Schools in England should go back at Easter

[GinAndTonicOnIt]

I'm terrified that full return will result in increased transmissions. This will increase the chance of more mutations. Which increases the chance of a mutant that is resistant to the current vaccines.

Or just back with full wards, and yet another lockdown.

I loathe lockdown. I would give anything to wake up tomorrow and life be back to normal. But it's for this reason I think we should wait that extra bit longer. Get those rates right down and vaccines out, then have a return to school that won't result in another lockdown.....!

AIBU for thinking this? Am I wrong?

@Redtulipses

Opening too soon would be counter productive in the future.

Based on what evidence? The benefits to children would imo be far higher than the costs of a potential increase in virus circulation. The vulnerable teachers and members of society are vaccinated so there's no need to close down schools anymore.

Based on what evidence?

We told you over summer that opening schools with so few mitigation’s was a bad idea. The number of people with Covid was far lower in summer than it is now.

Opening schools happened anyway. The virus spread and mutated and we had to lock down again. The evidence is quite simply what happened last summer.

Children are unvaccinated, most of their parents are unvaccinated and most teachers are unvaccinated. Schools are too small for social distancing when normal numbers of kids are in. It is hard to see how a virus won’t spread.

Disagree so strongly. It took my breath away yesterday when I read on another thread that children have had ONE term of proper education in a whole year. I mean obviously I knew that, but it really shocked me to see it written down.

I know and some think one term in school was too much. Depressing.

And if they do stay closed for any longer, I need somebody to hold DD's school and teachers to account to actually provide the teaching and education she is entitled to

Sorry your school isn’t providing a good level of education. What are they providing and what do you want them to do?
It’s impossible to please everyone but it sounds like the school isn’t helping your dd.

@VashtaNerada but at least teachers struggling to work from home and teach their own children, have some understanding of what they are doing? I don't, I work in safeguarding in substance misuse. Not helpful at all for teaching my kids. Online is the best it can be but they can't put their hand up if they are stuck with a question.
My 13 year old DD. Was a confident, outgoing girl, this time last year. Top of her classes and doing very well. In a year she has gone from exceeding expectations to working towards expected. She is spending hours a week in tears because she is struggling. She's even self-harmed on two occasions because she cannot cope.
My 12 year old DSD is severely dyslexic. She's dropped massively behind. There is no additional support for her at home. The teachers have even sent her work home on white paper when they know full well she can only read it on yellow 🤷‍♀️
These kids do their GCSEs in 3 years time, there's not long to catch up.
I'm lucky to be in a place to be able to pay for tutors to help with this but many, many parents aren't.
Our children have been well and truly thrown under the bus by this government.
The people I have the most praise for at my children's school are the pastoral care team, the SENDCO and the teaching assistants who are going above and beyond what they need to do and they are not being mentioned by the press or media.

Spot on WhenSheWasBad

@VashtaNerada

Completely agree. At the moment I’m teaching my own class remotely or teaching keyworkers in school on alternate weeks, and traveling by tube and bus to get there. BUT class sizes are fifteen and tubes are empty. I feel really quite scared about how different things will be if schools open fully. And when we go back I want it to be permanent, not with loads of two week periods where we have to self-isolate followed by another lockdown. That’s much more unsettling to children than a slow return to school that’s sensible and safe, and letting them stay once they’re back. But we’ll continue to do exactly what we’ve been doing for the last year. Get to school, put on a smile, plan some lovely lessons, be there for the kids, and then go home and cry. And try not to read nasty comments online from people working from home claiming the teaching profession is “lazy” and “doesn’t care about kids”.

I’ve been working from home. I’m still entitled to an opinion on what is right for my child’s education and when I think schools should/should not open, and whether I think school is ‘safe’.

So are you suggesting we wait until all parents and children are vaccinated before schools go back? Really??

We didn't lock down to get rid of the virus, we locked down because the NHS is under funded and couldn't cope.

Now that the vulnerable are vaccinated, the NHS should be able to cope. Therefore schools need to reopen.

You’re right for primary @supersonicginandtonic but I don’t have a clue with secondary! Your DD sounds like mine I do think those of us debating this have a lot in common - we all want what is best for children.

Our children have been well and truly thrown under the bus by this government

Sorry your daughters are struggling. The government has thrown kids under the bus. Not because they’ve shut schools - they tried to open them and it all went to shit.

They didn’t invest much in schools. Wouldn’t consider rota’s. Fucked up the supply of tech to vulnerable children. That’s how they’ve thrown them under the bus.

Of course you are @FreakinFrankNFurter - I didn’t say you couldn’t have an opinion. What I said is I don’t expect to be told I’m lazy when I’m working harder than I’ve ever worked in my life (& no, I don’t think teachers are the only profession working hard at the moment, but I haven’t been insulting them either).

No they have to reopen. My DDs mental health and behaviour has been deteriorating since January. She also has speech issues which although they have improved massively since September it has started to worsen again since xmas. She needs social interaction with other children. Enough is enough. The agreement was to get the vulnerable vaccinated. It has been done. If it gets delayed until Easter, what is to say the unions or whoever won't think up another excuse them to delay it even further?!

For everyone saying wait until Easter do you mean keeping our dc under the same restrictions they are now for a further 8 weeks?
Meeting 1 friend for the occasional excerise? And thats if they fortunate to be old enough to go out alone, as children over 5 and not yet mature enough to be out unsupervised dont even have that little luxury. Personally don't care if schools never re open again, if education from now on comes from oak academy or whatever its called thats fine , but our dc need to be able to maintain social interactions with their friends and extended family. They need to create memories and experience life outside the family home. My 6yo hasn't interacted with anyone his own age since before Christmas and I'm supposed to be ok for that to continue for another 8 weeks and think that this is acceptable because it really really isn't by any stretch of the imagination.
Keep schools closed for however long you like but let our children socialise in the meantime!

I work for a school and the feeling is that years 1 and 2 need to be in school most. This would fit in with what other parts of the UK have allowed, so I wonder if it'll be the younger years and sat/exam years go back, along with a few minor changes - they've already mentioned care home residents having one visitor. I suspect the other years will be after Easter.

seista
So are you suggesting we wait until all parents and children are vaccinated before schools go back? Really

I’m pretty sure the op said after Easter. Not all adults will be vaccinated by then.

Great idea. Let's keep the kids at home forever.

I'm not happy my teens are off. DD is playing 12 hours of roblox a day, she's violent so I can't remove the screen. We are not playing happy lockdown families here. I just see the bigger picture and can ride it out a bit longer.

I'm a teacher wfh. I def haven't got time to teach my own children. They're in primary. I just assume they're getting on with it and at lesson changeover, I kind of vaguely shout at them to get on with something.

This half term is only 5 weeks isn't it? If they send all in at the same time, you'd only be gaining 3 weeks.

I want kids back in. But I don't buy that school is a magic cure for kids' mental health. Maybe that's cos mine are there from 730-6 every day normally. I'd like kids to be able to see a friend at the weekend or in holidays; to do their hobbies; to be able to go further than from their front door for exercise. I'm worried that a mass opening will the nicer months of the year will end up shit too.

All children back in on the 8th March equals lots of staff and children off with covid / isolating. That isn’t an education in any sense of the word as we all experienced last term. The constant in / out was awful for everyone.

Would actually love the government to prioritise education as they have pretended to do and put some actual mitigation’s in place to allow schools to open and stay open for everyone.

Completely agree and will not be sending DS (Y4) back prior to Easter whatever is said on Monday

I think reception, y1, y6 and exam years need to go back asap

@WhenSheWasBad it's the same with every profession though that's been working throughout.
My brother works in a food production factory, they've had significantly higher numbers of infections than schools.
I work in the NHS but as we are substance misuse we are the forgotten minions. I've been seeing my clients face to face with just a crappy mask, they always say they're exempt. They also show up with symptoms as they aren't bothered about my safety. Their priority is their script.
My partner is a probation officer. He has only just begun being tested. He's seeing prison releases and has been spat on and coughed on far too many times to count.
And what about the police and prison officers? They have been completely forgotten. They can't work from home when somebody they are working with tests positive for the virus.
The children are the future of this country and at the moment they are getting almost nothing and their mental health is falling apart.

Children are unvaccinated, most of their parents are unvaccinated and most teachers are unvaccinated

Children aren’t going to be vaccinated and vulnerable parents and teachers will have been vaccinated. Everyone else needs to remember they have as much chance of dying from coronavirus as everything else. I can’t believe how many people on here want schools to stay shut, luckily it doesn’t reflect opinions of people I know in RL.

Our children have been well and truly thrown under the bus by this government

I agree. Schools need to open ASAP. The damage to our children is already huge and any further delay will cause further long term damage. Damage that is far greater than the risk of this virus circulating against which the vulnerable are already vaccinated!

Yes, thankfully all my real life friends including teachers are desperate to get our children back into school!

March 2020 "shut the schools". June 2020"it's too soon keep them shut till September". September 2020 "we need a firebreak extend half term". February 2021 "March is too soon wait till Easter." Does anyone want children to have a future?

Easter 2021"it's too soon wait till May half term". June 2021"keep them off till September".