School bubbles going. More testing - how will that work for primary school children?

[Tiddlywinkly]

Just that really. Plans will be announced today for a more 'proportionate' response to cases and close contact isolation. Testing will probably be cited as the way to achieve this.

I've had to get my 5 year old tested twice due to him displaying symptoms and it was truly horrendous. We both ended up crying. I'm just wondering if the government will have thought of young children in their plans. I guess if we can't perform the tests they'll have to isolate? Any thoughts?

Will I be testing my 6yo with SEN every day? HELL NO!
Will I be scanning a QR code of an unused test and logging it as negative? HELL YES!
I will test if he shows symptoms and nothing else

@DrunkenKoala

He mentioned about testing, that children identified as close contacts would be able to test and return to school if negative but what happens to children if there is covid in their households? Will they still be expected to go to school if they receive a neg test?

This is what I'm wondering about too. A close contact after sharing a class room for a few hours is one thing but this sounds like someone who has a sibling and/or parent at home ill with covid can just continue their normal activities as usual, probably getting on a rush hour bus with no mask and then potentially spreading covid around at school?

@Cocoabutterkim

Traumatised from doing a covid test ffs! Parents who can’t hold their shit together to support their children through a strange situation calmly, firmly and supportively do their children a massive disservice.

I have done it, four times. I've kept it together and did what had to be done. I've been kind and done my very best. But he was hysterical. He is 2. I had to force his hands down from his face repeatedly squashed in beside his car seat. It was deeply unpleasant. They point was that I didn't feel it would be fair to force that on him every day, when we were speculating about how all this might be managed. That's not unreasonable.

@Beebityboo

Just watched Gav's update. No bubbles, no staggered starts, no masks or social distancing from September. Zero covid mitigations whatsoever. Didn't mention testing either.

Secondary schools are fucked then

@NuttyinNotts as an August born I was never 18 at any time in 6th form.

I see it as a car crash in slow motion. Just look at the amount of cases in schools and the trajectory of the curve, and that's WITH bubbles and partial restrictions - all which will evaporate in a matter of weeks. Unvaccinated children/teenagers are now disproportionately affected in my area see attached and not every one will be asymptomatic - even if a small proportion get very poorly or god forbid die due to the numbers that won't be a small number.

Contact tracing is going to be busy as hell, swathes will have to go home, over and over again, people won't test small children and if they can't afford the time of work they won't be honest about the results and so the numbers will continue to skyrocket and contribute to community infections and deaths in the vulnerable.

I'm not normally an Eeyore but it just seems inevitable.

The only sensible thing is to vaccinate children, I truly hope that this becomes the policy before winter.

Sorry to be such a ray of sunshine

Not quite sure how Gavin Williamson could say schools aren't vectors based on that graph

I am absolutely delighted that bubbles are going.

ineedaholidaynow I know right? It's the elephant in the room. Vaccines look like the only way to knock it on the head in those age groups. It's not going away otherwise.

The only sensible thing is to vaccinate children, I truly hope that this becomes the policy before winter.

A lot of people (myself included) will not agree to vaccinating their children.

So are school bubbles gone from 19 July or 16 August? Different places reporting different things!

Mine won't be having it yet either. I do support parents of CEV kids in their desire to have the vaccine made available to that cohort though. Would gladly wait for my second dose until they have all had both.

Vaccines look like the only way to knock it on the head in those age groups. It's not going away otherwise.

There's a lot of support for this, thankfully. Only on here you read about the naysayers.

It dies t effect me either way atm but I agree with Whitty JCVI decision can’t be rushed.

It won’t be under 12 so primary dc will likely get it.

Balance of risk for plus 12 looking at data

Doesn’t

@Redwinestillfine

So are school bubbles gone from 19 July or 16 August? Different places reporting different things!

Most kids break up around the 19th or just after so it won't really make much difference anyway

Ds breaks up a week later but I hope his bubble stays until the end of term. I don't want a nice dose of self isolation at the start of the holidays.

In my county all early years and primary and secondary children have been taking LFT twice a week as requested by local council.
My 10 year old manages fine and my friends 3 year old is used to it now.
We use just the nose method.

I think they will 'suggest' that we test them if a close contact but as a mother of a 6 and 8 year old I have one who will probably agree to occasional testing and another who will definitely not.

It is completely different to secondary age where I'd expect the vast majority to just get on with it tbh.

DS had to have a PCR swab test, at age 5. He was totally fine with it. Why would primary age children be traumatised?

I agree it might be another matter for toddlers/ older children with SN.

Although I see that the thread has moved on now, I still want to say that I have a 7 and 8 year old (not UK) who have been testing themselves twice a week for the last 4 months, as a requirement to go to school. I get your anxiety - I was very against it at first too. But honestly it's not a big deal. A clever friend of mine told her children it was just like picking their noses, and ever since I told my children that, they've done it no problem. It's just nostrils, not throat (which I agree is horrible) and they even have a spit test here, although I've never used one. The pay off is that, since my children went back to full-time school in mid-May, nobody at their school has had to isolate, because they've caught any positive cases in time.

We're actually planning a move back to the UK, and I'm really worried about the whole virus thing. I wish that regular testing would be introduced in primary schools, rather than just throwing out all precautions and leaving vulnerable people high and dry.

Does anyone know if the bubble guidance relates to nurseries too?

My DS breaks up 28tb July so won't affect our holiday if he bubble pops before then, but my DD goes to nursery right up to the day before of the holiday?

I wonder if parents will be more concerned with all mitigation measures removed if Long COVID rears its ugly head more. I know one teenager and one adult with Long COVID. Pretty much bed bound for about 6 months and only now coping with about an hour out of the house. I only know about 10 people who have had COVID so I guess this skews my concern about long COVID

So are bubbles going on the 19th or at the end of the summer term - we've got another week of term after the 19th?

The vast majority of children do not get seriously ill from Covid.

I feel children should be in school - or home if they are ill - and no 'testing' the tracking is too slow (already spread before the children are sent home.. making it all a bit pointless)

If you know anyone with Long Covid - look into B12 deficiency - and invest in b12 and folate ..