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Covid

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Original poster

Is Covid currently circulating in schools?

85 replies

Dustyboots · 21/02/2021 22:50

I met an old friend, whose a teacher, in the park today - she said staff are still being infected by kids - and that Covid is rife in her infant school.

Is this the case in any/many other schools? I'm keen for my kids to go back on March 8th but it's got me wondering whether there will be an immediate repeat of Autumn where classes are in and out all the time isolating.

OP posts:

HSHorror · 22/02/2021 00:01

3 altogether since sept. 2 in jan/feb. 1 recently.
It might spread worse in schools with hcp and care home workers vaxxed as no symptoms

Spikeyball · 22/02/2021 00:05

Ds's special school has been fully open. There have been no cases since October.

Shadeelane · 22/02/2021 00:13

My previous school has just had an outbreak. Bunch of staff all positive and 3 year groups affected. All closed next week. Yes of course it's circulating in schools.

Shadeelane · 22/02/2021 00:13

Just to add this is a primary.

namechange63524 · 22/02/2021 00:18

@Dustyboots

I do want to send my kids in. But I want the government to make necessary changes to mitigate the inevitable spread.

This - so that my kids (and all others +teachers) are safer - but also so that they get a less disrupted education, hoping that schools can stay open longer this way.

This x 100

Pieceofpurplesky · 22/02/2021 00:20

Secondary school - two staff and 8 kids positive two weeks ago

Shadeelane · 22/02/2021 00:21

My current current school is doing ok. We've had several bubbles closures, cases amongst kids and staff since September but on the whole all isolated and didn't spread. We're a special school though with small classes. I really feel for my friends in mainstream. It's not fun.

Northernsoulgirl45 · 22/02/2021 01:05

Kids primary had two cases just before half term. None before that.

BettyBoomerang · 22/02/2021 01:07

Yeah it's the variant. It's going to be a lot worse in about 2 weeks time apparently!

ineedaholidaynow · 22/02/2021 01:11

Local Primaries have had bubbles bursting since January even with reduced numbers, both pupils and staff. In an area with low rates too. Parents were pulling pupils out (so probably not that KW!) once bubbles started to go, will be interesting to see how confident parents are on 8th March.

Andbearsohmy · 22/02/2021 01:12

The school I work at had 2 positive cases, in 2 seperate bubbles, this lockdown. Children are in classes of ten and well spaced out and there didn't seem to be any transmission from infected students to other students/teachers (unless asymptomatic). Wish we had the space to social distance when the rest of the children come back to prevent transmissions in school.

Sweettea1 · 22/02/2021 01:19

Is covid not circulating everywhere that's open? It will and always has been in schools aswell as every where else. Did you send your dc in before this lockdown? If so then it will be no different. If you don't feel its safe enough don't send them in simple.

Waxonwaxoff0 · 22/02/2021 06:33

It certainly isn't in DS's primary and never really has been. They haven't had a case since before October half term and staff now have access to lateral flow tests.

Fayrazzled · 22/02/2021 06:39

Im a teacher and we had no cases from September to December, but have had 4 cases in staff since January- when we’ve only been open for KW children. No known cases in children but have been in parents. Lots of parents are not getting their children tested because they only have mild symptoms. Who knows how many are asymptomatic?

Fayrazzled · 22/02/2021 06:40

We do lateral flow tests (staff) twice a week but they only pick up about 50% of positive cases apparently- so useful but not a panacea.

MoriParty · 22/02/2021 06:55

We're properly following the rules and sadly see no one. I was assuming that everyone was kind of doing the same and so the kids in schools would be fairly infection free.

You're very narrow minded if these are your assumptions. You are aware many many people are working out of the home mixing with many others on a daily basis, have done throughout the entire pandemic and are still following the rules right? Do you really think everyone is just like you and able to work from home? Most of the children in school will have parents who work outside the home so of course they're more likely to bring in covid, although it's important to remember most people don't have covid.

Oysterbabe · 22/02/2021 07:06

There have been no cases in my kid's school.

SansaSnark · 22/02/2021 07:24

@Dustyboots

I met an old friend, whose a teacher, in the park today - she said staff are still being infected by kids - and that Covid is rife in her infant school.

I'm a secondary teacher and so we are doing LFT on all kids in the building and all staff every week. We have had more cases this term than we did in the whole of last term - bear in mind we only have ~5% of students in. We have had to send a group of students home to isolate in one case.

In secondaries, I believe the plan is for children to be tested before/when they return, so hopefully we can minimise the number of cases coming into school (bear in mind LFT aren't fully accurate and will miss some cases). I'm not sure what happens with kids who refuse to be tested.

However this hasn't prevented Covid cases popping up with only a small number of kids in school, so it's very likely that testing will just lead to more children having to isolate.

We are going to start with a higher infection rate (both nationally and locally) than we had in September, so things are very likely to be worse, faster.

starfish4 · 22/02/2021 07:32

We haven't had any known cases this year, but are in a low risk area. Teachers haven't caught it off children, but we had one instance of the other way around, with the child then passing it to a parent. Work in a primary school and, although, it's not meant to spread among children so easily, for very member of staff testing positive, we've had five children test positive.

Fuckadoodledoooo · 22/02/2021 07:34

Yes. sIL is a teacher. Still going round and round the keyworker kids and staff.

We get at least three or four ParentMails a week still saying there has been a confirmed case (Dd is at home but we still have to inform school so I don't know if these are made up of just children still at school or ones at home too).

DinosaurDiana · 22/02/2021 07:35

Yes. Even though my DS is off school I still receive the notifications if there’s a case in school, so yes, it’s still in schools.

ineedaholidayandwine · 22/02/2021 07:37

2 cases in my daughters school the last day of school in Dec, nothing since and very very low numbers locally

YouHadMeAtWoof · 22/02/2021 07:37

We had 1 case of a parent with Covid September to December. None in school.

We’ve had several cases and bubble closures with less than 25% in.

megletsecond · 22/02/2021 07:38

A local nursery has just reopened after a two weeks closure at the end of Jan/ start of feb. Eight staff and a few kids had covid.

beenrumbled · 22/02/2021 07:44

DS1 is working in a secondary school at the moment - Since going back in January they have had to send 5 key worker/vulnerable "bubbles" home for pupils testing positive and 8 support staff /teachers who are in school have tested positive too - they are having weekly LTF.

So yes, it's still rife in school, or at least the one he is working in. Bringing them all back is going to be a disaster.

DS2 is at a different secondary school - loads of bubbles burst before Christmas, but he only had one 2 week isolation, so he was lucky - the disruption it caused for other kids was awful. And from DS1s experience LTF tests make little difference.

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