What will trigger closure for school?

[TooManyOutbreaks]

DDs year 2, aged 6.

This week alone I’ve had 4 close contact emails from school, last week we had 8.

There’s 3 classes per year and it’s getting a bit much. I have to work, and the constant emails is just too much, its constant, 2 or 3 or more times a day at the moment.

I am not blaming school, but this is our class/year groups second outbreak this academic year, they closed in November for 10 school days due to an outbreak in the class. Some of the poor children have had it 2 times (from talking to their parents, school have told me nothing) in 4 or 5 months. One poor girl has had it 4 times since September 2020 (her mum says she was fine the last 2 times, it was more like a tummy bug).

But it feels like they’re hanging on by a thread and I'm just waiting for the email or text to say they're closing to Year 2 again.

I am not scared of Covid, I am scared that yet again my DDs education will be distrupted. She didn’t cope with home learning in November or in January 2021 – she has some SN which means she can’t access home learning (not diagnosed until after the last lockdown) but she’s not eligible for a place while there’s an outbreak in her class or year.

It keeps going round. The year group has several sets of twins spread across the classes, as well as siblings in other year groups, so even though we’re back in class bubbles it’s not stopping it spreading.

I’m a single parent, if I wasn’t and didn’t need to work to keep a roof over our head I’d homeschool DD for sure.

Other year groups have it just as bad from what I can tell, I know Year 4 closed in October right before half term.

Is it the testing that’s the issue?

I can understand this as I have no idea how I’d LFT my primary age child daily. Last test took about 40 minutes for two of us to pin him down and I just don’t think I can do that again and again and again. Thankfully school has not asked.

I ask because I’m kind of confused.. you said you don’t want more closure or disruption but then that you’d homeschool if you could but you can’t because of work but now you’ve decided to homeschool anyway. I can kind of see it if it’s the testing though. If we had to daily test I’d probably just give up and homeschool as it would probably all be less traumatic.

Our year group actually closed last term with only one child positive - it was a staff issue. Weirdly on no occasion has there been any kind of significant outbreak.

The amount of people on this thread totally forgetting about VULNERABLE people

Isolation and school closures were never done to protect the vulnerable. It was to prevent hospitals from becoming overwhelmed if we all got ill at once. Omicron is very very transmissible so we'd never 'protect' the vulnerable from catching it in school anyway.

Vaccines and anti virals are the main weapon to protect people from getting seriously ill

@thewhatsit

Is it the testing that’s the issue?

I can understand this as I have no idea how I’d LFT my primary age child daily. Last test took about 40 minutes for two of us to pin him down and I just don’t think I can do that again and again and again. Thankfully school has not asked.

I ask because I’m kind of confused.. you said you don’t want more closure or disruption but then that you’d homeschool if you could but you can’t because of work but now you’ve decided to homeschool anyway. I can kind of see it if it’s the testing though. If we had to daily test I’d probably just give up and homeschool as it would probably all be less traumatic.

Our year group actually closed last term with only one child positive - it was a staff issue. Weirdly on no occasion has there been any kind of significant outbreak.

@thewhatsit It's the testing yes, its the daily testing plus them asking DD if she's been tested and if she says no them treating her as positive and sending her home, it just seems so barbaric and unfair.

I will cope with her at home. I always do. I just feel a bit hard done by.

It's the testing yes, its the daily testing plus them asking DD if she's been tested and if she says no them treating her as positive and sending her home, it just seems so barbaric and unfair.

Why don't you test get very 'gently'? So she can say 'yes' when asked.

@Blubells

It's the testing yes, its the daily testing plus them asking DD if she's been tested and if she says no them treating her as positive and sending her home, it just seems so barbaric and unfair.

Why don't you test get very 'gently'? So she can say 'yes' when asked.

@Blubells Because they're asking for throat swaps as well, she knows the throat bit makes her retch (sometimes even fully sick so I have to try again...)

Are the throat swaps more effective? We’ve only ever been asked to lft twice weekly, they have never said must be throat swap .

It’s a hard one but I suppose when you have a large outbreak in school it’s not unreasonable of them to ask .

Four are off in Dds class she told me this evening form tutor asked them to pull masks up as there’s already 4 of with it he said and that’s the only way I hear of cases, if not in her friendship group , he can’t say names . As there the only 4 off it’s not hard to know who they are but was only mentioned because of masks being on the chins .

@Sallydimebar

Are the throat swaps more effective? We’ve only ever been asked to lft twice weekly, they have never said must be throat swap .

It’s a hard one but I suppose when you have a large outbreak in school it’s not unreasonable of them to ask .

Four are off in Dds class she told me this evening form tutor asked them to pull masks up as there’s already 4 of with it he said and that’s the only way I hear of cases, if not in her friendship group , he can’t say names . As there the only 4 off it’s not hard to know who they are but was only mentioned because of masks being on the chins .

@Sallydimebar apparently throat swaps pick up omicron better than just nasal swaps.

2 of our year groups closed yesterday for 3 days, 2 classes each year so around 500 in the school, looking like another year will close very soon

Local secondary school has had 2 whole year groups out due to staff shortages caused by Covid

My dd had covid and early on ie when she had the merest mildest temp... We did lat flows. We did not force it into her throat making her wretch we asked her to do what she could and absolutely not to hurt herself.. Up the nose very gently and a little twizzle..

Mine are in private school. Have one class per year. Youngest is in reception and he is off until further notice. Older is year 2. He is still in.

Head said was for staff shortages but have also had 4 individuals one inn youngest class off with covid

Anyway yes it seems utterly bonkers to me... It's obvious that now would be very short term closures and keep school open on line!..

I'm amazed that your school has opened up the symptoms list, we are strictly still on the symptoms from several years ago

Our local school has closed early years and KS1 as they've reached 30% positive cases.

Similar situation here OP. DS in primary and everyday I'm getting another one or two emails reporting close contacts in his class and asking us to do daily LFT for 7 days as a result. The cases overlap (obvs) so it essentially means we've been asked to LFT DS since the second day back after Xmas. It's too much for him tbh - he's only 5. He's getting so much better with the tests now and it's less of a battle but he's not happy about it at all. I've taken to doing them every couple of days instead of testing him daily. Ideally I wouldn't test him at all (happy to test myself instead!) but lots of parents on school run being pushy about it etc.

@FinallySomeNormality

Similar situation here OP. DS in primary and everyday I'm getting another one or two emails reporting close contacts in his class and asking us to do daily LFT for 7 days as a result. The cases overlap (obvs) so it essentially means we've been asked to LFT DS since the second day back after Xmas. It's too much for him tbh - he's only 5. He's getting so much better with the tests now and it's less of a battle but he's not happy about it at all. I've taken to doing them every couple of days instead of testing him daily. Ideally I wouldn't test him at all (happy to test myself instead!) but lots of parents on school run being pushy about it etc.

@FinallySomeNormality I wish we could get away with every few days but school ask them daily if they've been tested and if they say no treats them as positive and sends them home, and not allowed back until negative PCR or done 10 days isolation.

It's absolutely not on or fair.

I'd honestly rather online learning or a mixture of in school and part time, than the constant testing it's not fair to DD,

@JanuaryBluehoo

Anyway yes it seems utterly bonkers to me... It's obvious that now would be very short term closures and keep school open on line!..

I'm amazed that your school has opened up the symptoms list, we are strictly still on the symptoms from several years ago

@JanuaryBluehoo Yes extended symptoms now we have to test for:

• Temperature above 37
• Headache
• Loss of sense of taste or smell
• Sickness
• Diarhoeaa
• Any tummy pain even if it can be explained by underlying conditions or other illness
• Dry Mouth
• Cold symptoms

So basically everything.

I'd be happy with a basic update of the old symptoms. Both my dc had covid and the main feature was how utterly gray they looked and shadows under the eyes.
Then one was extremely nauseaous and sick as she came down the other had the merest brief temp and felt over whelming fatigue. Neither had the cough at all.

@rainrainraincamedowndowndown

Same here, asToanewstart22 states. Life is totally normal, no school closure ever except nation wide one since the start of pandemic. Kept expecting for it to start at my dc's school too, never happened so far. None of my dc's close friends had it either. It feels surreal.

Then consider yourself very lucky not to live in the reality of it all.

The symptoms list from our school also includes fatigue, shivers, sneezing and muscle pain.

Same here, asToanewstart22 states. Life is totally normal, no school closure ever except nation wide one since the start of pandemic.

Same here. Our school only closed when required to during national lockdowns. Since then there's been no closures at all! Staff are doing a great job!

@Blubells

I really hope isolation rules are scrapped soon altogether, so that those children/staff only mildly or asymptomaticaly affected can continue to come into school.

The testing is to stop these people from spreading the virus, not so the get time at home for their own benefit.

@Blubells

Same here, asToanewstart22 states. Life is totally normal, no school closure ever except nation wide one since the start of pandemic.

Same here. Our school only closed when required to during national lockdowns. Since then there's been no closures at all! Staff are doing a great job!

Staff can’t help getting Covid and being too ill to come to school. It’s because so many of them are catching it that classes are closing.

The child would be treated as if positive for covid and not allowed to return until they either have a negative PCR or have completed a 10 day isolation

I don't think this is allowed. Can you ask what guidance this is based on? There is a bit in the current operational guidance about heads being allowed to refuse symptomatic pupils but it also clearly states that asymptomatic testing is voluntary.

If it is an LEA school I'd be contacting them tbh.

No one can force you to do the throat swabs, if you have the most common tests then you only need to do the nose. It shouldn't be worse than picking your nose, you don't need to go far into the nose, just gentle circles so long as you touch the insides of the nose.
Our schools will only close if there aren't enough staff, and they are managing to keep open with a bit of supply cover and TAs etc even though rates are sky high here.

Just talking to 2 of the Year 1 parents (they do an activity with DD) and they were saying its just as bad in their class. Apparently they're one teacher down in their year (I pick up at a different entrance to Year 1 so wouldn't see).

I don't think it'll be long before the school closes some or all classes.