Media blackout on school cases this term

[3asAbird]

I find it really odd all English secondary schools are back including my own children's school.
They all did testing well over a week ago.
Neither the news letter or local rag that normally lives for this kind of news has reported any postive cases which find hard to believe.

I asked primary head and she said only if 5or more cases would they inform parents and I argued how do vunerable parents or parents of vunerable kids assess risk to them if they unaware.
I would love to see more transparency on how many postives each week and % of kids who have tested.
Also phe clear published figures how much infections within educational settings each week.

The current newsletters are like alternate universe where covid doesn't exist.
None of my kids are vaccinated and 1 has ashma.

Think people summoning any absence i school or staff possibly maybe covid but I dislike all the secrecy.

To be honest if I can’t see it happening or impactin around me why would I care?

I'd certainly like to hear about anything that's highly infectious so I can keep an ear out for dd.

Anyone can access stats and info, even if it’s not delivered in a heightened emotive press story.

Marsha are you suggesting that journalists shouldn't report stats and info that may be in the public interest because people should go digging for it themselves?

And what if the stats aren't being published (see the DfE suppressing the PHE report on delta in schools)?

It's fascinating, I spent a lot of time on here before Christmas reporting stats and info that wasn't being published in the press that highlighted an issue that, because it was unaddressed, led to the closure of schools in January.

And people think that is preferable to being well-informed?

I don't know what our school's policy is on this but if anyone in our family tests positive, I'll share on the class WhatsApp groups - it feels like the responsible thing to do.

We haven’t reported the number of positive LFTs to parents. The kids weren’t in school beforehand and we no longer have a role in tracing contacts. If we’d had zero positives out of almost 900 people tested, then that would have been a sign something had gone wrong. Positivity rates around here are such that if our lateral flow testing was picking up even 10% of positives, we should have had cases. We got 6 positives plus another 10-12 from people testing at home or already isolating/tested from having symptoms, returning from holidays or being close contacts. Test and trace will now deal with contact tracing. We really aren’t part of a government conspiracy to cover up numbers, it just isn’t worth worrying the already worried about cases among kids who haven’t even been in school yet.

@SpnBaby1967

I can't wait for the day the media stops reporting the daily covid stats, until that day people will find it hard to learn to live with the virus which we know we have no choice but to do.

I've been inundated with school emails this week, thankfully other than the schedule for lft testing for eldest DD there has not been one covid mention.

I dont need to know, I dont honestly care. If my kids get sick I'll deal with it.

EXACTLY THIS

There is no shortage of info and stats. On dashboards, in press.

Honestly people sound as if they miss being emotionally slammed by media with Covid stories.

I’m so glad it’s receding. It was mostly a compliance tool.

I don’t want to hear every news report lead with Covid stats anymore. Those that are still interested can find it it one go. It is easy and access no digging required.

Plus the big hit people kept going on about re schools hasn’t happened. Are people happy about that? Seems not. They want emotive stories.

This might help for a moment before people get the rise they are after.

COVID cases in UK no longer climbing

In this week’s update, Tim talks about how COVID cases aren’t increasing despite the return of all UK schools and the bank holiday weekend of busy festivals. It’s still early days, so we’ll keep an eye on rates to see if there’s a delayed effect.

@noblegiraffe

It's fascinating, I spent a lot of time on here before Christmas reporting stats and info that wasn't being published in the press that highlighted an issue that, because it was unaddressed, led to the closure of schools in January.

And people think that is preferable to being well-informed?

Just because it wasn't published by the media it wasn't hidden from the public after all you managed to find the information out so easily. If people want to know stats then they can look for it themselves just as you can with many other things not published by the media.
If there was a data blackout from the government then yes we have an issue about not being well informed, but if its there for people to find themselves should they be interested then no we don't have a problem.

My DC primary school sent out a letter telling school of one case this week. I would rather not know tbh. We have had no reported cases at the primary I work in this week

Just because it wasn't published by the media it wasn't hidden from the public

😂 What do you think the job of journalists is?

@Autumngoldleaf

I'd certainly like to hear about anything that's highly infectious so I can keep an ear out for dd.

And change your/her behaviour.... how?

Noble I imagine their job is to focus on what’s important and more so what readers care about

The fact that most people on here (on covid board no less) aren’t bothered about casesthen they’re doing their job

@noblegiraffe

Just because it wasn't published by the media it wasn't hidden from the public

😂 What do you think the job of journalists is?

Thank God we have you to do the job every journalist in the country is clearly so bad at doing.

By being on alert and having a far better idea of what's wrong and what to tell doctor.

I have prefer to have information, and then choose whether to discard it or not, rather than have information surpressed from me then that choice is removed.

You don't think readers care about what's going on in schools?

You don't think accurate reporting is important? (See photos of kids in masks socially distanced for an example of inaccurate reporting)

Interesting that some people think that the job of the press is to feed them soothing stories and ignore worrying ones.

"I'm not interested in it, therefore it shouldn't be reported in the news" isn't a reasonable opinion. It's revealing that in this day and age of curating social media timelines so that you don't see content that doesn't interest or disturb you that some people think that this should apply to all news.

Pootle

Don't you think you would like to know if its really bad out there and there fore you won't be able to to access an ambulance?

Thank God we have you to do the job every journalist in the country is clearly so bad at doing.

I did indeed have lots of posters saying that before Christmas.

What is going on in schools that should be reported

Zoe para below or is that too positive?

Oh I think there is still some general interest.

There isn't the same undercurrent of fear now that we have effective vaccines. It has made a huge difference.

Still interest though, for all sorts of reasons around moving forward from thisl

@noblegiraffe

Thank God we have you to do the job every journalist in the country is clearly so bad at doing.

I did indeed have lots of posters saying that before Christmas.

You don't think accurate reporting is important? (See photos of kids in masks socially distanced for an example of inaccurate reporting)

Children in Scotland are still expected to wear masks and socially distance.

There is lots of information out there should anyone care to look for it, the Travelling Tabby site in particular is excellent.

Nothing to stop people proactively seeking out figures and cases and whatever turns them on. But having it actively fed to you without having to seek it out has changed, probably for the better. Nobody's hiding the info or choosing to suppress it, it's just not being shoved down your throat every 2 minutes.

@Autumngoldleaf

I have prefer to have information, and then choose whether to discard it or not, rather than have information surpressed from me then that choice is removed.

Also personally I'd be much more likely to worry about the situation if I didn't have the information available.

@Watapalava

To be honest if I can’t see it happening or impactin around me why would I care?

Fucking hell. Am I really reading this?