If you have Covid in your household are you still sending your negative kids to school?

[JamieNotJames]

I think this is more a question of what is morally right and not legally right.

DS 8yrs tested positive on Sunday and was immediately kept off school to self isolate.
DD 5yrs has still been going in to school this week and we've been doing LFTs each day which continue to be negative.

I tested positive today and something doesn't sit right about still being able to send her in to school. If DH was to also test positive are we still able to take her to school?

Also, DD has a couple of activities and parties at the weekend. If both her and DH remained negative would you send her to these with (triple jabbed) DH?

We've continued to send our 4yo in, only keeping her off while waiting for PCR after her sister and I got covid. She's stayed negative throughout, 6 days after DD1 got covid (and it's Omicron from symptoms) so probably wont get it. DH has stayed negative too, despite being in car for over an hour the evening before dd1 became ill.

We did but only once we had a negative PCR result. They tested on a LFT every day too until infected child was negative! We also had space for them to properly isolate. I think if I'd had it at the same time then probably wouldn't send them as chances of them having it were high?

We've been avoiding optional activities like swimming and parties though.

We have 1 positive child in the house. Where we are, all children have to self-test in school 3 times a week. DS (and several others from his class) tested positive on Friday, which was then confirmed by PCR the same day. Whole class is in quarantine until next Monday and we are also keeping his siblings home.

Without hesitation

Oh and all extra curricular activity

No bloody way is my child missing out on a single thing that is entirely permitted

Yes you can if you are effectively isolating the positive case but the fact that you are too suggests that isn't possible in your home. It's not possible for many people due to size of house or age/ needs of child. I think you can only send the others in if they are actually self isolating not just 'at home'. My dh is NHS and allowed to work with a positive case at home.i missed a couple of optional activities at the start of my child's isolation just to be careful.

Yes.

Headteacher emailed that she expects siblings to be in.

I've kept mine off for the first few days (two separate isolation periods), PCRd in that time and then when I've felt (though appreciate it's never been a guarantee) they're passed the risky stage they have gone back to school but not after school activities. No judgement for others but that is what has felt right for our circumstances. School absences are unauthorised but given the last couple of years I am totally not bothered about that as pretty sure they're not going to issue fines in these circumstances (school have implied that anyway)

I wouldn't do parties etc if there was covid in the house (to put it into perspective I remember when mine were toddlers it was frowned Upon to being siblings of kids with chicken pox or D&V) school is more important than a party
As a close contact I think the advice is to be extra cautious ?

During the first part when DH Was testing daily, no. Because I'd need to have lft'd him to send him and I won't LFT him. Once it got past that bit and I was still testing positive, we did LFT him and then sent him for day 9 and 10 of my ten days

Thank you for your replies.

I'm not sure if this makes any difference but DD only had Covid mid December which of the rest of us somehow managed to swerve.
Although there's no guarantees I'd imagine she's less likely to get it again this time around!

We didn’t send to school when we had it in October, but I would now.

Parties, hobbies etc are different and I wouldn’t go to those.

No

I would. They missed out on so much when things weren’t allowed for me to restrict things when they are allowed.
Obviously with daily LFT’s though.

Yes. DH, me and dc 3 positive.

Dc1 and 2 went to school throughout. I'm glad they did because they stayed negative the whole time despite us not distancing from them at all. Would have been 10 days missed for no reason.

I am a teacher, I am currently isolating after a positive LFT having picked up Covid from children at school. In my class it started with 2 children - one whose sibling was positive the other whose parent was positive. Both children continued to come to school, have their play dates and do their activities.

Now there are 14 children all positive themselves and isolating within my class plus 3 staff members working within the class. The school can't secure the same supply teacher to cover the whole period of absence, so there is a revolving door of supply teachers going in - more cross contamination. Some children in the class have significant SEND and don't do well with change. So staff have had to evacuate the classroom twice so far due to the big explosive behaviours that have resulted, disrupting learning for everyone.

For me personally, it wouldn't sit right if I still sent my DD in to nursery whilst I'm at home positive, so she's not going, which means I'm taking a financial hit for her nursery fees on those days.

It's no longer just that one sibling or that one parent affected - it's a whole class including staff and their families and the school budget (supply agencies rates are extortionate) and individuals personal budgets that are all taking the hit.

However you decide, there will be disruption to learning whether you send them or not, and a bigger picture.

If you and your DH test positive, you will need to find someone else to take your negative child to school as you and your husband wont be allowed to leave the house. That puts another person at risk of exposure, also.

My DS had covid in November (with minimal symptoms) DD still went to school. She's year 11 and was desperate not to miss the weeks before mock exams. We all took pcrs on day 1(DH) or 4 (me and DD) and day 9 (all of us) and LfTs the other days. DH continued to go to work - he's self employed and wouldn't earn anything otherwise. No one else got it. We did avoid social situations (I didn't meet a friend who was pregnant, and we didn't go to a party we were invited to ) though.

The rest of us got it at new year. Ds didn't, but he only went to school 2 days because it was the Xmas hols for most of our isolation period.

In the same boat this week with DS1 positive. Other children have continued to go to school and nursery with lateral flow tests for us all each day. I have not sent them to non-essential stuff like youth club and a friends house for tea that was planned as feel it’s better to keep the contacts to a minimum where possible just in case.

Edit to add: one of the positive children currently absent from my class is positive for the second time - they had it December crossing into the holidays, and now again. It does happen!

I wouldn’t - it doesn’t seem right at all to me. You might be allowed to but that doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do. Totally agree with @Margo34

I have Covid and one of my sons has covid. The one who doesn't has stayed off school the whole time as I assumed it was only a matter of time before he got it. He's had symptoms but still tested neg each day. He's going back tomorrow 7 days after I tested. As I'm now testing negative.

We have sent them in, otherwise at this stage, DD13 would have had 10 school days off whilst still testing negative (1st +ve household test was 6th Jan!)

She's missed a shocking amount of her education already. I am not willingly allowing her to miss more.

We have just done so as those were the rules in my dc school and several other families have been doing the same. It feels wrong somehow, however Dc2 has had negative lfts every morning before school as have whoever is taking dc2 to school. We took dc2 to football (outdoors) on day 7 of daily testing (still negative). All his other extra curriculars were cancelled anyway due to large numbers of cases in school, I wouldn't have taken him to a party I don't think unless it was purely school friends and the hosts were happy with it, though I know others have, and nobody has minded.
I was due to meet a friend for drinks but we have rearranged just in case!

I would and have sent my children to school with Covid in the house after negative pcr and lft everyday. However, I would feel wrong sending to parties etc.