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Original poster

Will you send your DC to school if they're open for keyworkers only?

389 replies

BlowDryRat · 20/12/2021 09:31

Hopefully this won't happen but if it does (probably with hours' notice like last Jan Angry)...

DH and I both qualified as keyworkers (medical supplies) for all the previous lockdowns. We could WFH though so kept the DC at home so they weren't taking up spaces really needed by others and to minimise the risk to the school staff. The DC got on with it but both struggled socially and DD in particular fell very behind academically.

Now that everyone who wants a vaccine has had at least 2, if there's another partial school closure I'll be prioritising my DC and sending them in.

What are you planning to do?

OP posts:
Plantsandpuddlesuits · 20/12/2021 11:15

Yes!

TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits · 20/12/2021 11:17

Yes, they will contact social services.

"Hi there, I've got a concern about a child. Well... her mum has dropped her to school at 9am on a weekday and won't come and collect her. Pardon? No, no injuries, perfectly healthy, looks clean and well looked after. The problem? She doesn't meet the arbitrary checklist for education so she can't be here. We can't educate her. I know we're a school..."

educatingrati · 20/12/2021 11:17

I honestly think it's very, very unlikely they will close schools, we're in a very different place to a year ago. I think hospitality might be closed, but January is always a quiet time anyway (not that it's okay, but less damaging to livelihoods than before and during the festive period). Non essential retail might be closed too, but again January is normally a slow month (when I worked as a shop assistant many, many years ago, all stuff had to take the first two weeks of January as leave as the shop was closed, and it was always pretty quiet until the feb halfterm). At the moment our hospital rates don't justify 'closing' schools. Of course never say never...

Comedycook · 20/12/2021 11:17

@TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits

Yes, they will contact social services.

"Hi there, I've got a concern about a child. Well... her mum has dropped her to school at 9am on a weekday and won't come and collect her. Pardon? No, no injuries, perfectly healthy, looks clean and well looked after. The problem? She doesn't meet the arbitrary checklist for education so she can't be here. We can't educate her. I know we're a school..."

Exactly!
Plantsandpuddlesuits · 20/12/2021 11:19

Getting really worried about schools closing we've just had a message from school about planning for home learning in Jan and checking if people have internet etc

Mine are entitled to a place we didn't take it up at first but we will this time if we can

Hollyhead · 20/12/2021 11:19

We’re eligible for networker status, but didn’t use it last time because we were wfh. This time I will be demanding a full time place and dropping them off every day and expecting a full time face to face education. If school can’t provide it they will have to call social services. Full time wfh and homeschooling It broke me and the children. I am 100% unwilling or able to do another minute.

Chr1stmasCarole · 20/12/2021 11:19

Yes, we're definitely entitled but have used it minimally so far. This time though, ds would continue to attend school throughout and I would keep my own class running as normal throughout.
Am not doing online learning again!!

MrsTophamHat · 20/12/2021 11:19

@Comedycook

I'm sure they will and I will collect her at the end of the school day. What can they do? Call social services? I'm sure they are overworked enough without dealing with a well looked after child who has a parent who simply wants them to be educated at school!
If schools are instructed to close by the government, and you drop your child off there any way, I don't see how this would be very different to dropping your child off at a police station and driving off, expecting them to look after her while you work.

Take your anger out on the government for doing this, not on the individual schools who are only doing what they are instructed to do.

FarewellNoel · 20/12/2021 11:19

We've all got Covid. Teacher and utilities supply worker. We never sent the kids to school in previous lock downs despite my head saying he'd ensure we had a place if we felt it necessary.

This time round they'd definitely be going in. And therein lies the problem, people aren't afraid anymore and so many will be boosted or already had it. They won't struggle at home. Headteachers are going to have a complete headache on their hands if they try to refuse eligible workers.

MarshaBradyo · 20/12/2021 11:20

@TinselTitsAndGlitteryBits

Yes, they will contact social services.

"Hi there, I've got a concern about a child. Well... her mum has dropped her to school at 9am on a weekday and won't come and collect her. Pardon? No, no injuries, perfectly healthy, looks clean and well looked after. The problem? She doesn't meet the arbitrary checklist for education so she can't be here. We can't educate her. I know we're a school..."

If they do this again there will be more pressing issues for them to deal with. Another reason not to.
Strictly1 · 20/12/2021 11:25

@Comedycook

I have no idea...but if they do close to her, I will turn up at the school and drop her off. It's up to them what they decide to do. I cannot go through this shit again.
That is so unfair on the teaching staff. The grief we got last time made an impossible job even harder. The staff in school were at breaking point. I don't think we will close and hope we don't as we became the punchbag for everyone's frustration. We didn't make the rules.
Pawprintpaper · 20/12/2021 11:25

It makes me wonder if there are government moles starting these threads about homeschool and lockdowns to gauge the public mood

Comedycook · 20/12/2021 11:25

If schools are instructed to close by the government, and you drop your child off there any way, I don't see how this would be very different to dropping your child off at a police station and driving off, expecting them to look after her while you work

My Dc doesn't attend a police station every day routinely to be educated. Confused. I'm not looking for childcare anyway. I want my DC to be educated in school

Hollyhead · 20/12/2021 11:25

I honestly think parents need to unite and just send our children in anyway. Collective action will derail the whole thing.

Medra · 20/12/2021 11:27

If I can teach online from home as I did last year, then they can stay at home. If too many people send their children into school to be supervised while online learning and I have to go in, I’ll have to send mine into school so they have someone to help with any technical issues. It will also mean I’m unable to live teach, so my exam classes will miss out.

Comedycook · 20/12/2021 11:28

Is this going to be a routine now...every year about half of all kids will be excluded from school for a couple of months because the government won't properly fund the NHS?

Svara · 20/12/2021 11:29

@Hollyhead

I honestly think parents need to unite and just send our children in anyway. Collective action will derail the whole thing.
I agree
kimlo · 20/12/2021 11:32

I'm a keyworker, dh isn't.

First time I was furloughed and she stayed with me. Second time we were both at work so she went in.

Next time, depends who is at home.

MrsTophamHat · 20/12/2021 11:32

@Comedycook and your child should be in school in January, as should my child and every other child and I hope and believe that they will be. I don't believe that they will close again.

I simply disagree with you directing your anger at your child's school specifically, instead of at the policy. Your child's teacher does not have a responsibility whatsoever to care for your child when they are not required to.

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 20/12/2021 11:32

@Pawprintpaper

It makes me wonder if there are government moles starting these threads about homeschool and lockdowns to gauge the public mood
I do hope so- they can sense they can’t close schools!
Pawprintpaper · 20/12/2021 11:33

@Comedycook

Is this going to be a routine now...every year about half of all kids will be excluded from school for a couple of months because the government won't properly fund the NHS?
And don’t worry about exams because they can always make up a grade based on your postcode
OnlyFoolsnMothers · 20/12/2021 11:35

I'm not looking for childcare anyway. I want my DC to be educated in school that’s what the key worker place was meant to be childcare but quite frankly the list was so long by the end it included all wfh admin staff for an financial institution, it was bs!

cantkeepawayforever · 20/12/2021 11:38

Last time, the school - in conjunction with local public health - decided on our maximum safe capacity, based on space. It was about 35-40% of our normal capacity.

80-90% of our pupils were eligible for keyworker status, due to the peculiarities of local employers. However, the vast majority of those keyworker parents were working at home, and many only had a single keyworker parent with another at home.

We prioritised rigorously - we pro-actively offered places to all EHCP children, all who were known or suspected to be vulnerable, and all who didn't engage with home learning in the first lockdown ( luckily, we had kept detailed records of every child's work). We then asked all parents to submit evidence of keyworker status and whether they wfh or not, and prioritised, offering what we could up to our maximum capacity.

We also worked extremely hard on equity for both groups - all teachers taught planned and taught remotely, children in school just had that presented on the class IWB. Children in school were supervised by support staff (ranging from TAs to lunchtime supervisors) but were not taught. All marking of work was done by the teachers remotely, as all children's work was uploaded to the same system, and teachers followed up through small group catch-up via Teams. Children in school were kept socially distanced and bubbled indoors, with no access to communal areas of the school. Outdoors, yes, they could play (and eat) within their bubbles, while children at home had a social meet on Teams with the class teacher every day, which the in-school children didn't join. There was a real push to get equipment out to children at home - things like art equipment etc was put out in bags for families to collect while walking past.

As a result, quite a few families initially thinking 'school would be best' ended up keeping children at home as it was clear they were getting nothing 'extra' from being in school.

If all schools have huge numbers of people wanting keyworker places, then it is very likely that public health will step in again and there will have to be a priority system.

ComDummings · 20/12/2021 11:39

@Pawprintpaper

It makes me wonder if there are government moles starting these threads about homeschool and lockdowns to gauge the public mood
I honestly think they do, some similar threads popped up before the last lockdowns and school closures. The mood has most definitely changed now though.
MarshaBradyo · 20/12/2021 11:40

@Hollyhead

I honestly think parents need to unite and just send our children in anyway. Collective action will derail the whole thing.
I hear you. Everyone is going for it for their child, I don’t accept the same few should be hit hardest.