Is anyone concerned about the health implications of mask-wearing in school?

[Noodlevonstrudle]

Just that really. With the best will in the world children and teens are likely to be touching their face way more wearing a mask than they ever would otherwise. There will be masks dropped on the floor, stuffed in pockets, left in the bottom of bags and then put back on again. It worries me a lot that not only will they be ineffective against Covid but that they will actually be harmful.

As I said previously, I’m sure the majority will. However, mask wearing in class is not compulsory and children cannot be removed for not wearing one. That’s the bottom line.

Surely you just ensure your DC wear a clean mask everyday? We bought a pack of 10 reusable ones for DD which will be washed and rotated!

@Jamboree01
It isn’t much of a class if the teacher isn’t there, though - just a group of children. So, basically, we have a stalemate where the children can’t be forced to wear a mask and the teachers can’t be forced to be in a room with them not wearing a mask. I’m quite happy working from home until I’m vaccinated but I don’t think the other children and parents would like that option. I think Us4Them and their children are going to have to suck this one up if they want to be taught in a school by a real, live teacher.

I’m not sure why you are challenging me? I don’t make the rules I’m afraid. Most teachers will continue as normal regardless- just as they always have done. All are replaceable. Children and parents don’t have to suck anything up as wearing a mask is not compulsory as stated by the government (not me). I am a teacher myself by the way.

You can send in a section 44 and the school can sack you snd you can fight it out in the tribunal when it eventually hears your case.
In the meantime you have no income and have to pay legal fees. And schools hardly likely to want to employ a flouncer.
If you get done compensation eventually awarded it won’t be much.
This is why the better informed unions did not endorse it last time.

Let’s see how it pans out then. I think Us4Them have lost on this one. No one wants their child to be without a teacher and if little Molly is the person causing that because she simply can’t wear a face nappy because of all the flesh-eating bacteria, then little Molly won’t get the support she thinks she might from her classmates and other parents. If I ‘flounce’, the class are going to miss me more than. Wearing a face mask until the Easter holidays is a really, really small thing to ask!

I think most teachers are reasonable enough to see how it pans out rather than declaring that a maskless child won’t be allowed into their classroom when the gov have stated that they aren’t compulsory (and, whether you agree or disagree, when it’s not a teacher’s decision to make). You might expect some children might have something to say, most won’t as they will follow the lead of the majority of teachers and get on with it without making a fuss.

I intend to send mine with 2/3 masks so he can change it at break and lunch
I have a little bag i keep in downstairs loo that all masks go in and then I chuck them in the wash every couple days
We have a few cloth ones and I have ordered some more disposable ones as a back up so we have spare clean ones just incase

I think we need to agree to disagree about whose decision it is to make. Let’s see how it goes next week.

I think the government’s decision trumps yours in regard to the children but, yes, it’s entirely your decision to take yourself out of the classroom.

Our secondary has sent put a letter mentioning increased expectations around face coverings in line with new government guidance. Also it says to inform your childs head of year if your child is except.

I truly love are leadership team. If they said we have decided masks are compulsory they would get kick back. They know this and how to word parental communications to get the best compliance

@Jamboree01

I think most teachers are reasonable enough to see how it pans out rather than declaring that a maskless child won’t be allowed into their classroom when the gov have stated that they aren’t compulsory (and, whether you agree or disagree, when it’s not a teacher’s decision to make). You might expect some children might have something to say, most won’t as they will follow the lead of the majority of teachers and get on with it without making a fuss.

It is tough luck at are school if the kid has something to say. The parents need to contact childs head of year to get them except or they will be given a mask to wear by school. No conversation about it.

We had similar for communal places last term. The kids don't argue about it. Most decided to wear masks in class too by October.

Like I said, I imagine most children will. My point to a previous poster is that she can’t remove a child from the classroom, or send them home as she had stated, because they are not compulsory and that is not her decision to make. A parent approaching a head of year to discuss it is very different to removing a child from a class or making them go home. They are not going to miss out on learning because they aren’t wearing a mask.

Our children did not wear them in class and were very relieved not to, all (except for exempt) wore them in communal areas.

Pleased to read today that our college is asking students to wear masks in all settings.
Our son has asthma, because of the change in criteria for early jabs won’t have his for some months (we were told by the surgery 6 weeks ago that he would be in group 6, now he isn’t 🤷‍♀️) so, we will be so grateful to other people who wear one to help protect him and others with compromised health.

Is he classed as CEV?

I might have been willing to believe this was a genuine question, although the leading way in which it was asked, with multiple false claims embedded within the question makes that deeply doubtful...

But then I came across this claim from the OP:

"One of DS' friend's grandmother contracted bacterial pneumonia that they thought was related to mask-wearing"

What utter, utter bull*t!

Poster/post reported to admins as it's clearly a deliberate attempt to spread misinformation and lies.

Are you referring to my question above your post?

Because that claim certainly wasn’t from me!

My kids have had to wear masks in their schools since they went back in Sept. Ages 4 and up. Most are fine with it. They take spares and change them if they want to during the day. They wear them from the moment they leave the house until they get home almost 8 hrs later, except for 30 mins at lunch. The only person in our house who got a throat infection was my husband because he didn't wash his mask after every use. He does now! They is less spread within the schools than within the community around us, as evidenced by the contact tracing.

"One of DS' friend's grandmother contracted bacterial pneumonia that they thought was related to mask-wearing"

It could be. If she is one of those people who reuses masks for days without washing them. But that is not how you wear masks properly, so it won't have been a problem with the maks, but the wearer.