Who qualified for school last time?

[Wednesdayafternoon]

This is a completely hypothetical/information only query. Not scare mongering before I get accused!

My son wasn't in school in the last lockdown so it never applied to me so I don't know what the rules were.
My exH works in a children's home and I work in a call Center in the finance/insurance sector. My colleagues told me that last time they were provided with a letter to give to school to secure a place for them to go. Although we can wfh, there's no possible way we could watch children as we take incoming calls all day. I'm currently working in the office as I am having technical issues with my equipment.
I am living with my parents but my mum watched my 1 year old. She's late 60s, she wouldn't be able to do the home schooling etc.
Ds1 behaviour can be difficult and I'm very concerned what lack of school would impact on him.
How likely would all of the above secure him his school spot in schools did close from your own experience?/what do I need to do to ensure he goes?

Like I said, no scare mongering just after experience

Ours were very strict about both parents needing to be key workers, especially nursery. It caused me so much stress as I was one in my old job (food production) and definitely am in my new job (government covid response) but my husband was not classed as key but cannot work from home. He is a golf course greenkeeper and of course they reopened golf courses pretty quickly as a way to exercise outdoors so he had to work - grass doesn't stop growing in a pandemic but it was so frustrating that they were expected to open the facilities but the staff were not classed as key workers! I involved our mp and everything but they wouldn't budge from the rules. In the end my work provided a part time sitter for us so I could go back out to work at least some of the time with DH cutting his hours to fill the gaps when I had to travel and we had no childcare. I can't even think about doing that again

In the first lock down the school I worked at was very strict, we had about 5 children out of 200+ in each day. In the second lock down it was pretty much half the school in, but in strict bubbles so the children at school were basically learning on line at the same time as the children at home. It was hell. Almost the only children who didn't come in were those with one parent not working. We also had in any child whose parents had lost the plot in the first lockdown.

Here a link to the list of critical workers.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-educational-provision/guidance-for-schools-colleges-and-local-authorities-on-maintaining-educational-provision

I depends to an extent on the schools. Schools where "every" parent was a key worker weren't able to offer a place to everyone. Some schools insisted both parents must qualify.

But I'm sure schools won't close again. There may be individual school closures but that will be through lack of staff. Short term none will be offered places.

Only one parent as a key worker in my school and DS was taught properly in a class of between 10 and 15, with rotating teachers 1 week at a time. I had to provide my employer details so they could check, I don’t know if they did or not. I did have a letter from uni as I was on one of the government critical course which meant I could still travel to uni during some of the
Lockdowns. Again I told school I had it but they didn’t ask to see it. However I have been a parent there for 17 years so maybe they just trust me!

We intend to send ours in if it happens again. We both work from home and kept our children at home during previous lockdown, but we won’t be doing it again. We will be using our key worker status. It was incredibly difficult and when we saw children with a SAH parent being sent in, I’m afraid we lost patience with it all. I’m not getting up at 4am and working through the evening again if no one else is going to make the effort. Many of my colleagues are planning to do the same if it comes to it.

Last time it got changed to both parents had to be key workers because so many parents were taking the piss (I worked in a pop up school for the children of key workers).
Parents were sending their children in where the husband was a key worker but the wife doesn’t have a job, for example. I can understand the temptation but the staff didn’t want to work with groups as large as in a normal school - the whole point was it was supposed to be for small groups of children of key workers or vulnerable children. The teaching was still pretty much all online btw. The pop up school was supervised almost entirely by teaching assistants. Many of these are middle aged and with their own fears of catching Covid if the groups get so large the pupils could no longer properly social distance.

Schools won’t close. There’s no point because the key work list is so extensive that over half the school were in last time. They’d like be more this time because employers need their employees to work. It won’t stop the spread so might as well keep schools open. And yes many companies gave their employees a letter to give to school so school had to take the children. Even though many parents agreed that they weren’t key workers.

Teacher. First time DD was not eligible as only I am classed as a key worker. Like many my DH couldn’t work from home. Last time she did get a place as our la took teachers’ kids regardless of partner status. They realised they didn’t have enough staff to open up otherwise. No idea what or if will happen this time.

It did vary on schools a bit last time but many schools especially the second time, allowed kids in where only one parent was a keyworker. So you should be fine based on your exh’s job.

It will depend on the school and how many other children they have needing vulnerable or keyworker places. Some schools would let you have a place based on your DH being a keyworker, others would be unable to because your children would have a parent at home.

Our school was VERY strict. I was a student teacher and was on placement with key worker children at the time and was told because I wasn’t being paid my son wasn’t entitled to a space despite one of the conditions being “you are providing childcare or education for key workers children”. I ended up taking it higher and the head of education for our local authority sorted it.

There were only two children in my sons primary that were in school.

My sons dad is a police officer and they were super strict in that if he was on a different shift than day shift that our son should be at home with him but was very difficult when he was sleeping off nights etc

as well as key workers, our schools took 'vulnerable' children.

They were very free about their interpretation of that. Basically anyone who was struggling was allowed in, at least part time.

We will be asking for dd2 to go in for that reason. She struggled so much during lockdaown last time.

Rules were different in Scotland to England, for a start. Scotland was two essential workers, England was one I think? Don’t know about wales and NI. So I think you need to specify.

First lock down my kids went to school when I went to school. Lockdown 2 school let me wfh so I kept my youngest with me, but my eldest went in for welfare reasons one day a week (Support being received at school).

Since then one of my DC has received their diagnoses for SEN and I've changed my job - still very much a key worker though. So this time I'll be sending them both in every day I work, but will have to change my hours as presumably the wrap around care will not be running again.

We didn't qualify. Lots of "child in need" and SEN in a deprived area.

Still pissed off about it tbh

Didn't qualify for a school laptop either

Last time some schools were taking pretty much anyone who asked.

I think this is why they won't close schools full scale again. Parents, students, teachers and employers all want the kids in school.

Everyone and their dog will be trying to find a way to send their kids. I know I am

I work in an industry that counts but I can wfh and did last time. Will be fighting tooth and nail to get DS in next time if there is one. Not having another period of half the class in and being taught (yes by their teacher not just someone supervising) while we get slung some twinkl bullshit.

Our school kept strictly to the list of essential workers to the infrastructure of the country (which we both were/are). The difference last time was that if you were not a key worker you could be furloughed as your job didn't need to be done. There is presumably no furlough this time so not sure how those with non essential jobs will manage to work and have children with them. I doubt the schools will close if furlough isn't reintroduced

My children's school was refusing many genuine parents because They were inundated.

First Lockdown DS was in preschool and with an EHCP but I was still a sahm so he stayed at home. This year, in reception, he went in full time because of his EHCP.
Dh and I worked from home, I'm back working now, and if schools 'close' again I will be expecting him in again full time due to his EHCP.

In our school it was supposed to be both parents as key workers.

I am nhs, patient facing, but my dh is not a key worker so we didn’t get a place.

It was annoying though as many who ended up in school were kids whose parent(s) were furloughed or not working at all. One in particular was a hairdresser.

I'm a keyworker - special Education. So I've been in throughout. Ds could have a place as I'm a keyworker and he has an ehcp.

However LD1 he was yr 11 and LD2 schools opened and LD3 the rules for,college were so strict I arranged he worked from home and had his support through teams. He's also CV and so I was worried about him being a room 9-4.30 every day not allowed to leave.

Each LA made their own rules but I known the second school closure many more pupils attended than the first one where everyone was completely on board with LD and many people were taking extremes and scared to even leave the house and touch food or post. (Perfectly happy for people to be working and delivering it though!)

Indeed wearetheones. This seems to be missed by those clammering for a lockdown
The risks with closing schools with only specific children eligible to go in and parents working appears to be overlooked entirely

We had more children in vulnerable situations than key worker children last time. We had groups made from two classes, averaging about 12-15 per day. That allowed the other paired teacher to provide live support online.
Most key worker children were supermarket staff and carers, our head was excellent at weeding out the piss-takers (ie. a body shop at home rep who claimed she was healthcare as her creams were used by those with skin conditions- erm...nope).