How will we know if our kids have it from April?

[Kage30]

Cases rising in kids school again. Been told to pcr test if any symptoms. But what about form April when pcr testing is ending? Only 11 whole days away?!

I know we still have access to lft's - that you will have to pay for. I have a couple boxes left but won't last forever. Many parents including myself cannot afford to buy multiple lft tests.

Also , lft's aren't always accurate right? So if your kid has symptoms and you get a negative lft doesn't mean that they don't actually have it, could be just too soon to tell? But as above many won't be able to afford to buy multiple lft's.

I mean if your kid is visibly ill with say a fever, bad cough or fatigue etc - keep them off until better. But what about when a child just has mild sniffles? But totally fine in themselves? Paying for an lft each time?!

Thankfully mine aren't ill that often so hopefully won't affect us. But Dd has all year round allergies, usually mild and kept under confirm with antihistamines but if it gets bad for whatever reason she often develops a cough that I've had to test her for to get back to school as her cough has been bad. But I won't be able to afford an lft each time!!

She'd had covid twice and had minimal symptoms each time. Picked up as was testing due to close contact to covid, I wouldn't have known if I didn't test her.

I didnt know PCRs was ending in April. But theres not much choice really. Dd has a heavy cold right now. I did a LFT on day two and four and she is negative dispite developing a cough. Once the lft have run out that's it. I would only buy a test if someone was quite unwell but really what would be the point? It's not being reported so if they was seriously ill I would seek help. If they was quite unwell they would stay home. If they was just sniffing and coughing with no temp I'd send them out. What's the alternative? It's back to 2019. Common sense and no testing.

I'm concerned because of the higher risk of heart problems when having boosters within 12 weeks of positive case. I won't be having any more vaccines and neither will my dc.

@cantkeepawayforever

Testing doesn't detect Covid until a few days after catching it, it's already been passed on in that time.

Is your understanding of the detailed science that covid is infectious from the moment that someone catches it it? My understanding is that the person is exposed to covid, spends some time being fully infected and then becomes infectious - and regular testing detects that?

Which is why lfts say 'probably not INFECTIOUS' not 'probably not INECTED'.

My colleague caught Covid after spending time with an infected person. She didn't test positive until 5 days after. In that time me and another work colleague caught it from her. So I don't think they're very helpful based on my personal experience.

If your child is too I'll for school. They stay home.

Same as flu/cough/cold/stomach bug. Etc.

Tonnes of ill kids at school, sick, diarrhoea, flu symptoms. Parents always go 'oh, I know, but I said go in and see how you go'.

No respect for anyone or the 48 hour rule.

Staff are very very poorly with covid at the moment. With the no testing, I wonder if it's viral load?

@Waxonwaxoff0 your school is lucky. I am involved with a number of schools, they are in the worst position they have been since the pandemic started. Small primaries with an average of 15 pupils and 3 members of staff off at a time. Very little supply available. It is chaotic and all the staff are on their knees. And the staff are poorly, not twiddling their thumbs whilst isolating.

Many parents aren’t doing LFT - a lot weren’t before (see PP comments)

So the calculations above 7-10X? Child 1 infected - spreads to 2 more - day 3 you now have 3 infected kids - so another 6 down - now have 1/3 of the class infected and the viral load is increasing in the classroom.

It’ll spread quickly and hopefully we’ll all gain some immunity and the classes will become safer in the long run.

Primary school staff have worked for a long time with high levels of unvaccinated children and are still standing - albeit by a thread some days.

@BluebellsGreenbells some local schools have had to close year groups

The same as we’ve been doing in other parts of the world that didn’t have this huge obsession with testing children all the time. If your child is ill, don’t send them to school. If they are well enough for school, send them to school. You are their parents. Don’t allow the government to take over your parenting role and decide whether your child goes to school or not. If you think they shouldn’t go, don’t send them.

@DragonOverTheMoon and what about the heart problems from catching COVID?

@DragonOverTheMoon

I'm concerned because of the higher risk of heart problems when having boosters within 12 weeks of positive case. I won't be having any more vaccines and neither will my dc.

Any links to research on this?

What happens if children are shielded from covid?!?

So if they’d die from it? Or told by their consultant to be very careful?

It's all part of the government's grand plan to end the pandemic by pretending it doesn't exist. Unfortunately sending all those kids to school with Covid means they are likely to have to manage without teaching staff. The current variant seems highly contagious as it is and all the staff I've known to have it recently have been far too unwell to teach for several days. And re-infection rates seem high. If there are contagious kids in school in greater numbers it is inevitable that more staff will be off sick.

@Nocutenamesleft

What happens if children are shielded from covid?!?

So if they’d die from it? Or told by their consultant to be very careful?

I would presume if a child were that vulnerable to covid they wouldn’t be in school at the moment as schools are full of covid. It won’t make any difference when testing stops. Most people aren’t testing kids now anyway.

I work in school. Last week we had more children test positive with covid than we’ve had in the whole of the pandemic. On top of those children there were many children who were symptomatic but parents were still sending them in “it’s just a cough”. I was the one dealing with the vomiting (80% of or positive cases started with vomiting) and taking temperatures and comforting poorly 5 year olds whose parents wouldn’t come and get them. I now have covid. Technically I’m well enough to go to work (although very tired) but I’m isolating at home and away from my CEV husband and vulnerable child. I just wish people would realise that although this is a cold for a lot of people it is just way more infectious and still dangerous for many groups of people. When we were able to insist parents kept symptomatic children at home until they had a negative test we had ZERO staff infections and less than 10 child cases in the whole pandemic period. Now we have over double that level of child infections and six staff infected. We are all testing daily while we can (and when not already infected).

Our school are still insisting on a PCR ATM and to stay at home with COVID even if the child is mildly unwell and actually could be at school.
IMO it's not stopping anything now and in two weeks surely they can't keep insisting on tests and children having time off unless the child is actually unwell?
They claim it's to keep the school as safe as possible but it's not stopping anything
13 staff members off with it and kids being sent home daily here

If they’re well enough for school, in, if not, a day off. Knowing the name of their ‘illness’ will make no difference. In the past that’s how it worked. You were either fit for school or not.

@Nocutenamesleft

What happens if children are shielded from covid?!?

So if they’d die from it? Or told by their consultant to be very careful?

Then the parents of a child so vulnerable will make a judgement call on whether to send their children to school or not, just as they do with every day to day activity and did before COVID. My cousin’s child had cystic fibrosis and was waiting for a heart-lung transplant. This was long before COVID. Her parents made decisions on a daily basis as to whether to send her to school (they decided to have a home tutor), take her to the cinema, shopping, parks, restaurants, etc. Sadly she died before a donor could be found but up to the very end it was her parents - not the government - that decided what she did or didn’t do each day. Surely this is all second nature to the parents of very sick children.

I can't be arsed to find the research but it's not a conspiracy theory, it's well know and that's why there's the 12 week wait in place already. Boys especially are higher risk for myocarditis when the vaccine is given before the 12 week wait.

@Mariposista I have never known so many members of staff off in schools, and of the ones I know, they are ill not just isolating, this is not like normal bugs being spread by children

@Delatron

Why would you be more cautious?

It was pretty frustrating having an asymptomatic child sat at home for 10 days last Nov. Who didn’t pass it on to the rest of his family.
They’ve missed enough education.

I haven’t tested mine for ages.

If they are ill to be at home they will be if they are well enough to go to school they will.

DS1 is 13 he has not had a day off sick from school ever. It’s not good to keep healthy children at home if they are well.

Good for you. Finally a parent with some common sense!

You won’t know. Until they pass it on to you. Then if you have a cold with symptoms that leaves you feeling absolutely crushed for 2 weeks, with no sense of taste for several weeks and debilitating fatigue, then you’ll know they had it. Both my children have sailed through Covid with no symptoms and it’s devastated me and my husband (we are both very fit with no underlying health conditions). That’s just going to be the reality for many adults that catch it from children with no symptoms.

Wowzers. Schools are going to be heaving with covid at this rate.

No, it will just peak then go down like anything else. The testing is keeping it going.

Schools are struggling because teachers are ill not because teachers are testing

It will be exactly as it was at the beginning of the pandemic - the government will say schools are safe, there is no COVID in schools, teachers are at no risk of catching COVID and they are just moaning whingers.

@Teateaandmoretea

Wowzers. Schools are going to be heaving with covid at this rate.

No, it will just peak then go down like anything else. The testing is keeping it going.

The repeat infection time (between children or staff being too ill to be in school) seems to be down to 6 weeks or so locally.

Staff are typically too ill to be in school for at least 7 days. That neans that for unlucky classes, they will be missing a teacher fir 1-2 weeks every half term. There is no available supply or cover , so it is then childcare by a ta or lunchtime supervisor or closure.