DFE tells schools prepare for the worst.

[3asAbird]

www.tes.com/news/covid-schools-told-plan-more-remote-learning

Feeling so cross why allow schools to stop masks on may 17th.
When Hancock knew the delta varient was present in April 2021.

School outbreaks my councils 46 this week and a fair few in neighbouring county with some schools fully shut.
Lots senior transition days and inter sports tournament cancelled.

We know from Kent alpha varient took a few months get really bad.
Some say 6 week break act as firebreak.
I am bot so sure as people will travel and mingle and in some cases School maybe mirror community transmission which is on the rise.

I wish having would go for starters.
They said they making education a priority back in march.
This term has been rubbish for many.
I have no faith that autumn term be any different.

No mitigation measures on ventilation
No masks or compulsory testing.
No smaller class sizes.
No vaccines for under 18s.

Travellers who want to test for release must pay for an additional test on day 5. This is a minimum of £60 and is at least 24 hours for the results to return.

If they only pay for one test to release what are the other tests? LFT or free PCR

It would depend on the particular nature of the vulnerability; the views of the child; the actual risk of death or very serious illness; the parental attitude to risk: a multitude of factors which individuals need to weigh up and decide what they can live with.

I don't know if you looked at the data in schools before the delta variant kicked off, Marsha, but what was really interesting was that infection rates in school kids was falling, not rising, despite them being in school and unmasked. The vaccination of adults was lowering the community rates sufficiently that spread was lowering in children.

So if we can get vaccination protection to the same point with the delta variant as was effective with the Kent variant, then children will be more protected from catching it than they are now, without adding more mitigation measures.

I have read many posts on MN where parents refuse to get their child tested and schools can’t ask to see evidence of a pupil’s negative PCR or lateral flow test under the current guidance. I think therefore that testing to give pupils early release from isolation would be abused.

I agree with a PP that when the need for isolation of close contacts stops in the general population, then that is the time for it to stop in schools.

I’ve asked this on graphs thread hoping a couple of posters who are good at this stuff will respond

But why do people think Covid will stop spreading on schools when chicken pox still does and immunity is gained even younger in some situations. Younger than 12 and 18 and we’re not vaccinating under 12, tbc up to 18

Why is Covid different? R0 is slightly lower iirc but increasing

I have throughout fallen into the more cautious camp with coronavirus restrictions, but on this I do think that if we're not going to vaccine children, their restrictions (e.g. isolating if a close contact) should be scrapped. If that's too dangerous for community transmission (which I'd wager is the case), then they need to be vaccinated. Either they contribute to community transmission, and we should be vaccinating them, or they don't and we stop all restrictions, as has been suggested for vaccinated adults. It just seems like we're going to keep isolation for kids, which for some has meant weeks and weeks of school, because they don't go to work so aren't economically active or have an impact on employers. That's fundamentally unfair. I haven't seen any evidence that young adults are any more at risk of Covid-19 than children (but both are affected, some in both groups can be very ill), so the risk benefit profile is similar. It seems like we're vaccinating young adults because they go to work, and not vaccinating children because they only go to school. If scrapping isolation for kids would result more community transmission, that's surely a reason to vaccinate? We can't keep on expecting them to isolate when no-one else is, just because it's less inconvenient.

This government are a bunch of negligent criminals. Why is testing not happening on site in schools ffs?

PLEASE STOP VOTING TORY!

If they only pay for one test to release what are the other tests? LFT or free PCR

They don't only pay for one test to release. The rest are all All paid for PCRs.

They pay for one before they go.
They pay for one when there before coming back.
They pay for one on day 2 and another on day 8.The only one that can be an LFT is the one done in another country before returning though PCR is advised. Even if LFT it must be a private paid for one.

Nhs free ones are specifically not allowed to be used.

These are all private ones at a minimum of £60 each.

And the rest for release is done in day 5, with the result coming through in 24-48 hours. So actually only means releasing 3-4 days early.

I’d take those days why not? We have three more to go and he could start tomorrow rather than Thursday.

All children are fed up with online learning and being stuck inside.

If there wasn’t a general desire to cut as short as possible those release tests wouldn’t have a market. People pay because they do care about three to four days.

No one likes being stuck in, well almost no one, a fair few on here.

@MarshaBradyo

I’d take those days why not? We have three more to go and he could start tomorrow rather than Thursday.

All children are fed up with online learning and being stuck inside.

And you'd be happy for your child to have the series of three tests to enable this, if replicating the travellers scenario. PCR done on day 2, day 5 and day 8, with release on day 7 rather than day 10.

How would people feel if there was a cost attached to at least the early release test on day 5?

To be fair I don't actually know anyone who has done the day 5 release tests. Only the day 2 and 8 ones. Those I know who have had to go through the amber scheme have just taken the 10 days isolation with the mandatory tests.

From what I know after some research (we thought Dd would be affected with the change but fortunately wasn't) those doing day 5 are often those here for specific events such as weddings and funerals or where their work place funds the early release date.

And of course this all goes out of the window if the plane has a Covid positive case (usually discovered via the day 2 test) Because in that situation no one can take early release. The whole plane is classed as a close contact and all must complete the mandatory 10 days self isolation.

So actually not sure the comparison can work because a child in a class bubble would still be classed a close contact, so wouldn't actually be eligible to do test for release anyway.

@WouldBeGood

It would depend on the particular nature of the vulnerability; the views of the child; the actual risk of death or very serious illness; the parental attitude to risk: a multitude of factors which individuals need to weigh up and decide what they can live with.

You genuinely wouldn't be thinking that without a vaccination there should be anything done to support us, in making schools safer? Especially considering our alternative at the moment (with shielding ended) would be deregistration, homeschool and losing a special school place and EHCP support?

@WouldBeGood

It would depend on the particular nature of the vulnerability; the views of the child; the actual risk of death or very serious illness; the parental attitude to risk: a multitude of factors which individuals need to weigh up and decide what they can live with.

You genuinely wouldn't be thinking that without a vaccination there should be anything done to support us, in making schools safer? Especially considering our alternative at the moment (with shielding ended) would be deregistration, homeschool and losing a special school place and EHCP support?

...sorry no idea why that posted twice!

But society simply cannot shut down indefinitely to accommodate every risk to every person.

And we also need to consider the risks of lockdowns and school closures on children's mental health.

It's a tricky balance, but as a society we need to make compromises.

But why do people think Covid will stop spreading on schools

Who does?

You genuinely wouldn't be thinking that without a vaccination there should be anything done to support us, in making schools safer?

Of course, but we would need to consider the benefits as well as the costs of any such measures. The benefits would have to outweigh the costs to society.

If Covid is high risk to children the easier solution is vaccination not measures that bring huge disruption

@noblegiraffe

But why do people think Covid will stop spreading on schools

Who does?

Do you think all (nearly) children will get it as they do chicken pox or not?

If not, why?

@MarshaBradyo

If Covid is high risk to children the easier solution is vaccination not measures that bring huge disruption

Well, yes. But tell that to the CEV child who has the choice between being in school where Covid is spreading or continuous home education, but cannot have a vaccination for the next 6 years at present?

Yes a compromise, so measures in place to keep schools as safe as possible whilst also keeping vulnerable children as safe as possible - as I said earlier, we are not in lockdown, and I think we should be trying to keep schools open as far as we possibly can.

I am well aware of the balance of needs, having worked with many vulnerable families. As far as I can see there has been no consideration of how medically vulnerable children and their families, are supposed to move forward.

I don't know, Marsha, but chicken pox is massively more contagious than covid for one thing, and the other thing is that parents tend to notice when their kids have chickenpox so know when they've had it.

We don't know how many kids have already had covid. We know very little about how it spreads in schools. The reason we don't know this is because the government didn't want to collect that data (and are suppressing the data on the delta variant in schools where it is collected).

It depends on background rates in the community. If it doesn't get into a school, it can't spread there. Like I said before, with the Kent variant, infection rates in children were falling even with them being in school with no mitigation measures. As you say for your DS, even if it does get in, it might not spread.

And it depends on if, in the future, a vaccine is released suitable for younger children, like the flu vaccine, and whether older children get the Pfizer.

Well, yes. But tell that to the CEV child who has the choice between being in school where Covid is spreading or continuous home education, but cannot have a vaccination for the next 6 years at present?

How are you going to pick up asymptomatic spread in a class without LFT for dc? It’s more likely to enter before adults signal it’s there, especially after vaccinated or with immunity

LFT's using spit testing rather than nasal and throat swabbing would be so much better.