Govt suppressed data on “Indian” variant in schools prior to ending mask mandate

[JanFebAnyMonth]

www.theguardian.com/world/2021/may/22/no-10-tried-to-block-data-on-spread-of-new-covid-variant-in-english-schools?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other&fbclid=IwAR29Q2q1HshlU1IKtpWSEboxLJZAEdNxH2OAI7pNt7Tuh_VYr9dKFUQZ5JQ

Shocking.

Nearly 2000 kids. Its twice a week. We make it work.

But when do you read the results? In the middle of your next lesson?

It takes seconds - lie them flat, look for lines! I've NEVER had a positive, but if you do you contact SLT and they will send the "on call" member of staff.

@Evvyjb

It takes seconds - lie them flat, look for lines! I've NEVER had a positive, but if you do you contact SLT and they will send the "on call" member of staff.

Oh, so you are in the same classroom for form time and your subject lessons?! Very jealous! We still are all over the place really.

But in the middle of a lesson, yes? I guess you teach in your tutor room rather than teachers moving round?

I'm not! (After half term allegedly - counting days!)... honestly, I know it sounds ridiculous but the actual testing part takes minutes and then we just leave them and get on with everything else. 9 times out of 10 they're really clear by the end of registration, take the boxes with us to our 1st lesson and then they are collected by premises, ready for collection before registration on the next test day. Any late arrivals/invalid tests are sent elsewhere to test.

Not saying it makes workload easy (or carrying things - I've bought a flight trolley), but it does give some certainty about testing

Thanks for explaining! I just think it’s so strange that they mingle about whilst testing as it was drummed into us weeks ago to keep them separated until negative results shown but I guess you’ve been lucky and not had any positive cases as you say. I must admit that it does make me uneasy relying on them to do it at home and I think many have stopped but at the same time, this really shouldn’t be a teacher’s responsibility.
If you’re going back to your own classrooms after half term, are you continuing testing too?

But Chloe the keeping them separate was only for the initial testing when schools reopened, wasn’t it? They’re all mingling every day inbetween home LFTs anyway (if they’re even doing them).

Sounds a good system evvy, if it works as well as you say.

Just rereading your posts evvy - (Sorry this almost deserves a separate thread!) so do you mean you carry the still developing tests with you to your next lesson?? That risks cross contamination. Or do you mean you read the results at 10-15 mins, which is definitely not how they work? Or have I misunderstood something entirely?

Hope you won’t mind all these questions but I think many of us who also work in schools are keen to know if there is a way to ensure tests are actually performed consistently.

Has anyone listed this already?

School outbreaks.

safeedforall.com/covid-19-weekly-school-updates/

Interesting listings but I would treat with caution, they’re obviously using the v simple definition of an outbreak as two or more linked cases. My school is on there and all we had was two cases in one year group about a month ago. OK it led to about a third of the year group isolating at one point though.

@JanFebAnyMonth

Interesting listings but I would treat with caution, they’re obviously using the v simple definition of an outbreak as two or more linked cases. My school is on there and all we had was two cases in one year group about a month ago. OK it led to about a third of the year group isolating at one point though.

That is the correct definition though, isn't it?

If transmission occurs in school, that should be counted.

Well, I suppose what I meant was, I didn’t think of what happened at our school as an outbreak. But yes, you’re right.

@Evvyjb

It takes seconds - lie them flat, look for lines! I've NEVER had a positive, but if you do you contact SLT and they will send the "on call" member of staff.

Do you mean you don't wait 30 minutes to read the result? Maybe you have a different type of test to us, we have to wait 30 mins to read and also meant to not eat or drink for 30 mins prior.

I'm in a part of the country where cases are rising rapidly. 5 kids sent home from DD's class yesterday. I am wondering what will happen this summer term in schools. It seems to be accepted that it's fine for cases to go up as long as hospitalisations and deaths don't go up, but it isn't fine for our children's education. Are they going to have another disruptive summer of many children having to isolate? Are there any new measures that could be put in place now to minimise disruption when we return after half term? Now that secondaries are effectively using online teaching, is there a way that can be brought back to reduce the numbers in school?

It's worth saying her school has been excellent, but their stringent measures mean things like school sports, music and any clubs have been off all year, which takes away a lot of the joy of school. I think these are really important parts of the co-curriculum. The sooner they can return to normal the better.

Good points @ColouringPencils. There’s no way the govt will allow blended learning, that argument went on in the autumn term.

I just hope it isn't total chaos! Obviously if hospitalisations and deaths don't increase by much then we are in a far better position overall, but I think that's when we can turn to education and think is it alright that 90,000 children or something are out of school this week? I know families that have been forced to isolate several times without ever contracting covid but still missing a huge amount of school. That is time those kids won't ever get back and it could have a huge impact on their overall education and future career. Children have in many ways borne the brunt of restrictions and they shouldn't be the 'last out of it', just because they are unlikely to get ill.

The teaching and head teaching unions wrote a joint letter to the DfE asking for the data on the Indian variant in schools.

They said no, and PHE said the data won’t be published until it’s robust and reliable.

AKA until it’s too late to do anything about it.

schoolsweek.co.uk/unions-demand-immediate-release-of-covid-19-variant-school-outbreaks-data/

What on earth are they covering up??

Well the thing about not publishing the data until it's robust and reliable - PHE did have the data ready to publish and No. 10 pulled it so suggesting that it's because PHE aren't happy with it isn't going to wash.

It's definitely being held back.

Is Bolton not a perfect case study of how infections in schools can then increase new varient spread and then make older people ill.
Its like a repeat of autumn.
Cant believe how useless unions have been.
There are unvaccinated teachers or ones who only had 1st vaccine at risk.

It’s not like the unions haven’t tried though. The govt have not only refused to meet them but also have slated them in the press for doing their job.

Well the ONS covid survey data is out and as you'd expect the group with the biggest % increase is secondary school age. However, only about 1 in 500 right now.

Is the ONS data the same as the one where the schools' page has been pulled?

@CallmeHendricks

Is the ONS data the same as the one where the schools' page has been pulled?

No, that was the phe report specifically on the new variant.