How schools will stay open without priority teacher vaccinations?

[CadburysCrunchie]

I'm not a teacher, but I am wondering how our children's schools will stay open (and we can continue going to work) without teaching staff being given some sort of priority for the covid vaccination?

My child's school has already completely shut for two weeks in November due to rapidly increasing cases, then reopened, and now with 3 days notice is changing to home learning next week due to staff shortages (people being sick, shielding, or having to self-isolate for 2 weeks). The school thinks it is likely the school will have to go to home learning again next term due to all the staff shortages.

If you are not a keyworker so that your child can request to stay in school, how can you go to work outside the home (no home working alternative) if you have no childcare?? What about children who don't have access to a computer etc?

I don't know if this is allowed, but I am going to link to a petition I have seen: petition.parliament.uk/petitions/554316 - Admin, please remove this if the link is not allowed.

YABU - You should stop worrying
YANBU - You are right to worry about this.

I don’t think anyone’s disputing that herc but teaching is reasonably well paid and above all secure. It can’t be compared to a care worker on a 0 hour contract. It really can’t.

Of course it can't be. That is exactly why care workers are getting the vaccine first.

Wotcha. Lazy, moaning, clinically vulnerable, non classroom based school support staff here.

I have to cross bubbles, have only just been given the official nod to wear a mask (I was doing it anyway) and I clean toilets, that are often missed, rarely flushed and have small vents for ventilation.

Yes, I would like CEV & CV school staff to be a step or two up the list. As I would any public interacting person who has to get close to people of any age and their bodily fluids/excretions.

Oh well, mine is not to reason why. Mine is just to step back sharply as I flush an unlidded toilet and hope that the theory about faecal-oral transmission risks being low is true.

@KarlKennedysDurianFruit

Same way prisons have kept running, police services still continue, social care, courts, etc, all of whom have consistent daily unmasked contact with elements of the population who aren't known to be rule abiders, some of whom are; Street homeless, living in hostels, still sharing needles, and selling their bodies for sex, never mind social distancing and hand washing. Prisons are absolutely rife with it and if those services collapse then the public will be at risk, but they won't because those services have contributed face to face throughout and will continue to do so despite more than a decade of cuts and government interference, that have left s lot of them already on their needs and stripped to the bone.

The clinically vulnerable, elderly, and those who care for them of course must be the priority, not teachers. MN is like another universe sometimes.

I agree.

Teachers should have some priority in phase 2, but it should be alongside many other at risk professions. It will be a fairly long list. It makes my eyes roll when people post things like 'nhs, care workers, elderly and vulnerable, then teachers and retail workers ' as if that's it, job done, they can't possibly think of any other at risk roles.

Why is this on the pet board ?!

Hi OP, we've moved this from pets (???) to the coronavirus board.

KarlKennedysDurianFruit

The clinically vulnerable, elderly, and those who care for them of course must be the priority, not teachers. MN is like another universe sometimes.

this is the same "universe" where schools must remain open at any cost, for the reasons that so many claiming teachers are lazy etc. have posted on various threads.

So I will say it again.

Its amazing how these reasons disappear so quickly once their is a vaccine.

But then it shows you what self serving bullshit various anti teacher posters were posting before.

Yes, prison officers absolutely should be vaccinated early. The only reason they don't tend to get mentioned is that there are fewer of them than teachers and they're not so evident in our lives. But I would imagine that they're very much at risk.

I think anyone who has to deal for any length of time in a confined space, with large numbers of people who refuse or are not allowed to wear a mask, and who don't/can't socially distance, should be protected. Prison officers and teachers are the first people I think of who are in that situation. Everyone else I can think of is masked and the people they're dealing with are. Though I'm sure I'll have missed a group.

@eastegg
That's what the op is saying. Priority for teachers within phase 2

Police. That's who I forgot.

Agree with Police and prison officers being priority too.

It would probably be easier to put the non priority people at this rate!!

I didn't say I disagreed with the OP.

People who are most likely to die from it should be the first priority.
Then people who come into direct contact with those who are most likely to die.

Teachers are neither of these groups.

Not sure how to say this without sounding goady... I'm not. Trying to be helpful.

Why aren't teachers ( and any others) doing their own evidence based risk assessments and with discussion with their head teachers mitigating risks... that should surely include masks?!

Are you prevented from wearing them? By who? Why?

(Runs for cover).

@Voice0fReason

People who are most likely to die from it should be the first priority. Then people who come into direct contact with those who are most likely to die.

Teachers are neither of these groups.

Can't argue with that

@justgeton yes prevented by the DfE guidance. However I wear one all the time as the guidance is ridiculously stupid.

Why aren't teachers ( and any others) doing their own evidence based risk assessments and with discussion with their head teachers mitigating risks... that should surely include masks?!

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Read the million other threads.

Long story short, masks banned from some classrooms based on DfE advice. Classrooms are too small to SD. Not much else we can do....

@Voice0fReason

That is why phase 1 is prioritised by age and then care/NHS workers.

However teachers should be prioritised in phase 2.

We're not safe in schools, no. I do think we should be on that list, somewhere. For safety, of course, but also because we cannot be stuck at the front of the room forever. I can't stress this enough - WE CAN'T TEACH PROPERLY FROM THE FRONT. It is already impacting young people's happiness and confidence in the classroom - I can see it. Much longer and it's going to have a long term impact on their academic achievement too. We need to get to a point where we can go near the students again. We can't carry on like this.

@eastegg

I didn't say I disagreed with the OP.

You also agreed with @KarlKennedysDurianFruit.

That's why I was confused as you then agree with the op.

@justgeton

Not sure how to say this without sounding goady... I'm not. Trying to be helpful.

Why aren't teachers ( and any others) doing their own evidence based risk assessments and with discussion with their head teachers mitigating risks... that should surely include masks?!

Are you prevented from wearing them? By who? Why?

(Runs for cover).

Yes, teachers are prevented from wearing them, generally. The DFE initially said that teachers and pupils weren't to wear masks at all. Then they said that heads could make the choice. While simultaneously making it extremely difficult for them to make any choice other than the DFE's. Only a very few, very brave state school heads have dared go against guidance. And no pupils are to wear them in state schools, apart from in corridors.

edit

Then they said that heads could make the choice... about whether teachers wore them, that is

@justgeton

Not sure how to say this without sounding goady... I'm not. Trying to be helpful.

Why aren't teachers ( and any others) doing their own evidence based risk assessments and with discussion with their head teachers mitigating risks... that should surely include masks?!

Are you prevented from wearing them? By who? Why?

(Runs for cover).

I and my colleagues can't wear masks or social distance, partly due to working with d/Deaf children (other specific children have more physical needs). Cochlear implants and radio aids can only distinguish so much speech in noise at a distance of greater than 2m!

Not all teachers/school staff work in mainstream.

Surely teachers are key workers?

2nd staff in special school being a priority. Close, prolonged proximity to highly vulnerable pupils in very small spaces minimum, if any equipment to reduce spread. Same goes for family carers.

As to me , I am under 50, work with additional support needs, no distancing, minimal mask wearing due to pupil needs. However my kids are less vulnerable so we will wait our turn and gladly see the vulnerable vaccinated before us.