon Easter if we are lucky. So many unknowns at the moment especially with the new strain and how fatal it actually is and how effective the vaccine are against it.
If schools did open before cases dropped or before more is known about the new virus, I won’t be sending my kids back.

I don't think teachers will have COVID vaccine first dose by Easter. Police and other front line services including childcare and supermarket staff taxi driver etc won't have had it by Easter.

Even CEV and front line carers who might have had first vaccine dose, won't have had second dose that takes you from 50-60% to 90/"-95% won't have had second (12 weeks later) vaccine dose by then and they/we are groups 2-4 most vulnerable that gov is targeting.

So no, I don't think teachers will be vaccinated by then and tbh if we as a nation aren't vaccinating nursery years childcare workers and also don't realise children transmit asymptomatic between them selves, what is being understood and protected?

I think June. Similar to last year. Hopefully back for last half term.

I think teachers stand a chance of being vaccinated before schools return fully. Particularly secondary. Remember all the chaos in the week before Christmas, with many teachers issuing section 44 notices stating they have a right to a safe working environment? I really don’t know the government will want all that hassle tbh.

@Lemons1571

I think teachers stand a chance of being vaccinated before schools return fully. Particularly secondary. Remember all the chaos in the week before Christmas, with many teachers issuing section 44 notices stating they have a right to a safe working environment? I really don’t know the government will want all that hassle tbh.

Oh yeah, forgot about the section 44 notice! Good on them

That sounds logical. So if teachers have to be vaxxed then vax has to be available for them so that starts to look more like May/June?

@Monkeytennis97 do you think they'll prioritise the same primary years as the summer term? Reception, y1 and y6?

I want my y10 back ASAP. She has lost so much gcse course time it HAS to be accounted for in the final exam.

Hopefully Early years staff get the vaccine too. It seems to be often forgotten that they are operating as usual.

My school had a majority of staff put in section 44 letters. We all said we'd be happy with smaller groups. We closed before we were officially closed (so didn't have that stupid one day return). My head wanted us to put in letters. It will be interesting to see how it pans out.

What I'd like is week on/week off through term 4 to reduce class sizes, vaccines in the community and for staff, then back after Easter.

@3littlewords our school never reopened for those years last summer even though that was what the government said. They were closed March to September

[quote 3littlewords]@Monkeytennis97 do you think they'll prioritise the same primary years as the summer term? Reception, y1 and y6?[/quote]
I have no idea. All I know is that it's all about childcare needs.

@marshmallowfluffy only in nursery settings presumably?

@whenwillthemadnessend

I want my y10 back ASAP. She has lost so much gcse course time it HAS to be accounted for in the final exam.

I want to be vaccinated before being shoved back in a classroom and put at risk again. That HAS to happen.

We all have our wants and needs.

If need be I'll do section 44 again. No hesitation.

@Monkeytennis97

Not one member of staff in my primary did a section 44. As a brand new TA at the school I didn’t, but I was expecting a few teachers to raise one.