If you think the key worker guidance should tighten up for school attendance please sign this petition

[swooby]

I can see from other threads that people are just as infuriated as I am about the current key worker guidance leading to schools being half full whilst the other half of kids get excluded.

So I made this petition. It basically suggest that:

1.If there is a non key worker parent at home then that family cannot send their children in to school

1. The keyworker definition needs to be tightened. It is currently far too broad and open to abuse.

I just can't get my head around how a non key worker has to home school kids UNLESS they happen to have a key worker partner.

If you feel the same please sign this petition at change.org on the link below:

chng.it/g4Zjg792Gn

Please share the link too

@marbellamarc

The DoE ask for attendance info so I'm sure they will publish the data soon.

They already do, on a weekly basis, and have done since June.

In the last week of data -

*Attendance on 21 January was 21% in state-funded primary schools, 5% in state-funded secondary schools and 30% in state-funded special schools, all the same as 13 January. Attendance is higher than March to May 2020: on-site attendance was approximately 4% in state-funded primaries, 1% in state-funded secondaries and 8% in state-funded special schools in May 2020".

71% are children of critical workers.

So not the 80/90% some suggested?

I think there is in some schools but that's probably few & far between

Yes that's what I assumed when it was all kicking off in Sept.

If you take away my dcs critical worker space, it will be me, the critical worker giving up work. Dh earns more than I do, in a non critical worker role. We would be stupid for him to give up his job which would leave us struggling to meet our basic outgoings (mortgage, bills etc).

Do you honestly think that families would choose for the lower paid Worker (and let’s face it, most critical roles are lower paid) to stop working to take responsibility for the childcare. Also bear in mind that these critical roles often have worse terms and conditions and mean that the worker is coming in to far more risk of catching the virus and bringing it home to their families to keep society running in the way it needs to.

If you take away my dcs critical worker space, it will be me, the critical worker giving up work. Dh earns more than I do, in a non critical worker role. We would be stupid for him to give up his job

And this is the reality.
All the research is showing that women are being disproportionately disadvantaged and the reasons for this are far from straightforward but one thing is for sure - availability of a school place is key for women's participation in the labour market.

Yes there are societal issues which need addressing but they can't be addressed or changed overnight.

We are at risk of losing all the progress we have made and it's bloody depressing.

I've heard so many times here that schools are half full...I don't know, my DD school is pretty much empty.

If they have been half full...we've done pretty well as infection rates have decreased a lot and the worse is over.

I am fed up with people saying that if you WFH then you shouln't take your kids to school! My DP works from home (LA) but he is expected to work office hours (he has to be in lots of meetings, the other day he was in a 4 hours long meeting), and on phone calls all day. Are you suggesting we should be keeping our 3yo DD at home? he just cannot take care of her, he is busier that he has ever been and work longer hours than he should. I am NHS (non clinical) but have to work on site some days of the week; even when working from home - I can some days- , I actually have to work, I am also expected to work office hours and I am busier than ever. I would have to quit if I had to keep DD at home, and I don't think it would go down well at work to be honest at the moment...
Maybe there are people taking the piss, I am sure there are. But it really makes me angry when people say that if you work from home then you shouldn't send your kids, specially with younger kids that is just not feasible.

Absolutely not

This is the problem - non key workers haven't been able to not work I have to do all the things you describe with my DC at home and be expected to home school them - this is why people are so fraught I guess.

I just wish the home schooling aspect was more sensible for us.

Still other people having school places taken away won't make our lives any easier - agree with PP at this stage it would be nice to see nor jn school not less.

@HauntedPencil

This is the problem - non key workers haven't been able to not work I have to do all the things you describe with my DC at home and be expected to home school them - this is why people are so fraught I guess.

I just wish the home schooling aspect was more sensible for us.

Still other people having school places taken away won't make our lives any easier - agree with PP at this stage it would be nice to see nor jn school not less.

I would have no choice but to quit my job as I can't work from home. I'd end up in poverty.

I never wanted schools closed in the first place though and hope all DC will be back soon.

Sorry - yes I know some people are in that situation - but then I'm not complaining about people having school places either. It dosent make my life easier to stop other people going.

I just wish the home schooling aspect was more sensible for us.
As a teacher I agree with you.
I think that remote learning should be some catch up live chats, such as a morning registration/form time and then after that it should be pre-recorded materials, or links to suitable materials such as those through Oak Academy, with staff available online throughout the school day to answer any questions. That way families can plan their days around work schedules, how many children they have, how many devices they have etc. There would be set pieces that get feedback and the deadline would be at the end of the week so that families can again manage their time and balance priorities.

@LolaSmiles my school is going this except we try to upload work daily for daily feedback.

Schools are expected to provide certain requirements as set out by Ofsted.

marbellamarc
There's some really interesting provision being offered and it would be good to have a thread to share it.

I think the thing that's annoying me at the moment is the sheer number of posters on Mumsnet who are fixated on video lessons. At the moment it feels like some people genuinely believe that their zero experience in teaching makes their opinion more valid than those doing the research and evaluating remote learning.

May e I should going to start pasting this link every time someone is moaning about not having video lessons: www.gov.uk/government/publications/whats-working-well-in-remote-education/whats-working-well-in-remote-education#remote-education-is-a-way-of-delivering-the-curriculum

@LolaSmiles

I just wish the home schooling aspect was more sensible for us. As a teacher I agree with you. I think that remote learning should be some catch up live chats, such as a morning registration/form time and then after that it should be pre-recorded materials, or links to suitable materials such as those through Oak Academy, with staff available online throughout the school day to answer any questions. That way families can plan their days around work schedules, how many children they have, how many devices they have etc. There would be set pieces that get feedback and the deadline would be at the end of the week so that families can again manage their time and balance priorities.

Definitely not a criticism of schools there - I'm more frustrated with the govt - and just the general situation!

[quote LolaSmiles]marbellamarc
There's some really interesting provision being offered and it would be good to have a thread to share it.

I think the thing that's annoying me at the moment is the sheer number of posters on Mumsnet who are fixated on video lessons. At the moment it feels like some people genuinely believe that their zero experience in teaching makes their opinion more valid than those doing the research and evaluating remote learning.

May e I should going to start pasting this link every time someone is moaning about not having video lessons: www.gov.uk/government/publications/whats-working-well-in-remote-education/whats-working-well-in-remote-education#remote-education-is-a-way-of-delivering-the-curriculum[/quote]
One live registration a day for us and it's been great - a chance to see their friends etc. It's given a routine as well. I'm just so so short on time, that's the tricky bit.

HauntedPencil
I totally understand.

It would have been good if there was meaningful leadership and strategy from the DfE from the start.
School leaders have been getting updates and u turns on the final days of term, announcements leaked to the press, and been told to prepare documents that were then abandoned and resurrected again months later. Then there was the giant laptop scandal too where nowhere near enough devices were available and the government didn't even meet the few they said, and now they're found to be faulty. The person providing the laptops is a Tory donor I believe who is selling the laptops to the government above market rate as well, if I remember correctly.

It's a disgrace. With proper leadership at DfE level many of these issues could have been avoided.

@LolaSmiles

HauntedPencil I totally understand. It would have been good if there was meaningful leadership and strategy from the DfE from the start. School leaders have been getting updates and u turns on the final days of term, announcements leaked to the press, and been told to prepare documents that were then abandoned and resurrected again months later. Then there was the giant laptop scandal too where nowhere near enough devices were available and the government didn't even meet the few they said, and now they're found to be faulty. The person providing the laptops is a Tory donor I believe who is selling the laptops to the government above market rate as well, if I remember correctly.

It's a disgrace. With proper leadership at DfE level many of these issues could have been avoided.

It must feel like you can't win - I know parents are complaining there isn't enough work and I've had to email to say I can barely scratch the surface of it all.

I don't actually like all the video lessons. I find it too much for my young dc.

The DoE have been a shit show

It must feel like you can't win - I know parents are complaining there isn't enough work and I've had to email to say I can barely scratch the surface of it all
We know we can't be all things to all people, and most parents are totally reasonable.

The minority who aren't are probably the same people losing their minds on Mumsnet and refuse to understand the difference between:
A) a perfectly reasonable provision that isn't exactly what I would choose
B) genuinely poor provision that needs challenging through the appropriate channels.

No-one I know who is homeschooling and works has taken time off work. They're all struggling along doing both. Either kids in front of TV whilst they work. Or doing the 12 hour day shift of childcare and homeschooling then an evening shift at home to get the work done.

So I guess I don't follow the argument that the covid nurse would have to stop work to homeschool when there's higher paid partner at home. Why wouldn't the partner suck it up? It's hard, I get it, but it's what everyone else has to do if they aren't married to a key worker.

@HauntedPencil

Sorry - yes I know some people are in that situation - but then I'm not complaining about people having school places either. It dosent make my life easier to stop other people going.

If gov says schools have to be "shut" to reduce infection rates then surely them being this full extends the wave and it'll be longer til they get to reopen to the rest of us

@swooby

No-one I know who is homeschooling and works has taken time off work. They're all struggling along doing both. Either kids in front of TV whilst they work. Or doing the 12 hour day shift of childcare and homeschooling then an evening shift at home to get the work done.

So I guess I don't follow the argument that the covid nurse would have to stop work to homeschool when there's higher paid partner at home. Why wouldn't the partner suck it up? It's hard, I get it, but it's what everyone else has to do if they aren't married to a key worker.

What about the non key workers like myself who can't work from home?

I get that there's a tiny minority using KW provisions when there is a SAHP but they can't stop the 1 KW role based on that minority. It would impact too many KWs. Whether you believe it to be too broad or not, those roles have been deemed important to the running of the country. I am a KW WFH and I'm also a single parent, so my kids are using the provision.

Your issue isn't with the KW provision, you haven't mentioned you're annoyed at the risk, you just think it's unfair. The issue is with the lack of support from employers for those homeschooling & working. Mutha Pukka is leading a campaign to make furlough mandatory in these situations which would hopefully make it more 'fair'. That's where the government, and your, focus should be. Supporting those at home, not taking away from others.