Unhappy about primary schools re opening

[Bitterglitter]

Is anyone else unhappy about primary schools being re opened as part of the lockdown easing measures?

I keep thinking about the kids who have underlying health conditions that aren't yet diagnosed.

My DS1 (5) was diagnosed with a benign heart murmur in feb this year. It was only picked up because he has a lot of follow up Paediatric appointments because he was premature. I don't even know if it's an issue as far as covid19 goes. But what about all the kids out there with undiagnosed asthma, diabetes etc?

Primary age kids can't and won't maintain social distance. And they will act as super spreaders too. Doesn't matter how well their parents maintain distance if all these kids are mixing it up in schools.

It just seems crazy when so many parents can continue working from home. Am I being hysterical?

Does that mean the children of key workers who are at school now so their parents can work are ‘guinea pigs’ I bloody hope not!

My parents are totally self isolating so we will start to visit them. I have a friend with kids who is also totally self isolating, so if they continue to we will visit them.

So you're all relying on others to shop for you families and help you out? Not going for walks or to the supermarket?

So you're happy for other to put themselves at risk, and in return for their kindness you'll mix with others?

@AlexisCarringtonColbyDexter There is PPE available. There have been local business owners on the local news saying they offered PPE for sale to NHS who were not interested, so they sold it abroad.
I don't trust what the government says though. Lies about how many thousands of PPE they had bought when they were counting gloves as 2 items of PPE.

The government have continually lied. So yes I do believe the CEO of a pharmaceutical body over the government. And these bodies tend to be very cautious publicly.

But I will see you again here on January as lots of people have been vaccinated, lots more people have died, and we will be being told that no one knew a vaccine would be available so quickly. I have already been told that no one could foresee things like what is happening in care homes, when people have been shouting about it for ages.

@LittleBearPad I genuinely don't understand what you are saying then, sorry. Yes there are other risks in everyday life but the Covid situation is completely new. I agree that lockdown can't and shouldn't continue indefinitely but I personally don't know how it can be eased without another spike/NHS being overwhelmed/all that stuff that was trying to be avoided.

I think Swedish secondary schools closed and primaries stayed open. And they have more deaths per million than the US.

@GrimmsFairytales We all get home deliveries. My parents are over 70, the other family has a shielding child. None of them are in contact with anyone.

Did you see my post upthread about how long it would take to vaccinate everyone?

I HOPE there is a vaccine, I would love that it could be done super quickly. All I'm saying is, I wouldnt pin my hopes on it being all done by christmas

@cantory so none of you go shopping or to work? then you are basically one big household. but the moment one of you interacts with the outside world, the bubble bursts
in your situation, i would just be honest and deregister the kids from school and homeschool

There will probably be a vaccine by the end of the year thats to guaranteed- by the time its formulated and enough of the population has access to it, its like to be middle of next year.

Thats providing you are happy to accept being pumped with something that has not had the 10+ years of stringent testing (ususally several years before it even comes anywhere near a human guinea pig) to assess the longterm safety and potential side effects.

@AlexisCarringtonColbyDexter Why come up with a random number of vaccinations a day? Millions of people are vaccinated for flu every year. My surgery do most of them over a few flu days. Every surgery in the country will be involved in giving out covid 19 vaccinations.
It would also make sense to start in areas with high rates of infection. And to start with most vulnerable, medics and care workers.

@devlesko what a thoroughly nasty comment, of course I want no daughter to live but I have to work to keep food and a roof over her head, scaremongering like this isn't helpful.

Why come up with a random number of vaccinations a day

Because thats how many tests they are currently able to carry out. They've thrown everything at this and we are still only able to get 100000 tests a day

@myself2020 Some of us are wfh. Yes I know it is safe. We are not mixing households, just saying if kids go back to school I will be happy to do this as long as all 3 households continue to self isolate.

No I am not deregistering, my kids will be going back to school, just not yet. I will be waiting at least 3 weeks to see in deaths go up again once schools open. So I am not even saying I will automatically keep them off until a vaccine becomes available. But if opening schools up does spread this, then we will have another very large peak in about 5-6 weeks time. Schools will close again anyway for the summer. I suspect that is the plan actually.

You might be happy to risk your family dying for the sake of schools being open before the summer holidays, I am not. And yes if that means lying and ringing in sick and ringing in sick for my kids, I will do that.

How is it scaremongering. I hope you've considered it.
Most of us have a choice whether to send our children or not.
I understand that everybody doesn't, but the economy is not more important than saving lives.
It's ok saying you need to keep a roof over your head, but in many families there are two parents to keep the roof from going.
You could be made redundant, many businesses will be closing, a job isn't really that important when it means your child/ren become an experiment.
If you trust this government in decisions relating to your childs well being, then more fool you.

So the poster who will keep their kid off school and mix with isolating parents is happy for food producers, delivery drivers, utility workers to go to work as long as their bubble family is 'safe'. Poor kids getting a message that is okay!

Are they reopening though? Here in Scotland they're not opening before the summer hols, what's going on in England?

We don't know that yet.

And ok as to to lie and 'ring in sick'! If the delivery driver does that I imagine we will hear bleating from you that your 'vulnerable' parents are going hungry.

What if by delaying sending them you were to risk forfeiting their school place, would that influence the decision?

@AlexisCarringtonColbyDexter They are not throwing everything at it. Millions of people are vaccinated every year for flu by GP surgeries holding a couple of flu days. Chemists can also offer the vaccine.

25 million people in the UK are offered a flu jab. In my GP surgery they have 2 days for under 60s, and 2 days for over 60s to come and get the flu jab, and kids are vaccinated at school. We know from the flu jab that a lot of people can be vaccinated quickly by using schools, chemists and GP surgeries.

Stella, exactly what I said, as long as I’m alright jack, lovey attitude

@Stellamboscha The government continually lies to us.
I have to put my family first and safeguard them. You may think that is wrong, but as the government is not looking after people, we have to look after ourselves.

And you will not lose your school place because you ring in saying your kids are ill. Don't be ridiculous.

but the economy is not more important than saving lives.

The economy is intrinsically linked to preserving and extending lives, I'm not sure how people don't understand this. And there are deaths beyond covid, saving some lives at the cost of others.

Population of UK is 66 million ish. If you manage to vaccinate 100,000 people a day (including weekends) , it would take almost two years to get around to vaccinating everyone

Does it have to take that long? A couple of nurses in every supermarket on a weekend could get through an awful lot of people in every town? Over several weekends, maybe even evening 6-10 pm sessions as well, it would cover so many people quickly. That would leave GPS to focus on at risk people, older people who can’t get out. During the week nurses could be in schools? 5 schools a week per nurse (depends on size of school, I guess). Obviously it relies on that many doses being available but a massive push of that kind could, theoreticall at least, vaccinate us all in months?

@Willowmartha1 don’t pay too much attention to the likes of devlesko. Their children will be guinea pigs for the effect of prolonged social isolation on kids (which we know often has disastrous consequences).
Coronavirus in kids and healthy adults hardly ever leads to serious consequences. I know which risk I prefer

Stella - dying from windows falling on you isn't catching!

In Ireland it's September for all schools to reopen (I HOPE). Creches and child care providers will be a bit earlier.