Tests and Masks not Compulsory, apparently.

[Radio4Rocks]

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/25/covid-tests-masks-not-compulsory-english-schools-nick-gibb?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR0o_Hr0gXp7m3QB6NHQcfBd3NI40hRbIOgrMfAG4eVFvWsKA_-nUTdYBso

So what's the point of organising them in the first place?

To protect the majority. Some children with additional needs would particularly struggle with the tests or wearing masks, some children who've had a confirmed covid infection should wait to take a test or they'll get a false positive. I don't know how you twist that into there being no value for everyone else to wear masks and take tests, when those actions will help protect themselves and others.

It shouldn't be a choice.

If you want your DCs in school provide them with masks and test them. Or home school them.

SEN schools excepted, of course.

Yes it should be a choice.

Maybe. I can agree regarding masks without a legal exemption, but in this country we don't have laws so far for mandatory medical procedures for anything else and still function. If numbers are too low perhaps it'll have to be looked at, but I think most wouldn't be selfish.

I think testing should be compulsory (or stay at home) but I can’t see why children who have been tested and allowed into school then require a mask

And SEN children on mainstream schools? My son has ASD but is at a mainstream school, he is going to give the testing a go but he has had to be tested once before when he had a cough and he really really struggled with it. He’s been WAY better with masks than I though he would be, managing to wear them on the bus to and from school and in corridors, but this is a kid who refuses to wear any clothes apart from joggers (school uniform is tricky) and strips down to his pants as soon as he gets home. He will try his best, but I can’t guarantee he will cope with testing and masks. So then what? He can’t go to school (which he has missed terribly as he loves the normality and routine of it) because for no fault of his own he can’t cope with swabbing himself?

I am support staff in a secondary school, and I have worked at school throughout the pandemic (and currently self isolating at home!!), I can say that some families are anti-masks and anti-tests (and anti-vaccine) and will find every little excuse in the book to make sure their child doesn't wear a mask or doesn't do the test.

For example, my son has acne so he can't wear a mask. They will argue with the school on and on and on about it. The child will follow their parent's example and argue on and on about it. THe tests is uncomfortable and makes my child gag. THerefore he won't do the test. We hear it all the time.

It's amazing that people are so naive and think that kids who don't wear masks all have a good reason not to wear one. It's just like adults. England is full of little Laurence Fox, pretending to have an illness in order to get out of obeying the rules.

Still nobody can answer my question.

If children. Have to test negative to go to school, why ask them to wear a mask?

@Malteser71

Still nobody can answer my question.

If children. Have to test negative to go to school, why ask them to wear a mask?

Excellent question, I completely agree.

No it’s ever answers it.

Because there’s no sane answer to it, complete nonsense to appease the scared

Well they are not testing every day, but may have been on buses, in supermarkets and so on between being tested last and being in school.

It's not a tricky concept to work out.

Social distancing isn't compulsory either. There is no law stating it. But the majority of people do it and so it works. The majority of people will choose to do masks and tests, so it will work.

Personally, aside from the very few exceptions and SEND, I can't think of many sane reasons NOT to wear a mask or do testing.

The tests in question aren't as reliable as they could be, but they are still better than nothing. I don't want to do them either, I'll only do nostrils, but I will if it helps keeps school bubbles open for longer/reduce the impact of closures on education.

If children. Have to test negative to go to school, why ask them to wear a mask?

Research has shown that you can spread the virus before you have symptoms and before a test can give you an accurate result.
Lateral flow tests also are not the most reliable tests.

Put a reasonably effective testing regime together with reasonably effective masks, reasonably effective hand washing, reasonably effective ventilation and reasonably effective social distancing all together and you do an awful lot to stop transmission.

Too much common sense here

@Malteser71

Still nobody can answer my question.

If children. Have to test negative to go to school, why ask them to wear a mask?

Sorry my common sense comment was in response to this

I can’t see why children who have been tested and allowed into school then require a mask

Because the tests are a bit shit?

"Common sense" doesn't know maths it seems.

N% of unwell kids or teachers stay home, lateral flow tests find say 50% of asymptomatic cases reduced because X% take tests, masks prevent say 20% of transmission reduced because Y% wear masks, but taken all together you've reduced quite a lot of potential transmission.

@MRex

"Common sense" doesn't know maths it seems.

N% of unwell kids or teachers stay home, lateral flow tests find say 50% of asymptomatic cases reduced because X% take tests, masks prevent say 20% of transmission reduced because Y% wear masks, but taken all together you've reduced quite a lot of potential transmission.

Yes - a good example of the Swiss Cheese model.

@Malteser71

Still nobody can answer my question.

If children. Have to test negative to go to school, why ask them to wear a mask?

A mask protects you from others.

So it protects you from others who may not have had a test. Or may have tested negative on Monday but caught it Tuesday and be pre symptomatic lily or asymptomatically spreading it before next test picks it up.

I thought people understood why we wore masks and the fact a test only tells you are negative at the time it was taken?

Malteser because
masks are the condom
Tests are a pregnancy test.
And the pregnancy test -lft dont really work they are more an extra people identified

Or the lft is an std panel but again it doesnt work well
The lft wil only pick up a % and it will depend on testing on a day.

Tbh imo it would be better to do
Masks
Full school or at least class closure on a positive
Better contact tracing
Vaccinate the parents
Teachers in masks at primary.
No mixing in before and after clubs.
Or pcr test the rest of a class when a positive found so that follows their contacts and they isolate etc
Increase the testing symptoms or at least not allowed in school for sore throat etc etc

@MrsPernicious

If children. Have to test negative to go to school, why ask them to wear a mask?

Research has shown that you can spread the virus before you have symptoms and before a test can give you an accurate result.
Lateral flow tests also are not the most reliable tests.

Put a reasonably effective testing regime together with reasonably effective masks, reasonably effective hand washing, reasonably effective ventilation and reasonably effective social distancing all together and you do an awful lot to stop transmission.

Please show me the peer reviewed papers on ' Asymptomatic' spread, and also the one where masks are effective, oh and the success of the tests.

@Radio4Rocks

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/25/covid-tests-masks-not-compulsory-english-schools-nick-gibb?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR0o_Hr0gXp7m3QB6NHQcfBd3NI40hRbIOgrMfAG4eVFvWsKA_-nUTdYBso

So what's the point of organising them in the first place?

None, no scientific evidence anywhere. But lots of money to be made from tests and masks.

The balance of risk is in favour of the outside chance of a Swiss cheese model whereby somebody fails to test positive on a lateral flow test (yes the tests are a bit shit, but mainly in failing to pick up positive cases with less viral load, where people are less infectious).

This is versus the negative impact of favour children to wear masks in class, which think we would agree isn’t ideal on many levels.

At what point does the balance swing the other way, and we think the risk is lower than the negative impact of making (tested!) children wear masks.

I presume teachers are also expected to wear masks in order to protect my kids?