The Eleventh Republic - countdown to summer holidays

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff. Baiters and bashers can jog on somewhere else.

If you are NOT staff and just have a general education query please start your own thread.

You can play here only if you are a member of one the following groups-

-ABBA - anti bashers and baiting association
-SWAB - school workers against bashers
-SWOT - school workers opposing teacherbashers
-STARS - schoolworkers together against ranting + slurs

Other requirements for staff room entry include the ability to find the staff room, the ability to find a clean mug in the staff room, knowledge of the photocopier codes, and the ability to sniff out where the toffee vodka is hidden.

If you are fed up with cakes and biscuits there is now a cheeseboard on offer

If you come with a stick to beat us with then please do so elsewhere and not in the staffroom

Piggywaspushed

It makes you wonder if those in charge have forgotten that there is a record of everything that they say to us.

Was she not even offered a doctors appointment?

Thanks all for the kind words and advice. No the doctor just called me said it was common at the moment and gave me the number for Cahms.

@RigaBalsam

Was she not even offered a doctors appointment?

Thanks all for the kind words and advice. No the doctor just called me said it was common at the moment and gave me the number for Cahms.

I’m really cross for you Dismissing her like that.

riga - there's lots of self help books around. My son swears by the feeling good handbook. It's made a massive difference to his depression and he's pretty much back to normal after a few weeks with it.

Thank you both. Will take a look.

I find it outrageous that you would get an appointment but a child is palmed off. When your child has an ear infection the go treats it, he doesn’t send them off to a children’s service. Yet gps won’t even talk to a young person if it’s a mental health issue.

With an adult for example they’d rule out physical causes eg test thyroid and tactfully assess whether you were suicidal or at risk of harming yourself or others. Why with a child is it immediate signposting to a mental health service? Let alone a service that’s been on it’s knees for years.

I’d consider talking to the practice manager. It’s not safe or acceptable practice. Sorry I’m moaning on your behalf.

There was no camhs when I was a teenager and I couldn’t talk to my mum-I went to the gp and balled my eyes out and was helped from there.

Thank you honey badger you are so right.

I will see try a few suggestions from you wonderful lot and complain if I see no improvement.

Half the problem at the moment is that places aren’t necessarily taking on new people by phone. It’s a bit like jumping through invisible hoops.

Definitely don’t be afraid to be the squeaky wheel if you need to.

@ohthegoats fab news!

@RigaBalsam I don’t have anything helpful to add but sorry to hear. Hope you get some support soon.

Sharing a still from a video where a woman who is health and safety officer of a factory shares her approach to getting workers back safely. The diagram and descriptors are hopefully clear.

Link to video where she shows how they’ve achieved all those steps. It appears we’re not even attempting the most vital ones and just skipping to wash your hands given we can’t actually social distance if obeying the rule of full time, all in, no Rotas and no extra space or staff.

Would feel a lot safer if government and dfe could give such professional planning and implementation of safety protocols

Unions are being very quiet. Just one vague email from NASUWT so far.

Is anyone else in a school where you just don't trust your SLT to do anything sensible?

unitedlearning.org.uk/portals/0/unitedthinking/Examples%20of%20protective%20measures.pdf?ver=2020-07-03-192023-697

I came across this . Bits of it might work in my school, I guess but it would be helpful if someone did come up with an example for a school on a split site with huge year groups. Niche as that is! There is no 'get out of jail free' card for any schools with very specific issues.

I had a survey from nasuwt and then an email saying what points they wanted clarification from dfe on.

Have a very upset ds because I took his PlayStation lead on Thursday and he hasn’t had it back as he still hasn’t copped on and gotten on with work. I hate him apparently. Have explained my life would be way easier if I let him do whatever he wanted and didn’t expect him to be learning but it’s because I love him that I don’t do that. Real tears rather than just getting on with the work which is the only way forward.

I don't think unions can do much until they know what real plans start looking like. And also not until later in the summer when we know what we're dealing with.

I have a good SLT, but head is on secondment to another school for terms 1 and 2, which steps all of us up without actually paying us for it. The deputy is different to the head, so it'll be interesting to see how she acts up.

I had this from the NEU this morning...

We all want pupils to return to school and education in September. But it must be a safe return for students, staff and the local community.

Education staff need a thought-through strategy that addresses their concerns over safety. But the Government guidance, produced on Thursday, 2 July, does not adequately meet the test of the safest possible return.

So next week, we will be providing further advice to National Education Union (NEU) reps and members to support them in discussions with school leaders.

Working with other affiliated TUC unions, we will be launching a joint checklist for September opening.

It will set out the cleaning, hygiene measures and use of PPE appropriate for the safest possible return to school.

It will contain details on grouping and distancing pupils.

And it will include updated advice regarding staff and family members who are vulnerable or at greater risk.

We will also be providing advice to NEU leader members to help them with their work in planning for September.

On top of this, we will be fleshing out our 10-point education recovery plan which outlines what we think learning should look like – from a curriculum that supports pupil health and wellbeing, to identifying extra classroom space and mobilising supply teachers, beginners finishing college, and colleagues who have left the profession to help with the increased workload.

We will continue to support members, students and the wider community by working towards a full return to schools and colleges when it is safe to do so and ensure that, through the summer, your voice is heard.

Thank you for everything that you are doing at this difficult time

@Piggywaspushed

Unions are being very quiet. Just one vague email from NASUWT so far.

Is anyone else in a school where you just don't trust your SLT to do anything sensible?

Mine will take the path of least resistance (so wanting to placate parents and Govs) and SLT are very good at pretending everything is absolutely fine even when it isn’t. So sympathies to anyone who is in a similar situation.

DS’s secondary, in complete contrast, are updating the parents, the students and so I assume the staff as well in a timely and concise manner. No false promises, no forced bonhomie, no pollyanna bollocks about ‘getting back to normal in Sept’. I feel reassured that when he does return it will be as safe as possible. Wish I worked there! Donation going to their computing lab or library from me when he leaves next year. They’ve been fab.

My dc school seems all over the place.
Unfortunately they sent the email before the announcement so as i said earlier we are supposedly getting
No uniform
All kids at desks
Eating in classroom i think

But also
Afterschool club ?
A reception parent meeting in the first week
The kids going back to previous teacher for 2 days
Reception doing morning /afternoon
I wouldnt be surprised if they bubble the year groups to 60.

So tbh hugely confusing. I cant see why you would bubble more than you have to. That would be 60 kids off at once. Same with clubs really that would close the whole school.

That chart is interesting and does show how little of what works is being done. (Handwashing is probably more an attempt to pretend taking some action). If it were mainly surfaces then t&t wouldnt work.

Our SLT really mixed. So they’ve mostly been great for staff. But then held reopening meetings for staff in groups of 20 so staff had to go in for 45 minutes then leave again which seemed bonkers rather than do it on Teams.

Now they are asking us what clubs we want to offer in the autumn term because they’re planning as normal and will adapt when guidance is released on 11th August.

Tbh they’ve done fuck all about coordinating over the students not engaging. No central information being shared, no guidance as to whether we’re supposed to be contacting or not. Why the fuck they aren’t doing something about this rather than clubs that might not run, and where this information could be collected in first day back seems crazy.

Someone very senior has announced she’s leaving our school. Don’t think it was planned in advance as recently revised responsibility charts had shown her in a new position. She’s in the able to afford earlier retirement than planned category I’d say.

Also discovered 2 of my old department live in Leicester so can’t come in currently (which answers q about what if you live in a lockdown area but work in another area).

Gonna be interesting

I think I was about the only member of that department who lived locally. That would have been fun if I as the non specialist was the only science teacher who could come into school because all surrounding counties were in lockdown

Think I’ve said before that I’m at a meeting point of lots of different las. Our staff and students are coming in from different las and counties. Definitely interesting times

Eating in classroom i think

Sorry, posted in error.

Sorry, posted in error.

Who's supervising the eating? Are staff not getting lunch?