Is there any thought yet as to how students are going to get home for Christmas?

[TawnyPippit]

I haven’t seen anything, but I’m assuming some thought must be being given to this, whether by the universities or the govt?. DS is in catered accommodation and I can’t believe that that that would keep on going all over the Christmas period. I’m not a Christmas obsessive - DS is just coming to the end of his first lockdown period, and also can’t come home for reading week as originally planned as we are Tier 2. But I have told him (rashly?) that it will all be ok for Christmas.

I guess the way it would currently work would be to do another period of isolation - which hopefully will be just 7 days by then - and then come and re-join our household. He is in Tier 1, so coming home is not a problem for him, its us that cannot mix households ATM.

I suspect its all too far away to strategise about at the moment as we will likely have several different iterations of lockdown restrictions before then, just idle musings.

Correction in my post above I meant from what I’ve heard. I haven’t got a student at uni at the mo.

To tier 1 from unis in tier 3 and then arranging meet ups with other friends back home.

And here's the problem.
Not that they might catch it, potentially not that we will catch it but that they will give it to others- grandparents/family members, people at the local shop/garage/restaurant/bar/supermarket/their friends who will give it to their own friends and family and on an on.

So for the sake of a couple of days festivities it makes no sense for them to come home. There will be other Christmases, there will be other parties, there will be more family time, and there will be more holidays to come.

I know we are all missing our DC but for goodness sake people, look at the bigger picture.

For the sake of a few days festivities!?! My daughter lives alone @paprikasausage, she would have 3 weeks sat on her own, in a small studio flat. She's not coming home for festivities, but company, she's bloody lonely. You might be happy to abandon your child, but I will be bringing mine home.

Mine is 8 days into her 14 day isolation as flatmate positive. Not broken the rules once since arriving. Fed up as missing lots of stuff but being 'adult' about it. She will be home for Xmas.
I spend my days with 1,800 of other people's children. I will see mine for Xmas. She worked in a supermarket all through lockdown, missed her end of school and is now stuck at Uni in a small room for which she is paying a small fortune.
Yes she is an adult and behaving like one, but she's my kid, and if anyone wants me teaching their kids in the new year then mentally I need to hug my own. Eldest is in a house and can come home whenever she wants.
I will go to prison over this. So will DD. At least she'd get an hour outside to exercise which she doesn't at the moment.

Mine will be coming home for Christmas - 100%. They have no cases in their block so why wouldn’t he.

"Let's look at the bigger picture"

If we hadn't looked at the bigger picture, education, mental health, opportunities, economy, the students wouldn't even BE in their tier 3 universities ATM. I speak as someone who has one child in tier 3, one in tier 1, and I'm in tier 2.

Okay, so let's be v v unselfish and not send our kids away from their household in the first place, if they have the presumption to need contact with family members half way through covid times.

How unresilient of them to need to leave home even temporarily, when they could have perfectly well managed to do it online from their bedrooms. How spoilt of them and us to demand they moved.

It means far more to dd than a couple of days of festivities.

Why should those who followed government advice and promises made by unis to teach f2f and look after their mh be penalised?

That useless buffoon John Swinney has announced students may not be able to go home for xmas. How will he stop them - road blocks on every road? My first year DD will come home, I'll pick her up. Of course students will go home for xmas, the legislation to prevent it would require to be so draconian even the SNP wouldn't be able to get it passed.

My advice to parents would be to impress upon your DC that they need to follow the rules for their region, and if you are adamant that you’re bringing them home (against the law in some areas) then they should self-isolate for 2 weeks beforehand. Particularly if they’re in a Tier 3 area.

Or, if you’re happy to take the risk in the family home, bring your DC home, then the whole family self- isolate for 2 weeks.

Of course if a load of idiots hadn’t voted for this shower of a government and an incompetent PM, we wouldn’t be in this situation where were all grumpy and determined to act in self-centred ways.

I have Chinese students who feel very much less safe here than in China (one from the original outbreak area itself) but haven’t seen family for almost a year now, and little likelihood of getting back to China before next Spring. Meanwhile, back in Wuhan, things are pretty much back to normal apparently.

My DC's will be coming home regardless of what Gavin Williamson says!

My girls are coming home. They’re sharing a flat and they’ll be able to SI for two weeks before coming home (my youngest is vulnerable so we’re minimising risk as much as possible whole not wrecking the education or mh of the others).

DS hasn’t decided yet what to do. His flat mates aren’t being remotely careful (to the point the girlfriend of one of them came round for an evening two days after she tested positive because she felt fine) so he’s concerned.

I have around half of my personal tutees highly concerned about the risks that they are exposed to at the moment, by inconsiderate and/or irresponsible flat mates. Several of them have gone home - as a BAME student said to me, she feels far safer at home at her mother’s in the middle of London, than at our fairly rural university.

I hope the parents of these flat mates are proud of their DC

And just as well we’re not teaching our whole programme in person.

Mine has yet to have any f2f contact. In fact hasn't even set foot on campus yet. She's a vet student and was told she had to be at Uni. Missing dissection as doing the right thing isolating, missing meeting other vets and missing just being able to go outside. All for £16,500. Bargain.

My ds is in a Tier 3 area. If it stays at Tier 3 then.he wont be coming home for Christmas. It's not that I'm."happy to abandon my child" as a pp charmingly put it but that my elderly mother would be hugely at risk if ds came to us.

So the choice is, we abide by the rules and ds stays in his flat with his gf in Tier 3, whilst my mum.comes to me for Christmas, or we break.the rules, ds and his gf come here for Christmas whilst my mum stays home alone.

I hope uni halls etc are planning to stay open for those that really shouldn't be going home.

I'm assuming at this point that DD won't be coming back for Xmas - we're in Tier 3, she's a 4th year in a house with friends, one of whom is from overseas. (Very different to a lonely first year, I know.)

it Is just so sad and worrying for these students and I do think their mental health should be prioritised. We just have to hope science will come to our rescue and that rapid testing will provide a safe route home. My dd2 at uni is very happy and has managed to avoid having to isolate so far but I know of so many that are struggling with situations we would all find difficult let alone 18/19 year olds. Panorama last night was heartbreaking.

My DD, 4th year lives in private rental with one other. She has not yet confirmed whether she is coming home, but I will be upset if she doesn't, even though it will be a 6 hour round trip to pick up. She has already had covid. DS, 2nd year, will want to come home. He, too, has already had it but has a much bigger friendship group than DD, and will want to see people. We won't allow them to bring any friends home while they are here and they will be expected to observe strict hygiene measures if they have been out. We don't want to catch it ourselves but I think it a good thing that many students will have had the virus and will present less of a risk as a result, provided, of course, that they self isolated when they were infectious.

I do think their mental health should be prioritised

But which students’ mental health, and prioritised over whom? Over the physical health of over-50 year olds, who - the scientific evidence suggests - Are likely to suffer more from COVID and “long COVID”.

Over their fellow students with health vulnerabilities or from BAME backgrounds?

Over the physical and mental health of all the staff at universities- cleaning staff, teaching staff, admin staff?

It’s really not that simple. This disease shows how much we are all connected, and how much we need to be aware of our daily ordinary responsibilities to others.

So many students now have all of their academic content delivered online that isolating for Christmas is already happening. No way would I stop them coming home. They are adults, not prisoners, and cannot be prevented from moving. They are painfully aware of the potential effect on other people. Hopefully they will get tested beforehand and then we can all relax a little.

@MissMarplesGlove I know of a student who has become seriously depressed since arriving at university. She is spending all her time in her room and is struggling. Her mental health should be prioritised because she is at risk. If she were my daughter I would bring her home despite her being in a tier 3 area, and I would take precautions within the home to minimise the risk. I am fully aware of the dangers of this virus and respect the rules and am very grateful to the university staff who are making my own dd’s experience as good as it can be but there is a serious risk of harm to some students which cannot be ignored. If the student is happy and coping then obviously they should stay put.

So for the sake of a couple of days festivities it makes no sense for them to come home.

Are you serious .

Do you really want 18 year olds, many of whom are homesick, isolated and desperate to see their family to be denied a couple of weeks at home with their family?

Even if I had a vulnerable family member in my house I wo make that work!

I do think their mental health should be prioritised
^
But which students’ mental health, and prioritised over whom? Over the physical health of over-50 year olds, who - the scientific evidence suggests - Are likely to suffer more from COVID and “long COVID”.^

Yes, I would sacrifice my own health in order to protect that of my DD's mental health!

DS and his friends know and follow the rules. No more than their group of six etc. DH is a doctor and worked on Covid wards so DS is fully aware of the implications of Covid.

He’s driven home a couple of times this term to see us and collect things he’d forgotten. I don’t know of any of his friends who aren’t planning to go home for the Christmas break.

There have been 8 suicides of freshers since term started. I will risk my health for my DDs mental health. Although I think I'm more at risk every day in school.
I can't watch Panorama as it's too close to home.

I think the mental health crisis is as, if not more, concerning than covid. If a student can get home safely and family feels ok to have them back then why not. It will depend on the risk where they are, where they are going etc - not everywhere is the same so I hope some subtlety and personal sense is used.