If they open up schools all at once, I'm done with every other precaution

[BettyBoomerang]

If the 'leak' is true and they are stupid enough to open up all schools to all kids at the same time (thus leading to uncontrolled transmission of variants and increased risk of vaccine escape, further lockdowns and a redo of the vaccination programme) then I'm done with any kind of compliance.

I'm not staying at home like a fucking stupid sitting duck, waiting for my kids to come home with Covid anymore. The kids can see their friends, have sleepovers and we'll go out and about and visit friends and relatives and do the maximum we can.

You can pile in and call me selfish or whatever - I genuinely don't care anymore. I'm not putting my life on hold just for the government to fuck the recovery up again. I'm the most compliant of pretty much everyone I know but this is it for me, and many others I suspect (most of whom are already doing way more than me). If it's safe for my kids to go to school, then everything is safe.

If I have to go back to school in March then I will no longer follow any other covid related rules.

You're joking right

@Todayissunny

Im not in the UK. And I am aware that there are different challenges there.

I am a teacher. Teach English to primary kids as a FL.
We had short school closures last spring (longer for kids over 16 and adult ed). Since then every adult that enters school grounds has to wear a mask at all times. Including while teaching. Kids over 12 also have to wear masks at all times in the school building. Primary kids from age of 9/10 have had to wear masks at all times since new variants have been discovered here.
We have co2 monitors in classrooms letting us know when we should open windows.
None of this has affected teaching or learning.

We have only had isolated cases in all the schools I deal with and know of. We haven't seen it being passed between kids at school.
I strongly believe that masks do work.

Kids MUST get back to school.

As you say, some countries have at least made an effort to include some forms of precautions in their schools.

Schools DO need to return.
Just they ought to be returning with restrictions and protective measures, something our government has been reluctant to do from day 1, even to the point of having so many believe children don't get covid and don't pass it on.

@yellowsubmarines whyvwould you be unmasked? It should be a rule (like every other country in the world) that masks are worn in classrooms. Where I am primary kids over 9 y.o. wear masks and ALL teachers. It doesn't affect learning or teaching.

@minipie

If it's safe for my kids to go to school, then everything is safe.

This isn’t how it works. We can afford a certain level of transmission for hospitals not to be overwhelmed. We cannot afford a greater level of transmission. Opening schools will produce a certain level of transmission, which is projected not to overwhelm hospitals. That doesn’t mean we can go off and do other stuff which will raise transmission further.

But I think you know that.

Everyone needs to read this enough times it sinks in.

I really do think the Government made a misstep with the schools are safe line - what they meant I think was that children are at a low risk from Coronavirus and therefore it is ok for them to be at school.
What it has been read as is that schools are not places where it can spread which just simply isn’t true
But we can’t stay in lockdown forever we have to start coming out slowly and it was always stated schools are the priority. As I said given the gaps before anything else is allowed you can see the impact it is expected to have.

Schools opening in itself won’t cause it to spiral out of control because there is room in the R number. What will is people thinking that means they can do other stuff. It’s rubbish but we can’t

MashNgravy
You can say "don't be a dick" as much as you like, but the government policy must take into account a certain amount of such dicks around. And if the decisions they make do not make sense, the number of dicks will be so big that it would be impossible to stop them being dicks.

This isn’t how it works. We can afford a certain level of transmission for hospitals not to be overwhelmed. We cannot afford a greater level of transmission. Opening schools will produce a certain level of transmission, which is projected not to overwhelm hospitals. That doesn’t mean we can go off and do other stuff which will raise transmission further.

Well said.

Also, in theory if every parent was behaving themselves and they and their families were not seeing anyone else outside the school setting the risk of transmission would be drastically lower.

For example my household is just me, DH and DS. I'm furloughed, DH is WFH and DS would only be going to and from school. Therefore there's no risk of transmission from us. If all families followed this, there would only be the minimal risk of transmission from families of key workers who must go outside to work - which would be an acceptable minimum risk as the NHS would have capacity to deal with it.

I can understand why some are saying that they may as well go about their business (@Lampzade)

I can't. And I hope most adults will see the need to be EXTRA careful to not raise transmission any further than is happening at schools.

Thank god they’re going back on the 8th!! 👏 👏 👏

Well at the end of the day OP, if you want to throw a tantrum and behave like a dick, nobody can stop you.

The point OP was making about socialising with school mums was a reasonable one. If her children are sat all day in unventilated rooms with all of the school mums' children what difference does it make if they all chat at the school gate - very little as far as I can see.

Not true. Not every interaction will transmit covid. Sometimes even people in the same family have avoided catching it from each other. Especially if the person with covid is asymptomatic, which should be the case for a child in school. So you can’t say “well if there’s covid in that family we’ll already have caught it from them via our children”. You might not have caught it via the children... but every extra interaction between the families increases the risk of transmission.

You can say "don't be a dick" as much as you like, but the government policy must take into account a certain amount of such dicks around.

Hopefully the vast majority of adults are sensible enough not to be dicks.

It would just delay the opening up of other parts of society!

I am so bloody happy they're going back! My daughter is so excited 😊😊😊

Betty - I get the impression that you havent really been considerate and that you have been doing some of these things already. You say everyone else is out and about and I have to say I agree with you looking at the traffic on the roads.

You do get that if you increase the mixing MORE it will be YOU that suffers and potentially buggers it up for the rest of us by rushing it, it wont be Boris or Hancock. I think there are people who honestly want this to go on and on. Are they not working, public sector or even dare I say it teachers who are liking this new way of living.

You sound very selfish I am afraid.

The point OP was making about socialising with school mums was a reasonable one. If her children are sat all day in unventilated rooms with all of the school mums' children what difference does it make if they all chat at the school gate - very little as far as I can see.

That logic only applies if there was a 100% transmission rate of covid. There isn't! So yes, there will be an increase in potential transmission by meeting other school mums.

How are most of you still not getting it? Unbelievable...

It doesn’t matter if schools open, it doesn’t matter if schools remain closed there will be another lockdown, then another and another after that.

Sooner or later you’re gonna have to come to terms with the fact you’re being played.

Schools gates though SHOULD be controlled and have some restrictions though-

Our local high schools have each year group coming and going at a different time

All the local primary schools around here have staggered times and when parents do collect social distancing and masks are worn. And I think the time is seen as over 15 minutes and that should not be reached when pick up

I will absolutely stick to the rules so my poor poor children can return to some normality in their lives. They are suffering so much. We can afford a little increase in the R rate that may come from opening schools as long as adults do their bit. Stay home OP and stick to the rules and schools may well stay open. Schools in France haven't closed. Evidence shows schools are safe but reflect community transmission. So stay at home eh?!

If anything the schools opening is going to make me more likely to follow the other rules not less. I don’t want to jeopardise the main route- i.e. school - to getting life better for mine and others children

The wilful ignorance of some people who focus solely on the infection risk of schools opening and are not able to balance this against the emotional, mental, social and educational risks of not opening them is depressing.

I will be walking around my house naked and having a party the day my 3 go back school. Can’t bloody wait!

Surely if most people are vaccinated then we can have some sort of normality? That’s what the vaccines are for aren’t they? If we are still going to be locked away then what’s the point of them?

My sons been back since mid January as he goes to an sen school. He’s already struggled getting back into routine. We’ve done google classroom but he walks off or starts playing with the microphone. He’s already had a year out due to lack of sen schools. It took him four months to get back into a classroom. One year to get off a part time timetable. He’s already had suicidal thoughts due to lockdown and he’s only 11.
My daughter 4 needs to go back. She barely speaks. Speach therapy seems non existent at the moment. Plus school is her safe space. On Fridays I home school her brother which is not for the faint hearted.
Covid is the very least of my concerns at the moment. I have my dad currently in hospital as he’s just had cancer surgery and my mum has just been placed in a care home. I can’t see either of them. It’s horrible. Really horrible but I know that it’s more important that children go back to school so that they have a future. That has to take priority over everything else. It’s very rarely that both political parties agree.
There is very little risk to children. There is minimal risk to teachers in comparison to other jobs. My oh has to see members of the public every day as apparently he’s a key worker and he is vulnerable but we don’t have a choice.
I don’t believe teachers should have priority vaccinations. High risk and those over 50 yes. LSA and those that work in sen schools and nursery workers yes. I also think it should still be parental choice especially if there are shielding people at home.
You will never get everyone to agree and there are those that don’t care and those that are scared of leaving the house and then those in the middle.

@PinkPurpleIndigo 1000% agree with you and wish more people could get behind this idea

So your child will take covid into school, pass it onto teachers, pupils, support staff and then they (who may be vulnerable themselves but forced to go into school) will bring it home to more vulnerable individuals. My youngest is very worried about bringing it home to two vulnerable (and under 40 people who live in our household). Please be aware not all the vulnerable can have or have been offered the vaccine yet (it's a postcode lottery).
This is really selfish behaviour just hold tight and you'll have your freedom back and just as importantly those vulnerable who quite frankly have had more restrictions than you, can have their lives back to. It's behaviour like this that can cause further lock downs as the vulnerable are unwittingly infected.

@minipie

The point OP was making about socialising with school mums was a reasonable one. If her children are sat all day in unventilated rooms with all of the school mums' children what difference does it make if they all chat at the school gate - very little as far as I can see.

Not true. Not every interaction will transmit covid. Sometimes even people in the same family have avoided catching it from each other. Especially if the person with covid is asymptomatic, which should be the case for a child in school. So you can’t say “well if there’s covid in that family we’ll already have caught it from them via our children”. You might not have caught it via the children... but every extra interaction between the families increases the risk of transmission.

Thank you to this very intelligent response to that very stupid post 👏

Self certified dick here who is done with the lot this weekend and had visitors etc!

I am categorically done with rules.