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

@Dentistlakes - exactly the same here. Did the morally correct thing, only to find that ours were in the absolute minority and pretty much all their friends were in school. We did all of the homeschooling work, often a battle, and this has been repeated in school anyway because others didn’t, either in school or at home! Such a ridiculous system and very unfair, as ever, to the children of diligent parents who do the right thing. Same with isolating. If mine test positive, we get a PCR and isolate. They have friends who are out and about enjoying Xmas festivities whose parents know they have Covid! It’s very hard to explain that to a child!

Hi all thank you so much for the replies. My EXH is an essential key worker because he works in a home, however, my son primarily lives with me so I think my job would be more the consideration? My job is classed as a key worker from pretty much the get go, we haven't missed a days work out of all of this because of the nature of our jobs (home insurance). But it would be physically impossible for me to look after my two children whilst I'm working. My sister seems to think that because I live with my mum and she watches my youngest that that would mean I don't qualify, however, my mum would not be able to look after both children all the time and homeschool. It just would not be fair or possible to expect that from her. I am unfortunately having technical issues though at the moment and like I said I've been having to go into office. This is looking to be a bit of a long-term issue unfortunately because of the Wi-Fi issues in my area.....
Urgh so stressful.
All work aside I'm more concerned about the impact of my son being out of the social/learning environment of school.

Our school didn’t insist on both being out but had quite a clear tier system for who had priority

1. drs, nurses other relevant HCP
2. government/Local gov/voluntary sector employees directly working on Covid response
3. vulnerable children
4. other key workers

The key worker list is quite large so I think it was sensible but I know many working parents without a place found it very hard.

We live about 5 miles from a major teaching hospital. Even in the first lockdown we had over 50% of the school in as by the time you had included NHS staff and SEN/LAC children, we were already around 40%. Complete nightmare as you couldn’t staff bubbles, let alone deal with home learning.

DD1 wasn’t allowed into nursery as I was technically working from home. Cue complaints from a parent in my class that my then 16 month old kept interrupting Zoom sessions and that I was unavailable to support them for 15 minutes at 11am while I put her down for her nap. Thankfully the rules on grandparent childcare were relaxed for lockdown 2, as that’s where she is most workdays anyway.

I would be very surprised if schools did go online in January, but if they do I think it’s going to be very tricky to manage KW provision as I think most people will send them in and therefore teachers will be tied up in class rather than providing online learning - easier in larger schools, where there are more staff to deploy in different ways. I honestly think you’d be fine OP, given the ‘criteria’ for KW status.

I’d much rather see restrictions elsewhere as opposed to in education and childcare, but then again my livelihood doesn’t depend on it so obviously my viewpoint is skewed.

Child has asd and an ehcp so qualified for a place as a vulnerable child in second lockdown. Should have also qualified in first lockdown but school was only allowing key workers and children at risk. Both dh and I worked through both lockdowns, me from home and him into work. I don’t think we are strictly key workers but with hindsight I could have made a good arguement that we do come under the published categories and would be doing this if children with ehcps weren’t allowed in.

Based on the numbers we had in school, few people didn't fit into the vulnerable or key worker groups. Each class had 50-75% of children in across school, though not always at the same time. Several were part time in school, part time at home.

Single parent and frontline NHS so DD has been going to school all the way through all the lockdowns although I had to negotiate slightly reduced hours due to not being able to go to after school club

@icklekid

Also just worth knowing/ preparing ds that school for keyworkers is not the same as normal school. He’s unlikely to have his teacher/ class for example because they have to adjust staffing levels to provide home learning too. In a lot of schools it was just supervised home learning rather than teaching. But only one parent was ever required to qualify as keyworker so sounds like he would be eligible

This.

If the worst halogens and we have to return to the same as last October.
...

Your child may not get their normal classroom or their normal teaching staff.

They may not be with their normal class mates/friends.

They may not be taught by the teacher - most schools used a mix of TAs and teachers, especially if they have vulnerable staff too. And also because the teachers are likely having to produce lessons and ore recorded videos for those at home and at school, so not always in the classroom.

The work they do should be based on the home learning tasks set each day. This may be 'taught' face to face but may also involve children watching the same pre recorded lesson on the big board and completing the same tasks, whilst school staff are supervising.

Depending in age there may be people tuning in from home to the same lesson. In other schools it may be a pre recorded lesson with supervision. It may be very much worksheet driven.

There is likely to be increased outdoor play times, more art and craft type tasks, more screen watching time, etc.

Children, even lower down the years, may be sat at individual desks, with individual resources without the sharing of toys, etc and not as much time to actually sit and play together.

It isn't school as normal for many children, despite what it might seem from the outside.

My son was as in NHS and husband is security for a supermarket

I imagine schools will be very strict this time .. a lot of parents really took advantage last time and bended the rules. Parents need to realise that in many cases key worker children are being baby sat not taught and in most cases not by a qualified teacher as they are teaching live lessons or planning.

Obviously the point of closing schools is to stall spread and the more kids in really is just more mixing with is not sensible giving the new variant is thought to be so contagious. I think most schools will go stricter this time.

It really will be a numbers game .. staff cannot teach live lessons and supervise key worker children. This leaves limited staff to supervise key worker children and this is before considering staff who may be isolating or unwell or impacted by long covid.

@PreacherTeacher

You may be able to guess my profession. Last time my kids school decided that both parents had to be key workers for them to go in. This time if it happens I am going to insist they go in. It almost broke me having them at home and teaching a full timetable. Luckily my school were very understanding and didn't make me go in for the keyworker kids. This time if it happens I will have to. My kids are primary and I teach secondary. There are certain things that I was teaching that were unsuitable for my primary school kids to be exposed to.

I'm really worried about this. Last time my child was nursery age, now she's in reception. The thought of doing live lessons with a 5 year old playing keyboard in the background or jumping in front of the screen fills me with dread.

What a lot of posters who think teachers want schools to close fail to realise is a) we don't - live teaching is double the planning and soul destroying and b) we are parents too!

I honestly don't know how I will teach GCSE and A Level students online with her in the room too.

It is very annoying that some primaries said both need to be kw whilst others said just one. I had a friend on furlough who was sending hers in as her husband was a kw. I get why, not judging her - it's just very unfair given what you are describing above and what I am dreading

DD was in for the first lockdown. Only 10 children in across the entire school. When we could form childcare bubbles, I kept her off because the numbers suddenly went from 10 needing keyworkers spaces to over 150. Her grandparents had her for the whole lockdow . It didn’t seem safe to send her to school.

This time she has had covid. We are all be vaccinated and boosted. She will be going in as a keyworker full time.

Thanks for the replies all.
I totally understand why schools shut and that it won't be the same. But like I said, I physically cannot work from home with 2'childeen. Imagine having your house burglars and my son is running in my bedroom or in the hallway next to it playing superhero's or minions!
Also, whilst he isn't autistic or have adhd, his behaviour can be challenging. It's not fair to ask my mum who is in late 60s to care for both children as well as my sisters. If his routine breaks it will effect him so much.
I hate the restrictions as much as everyone else, but I understand why they're there. But my son being out of school is an absolute major issue which will impact my family to the point of me not being able to work and my son being disrupted.

From reading here and from my colleagues' experience, it seems to depend on the school. I am a nurse, my DH was working from home for a university (I think university staff were counted as keyworkers in the second lockdown but not the first) and claimed he absolutely could not do anything with DC while I was at work so we should send them to school. I applied at his insistence and we were given the places (I am not saying that is right or fair). There were people here and at my work who had 2 parents who definitely fit the definition of keyworker and worked outside the home who were not entitled to places.

@HelenaJustina

I think you are right *@motherrunner* BoJo could barely scrape a vaccine passport/proof of negative lft past the backbenchers, how on earth would he get school closures through. I think it’s more likely to be like the November 2020 lockdown, pretty much everything closed except schools.

Yeah, I think Johnson attempting school closures again would be the end of his premiership. And he'll know that. What I do think will happen is quite a lot of ad hoc closures due to staffing problems.

Not my son despite having an EHCP and being in a special school ,let's hope the most vulnerable children don't get forgotten about again 🙄🙄

We did not qualify. By husband is a secondary school teacher. To qualify, both of us would have needed to be critical workers

Having said what I said I don't think there will be blanket closures. I worry about it but I will be shocked if it happens. We can't keep doing this to children.

However, I do think as parents (and teachers if you are one too) we will have a muddle along a bit when individual schools invariably shut for periods at a time as there aren't enough teachers.

Worryingly there doesn't seem to be a plan other than beg retired teachers to go into covid hit schools. I just can't see many taking them up on that!

@PreacherTeacher

You may be able to guess my profession. Last time my kids school decided that both parents had to be key workers for them to go in. This time if it happens I am going to insist they go in. It almost broke me having them at home and teaching a full timetable. Luckily my school were very understanding and didn't make me go in for the keyworker kids. This time if it happens I will have to. My kids are primary and I teach secondary. There are certain things that I was teaching that were unsuitable for my primary school kids to be exposed to.

I’m trying to imagine what you’d be teaching in a secondary school that is unsuitable for a primary aged child to ‘be exposed to’!!!

@Wednesdayafternoon

Thanks for the replies all. I totally understand why schools shut and that it won't be the same. But like I said, I physically cannot work from home with 2'childeen. Imagine having your house burglars and my son is running in my bedroom or in the hallway next to it playing superhero's or minions! Also, whilst he isn't autistic or have adhd, his behaviour can be challenging. It's not fair to ask my mum who is in late 60s to care for both children as well as my sisters. If his routine breaks it will effect him so much. I hate the restrictions as much as everyone else, but I understand why they're there. But my son being out of school is an absolute major issue which will impact my family to the point of me not being able to work and my son being disrupted.

Why didn’t your employer furlough you? They could have done. That would have solved the issue.

The rules stated that a child only needed one parent as a critical worker to access a school place. I guess This was done for a reason, to stop the key worker giving notice so there (often better paid) partner could continue to work.

In reality, schools were over run with children needing a place (hardly surprising after parents had to manage working from home and looking after dc for 6 months the year before).
But, both children’s services/social care (not sure which one a children’s home would come under?) and financial services were on the critical worker.
I honestly don’t think it would be worth closing schools again though. If pupil numbers were high last time, I think they would be even higher if the schools were to ‘close’ again.

DD1 wasn’t allowed into nursery as I was technically working from home. Cue complaints from a parent in my class that my then 16 month old kept interrupting Zoom sessions and that I was unavailable to support them for 15 minutes at 11am while I put her down for her nap

Which just proves how entitled some people are. What a dreadful parent they are to complain, when you were trying to do your best for your own child and for theirs.

I think that there will be rotas if anything where kids from different years are in on different days due to low staff numbers in some schools. It will be localised and therefore all the key worker lists will be irrelevant if you have half the staff you can only have half the school.

I’m trying to imagine what you’d be teaching in a secondary school that is unsuitable for a primary aged child to ‘be exposed to’!!!

Off the top of my head - the Holocaust/other genocides. Various executions throughout history. Some pshe lessons/potentially science - sex education for 14 year olds is too much for a 5 year old to hear.

I don't think it's that unimaginable to think what could be I appropriate in the secondary curriculum

@Wednesdayafternoon

Hi all thank you so much for the replies. My EXH is an essential key worker because he works in a home, however, my son primarily lives with me so I think my job would be more the consideration? My job is classed as a key worker from pretty much the get go, we haven't missed a days work out of all of this because of the nature of our jobs (home insurance). But it would be physically impossible for me to look after my two children whilst I'm working. My sister seems to think that because I live with my mum and she watches my youngest that that would mean I don't qualify, however, my mum would not be able to look after both children all the time and homeschool. It just would not be fair or possible to expect that from her. I am unfortunately having technical issues though at the moment and like I said I've been having to go into office. This is looking to be a bit of a long-term issue unfortunately because of the Wi-Fi issues in my area..... Urgh so stressful. All work aside I'm more concerned about the impact of my son being out of the social/learning environment of school.

I think in your case your husband's job is irrelevant as the children mainly live with you.

You are a single parent with key worker status. The school will not pry into how much support your mum gives or can give. You will qualify I'm pretty sure though I hope it doesn't come to another lockdown. Try not to stress, your sisters comments aren't helpful and maybe she is a bit jealous that you get more support from mum than her.