The Seventeenth Republic - The Pick Your Grade Show continues as we edge towards INSET days.

[StaffAssociationRepresentative]

You are most welcome to this school staff support thread to get us through stressful times. It is meant for school staff only – a sort of room of requirement. Baiters, haters, goaders 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 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
Do not give ‘The Every twat for Themselves mob’ the staffroom password as a number of them are operating in an alternative reality.

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 goad us then that is not allowed in the staffroom. Close the door quietly on your way out

Yes, I see it now.

Staff wellbeing stuff is generally shit. Anything I've had to attend just pisses me off. I'd rather be given the time.

Staff wellbeing should be examining policies for workload and cutting it where possible. Being as flexible as possible for people who need time for whatever reason. Recognition that informal support networks are probably best BUT having a member of staff who "collates" info on people who are struggling. (I don't mean that to sound so formal or creepy, but having someone who knows that XX has cried on 3 people in a week is useful. If the 3 people think they are the only one they may not realise how bad things are.)

@MrsHamlet

Do any of your schools have decent staff wellbeing "stuff" in normal times? Ours is pretty shitty - people tend to come to drink tea and eat emergency snacks and cry on me, but that's not going to be possible. I'm concerned that we're going to have a lot of staff on the edge... and we had a fair number before this!!

Nope. Our school well-being consists of times you can drop in and speak to SLT (so no-one really goes as they feel it puts a target on their back) and then we’ve all been given some bath salts and some telephone numbers and basically told teachers get more stressed so listen to some nice music and ring these numbers if you need 🤔 no actual attempt to reduce stress or anything... it’s a bit like the gov really - ‘we’ve told you not to be stressed and how to ring so if you are it’s your fault’.

We have access to a website for our wellbeing, where it promotes truly ground breaking advice such as "make sure you take time to prepare nutritious meals" and to sleep well.
We also can access 6 sessions of counselling through OH which is actually quite good.

Staff wellbeing needs to incorporate ways of making work and life balance more. Like reducing marking and assessment load. Not cakes etc!!

I'm dreading this term. I fear I may be one of the criers!

Better stock up on bath salts then! I sometimes think it would he better if they said "we don't care" rather than have a sodding well-being INSET which does nothing except tick a box.
The OH counselling thing sounds worthwhile though.

Do you think opium flower seeds will like my innovative solution to social distancing in the classroom?

I do hope so 😂

My school is pretty good at the well being stuff. It is centred around reducing workload stress and being adaptable to family/career/health responsibilities- they are extremely flexible and we are flexible in return.
They are limited as to what they can do when the cause of the stress is working practices signed off that could cause us illness, disability and death though.
There are also the very vocal staff members who are of the It’s Just The Flu/Children Don’t Spread It etc persuasion. I’m going to ignore them as far as possible. Which won’t be difficult when I step outside for my break and go sit in my car for lunch 🤷‍♀️.

We have a Counsellor too! But I don’t really warm to her as a person so I’ll not be confiding anything in her (I’m sure she’s lovely but info ahem has leaked from that quarter and her first loyalty is to SLT and the Govs).

Our DH is wellbeing lead which is ironic as she is a micromanaging controlling bitch who bullies people. She led a staff meeting and made us meditate and I just point blank refused to do it and said i'd rather have the 15 minutes to complete my marking. My card is marked.

@MrsHamlet

Do any of your schools have decent staff wellbeing "stuff" in normal times? Ours is pretty shitty - people tend to come to drink tea and eat emergency snacks and cry on me, but that's not going to be possible. I'm concerned that we're going to have a lot of staff on the edge... and we had a fair number before this!!

This worries me too. Our staffroom is where we can have a vent and reassure each other that e’re all feeling the same way. I’m really not looking forward to us not being able to use the staffroom.

And sometimes it’s not your closest work friendships who can give you what you need for a specific circumstance.
Look a bit glum because of a behaviour issue, someone asks what’s up and maybe their advice is better than your mate who will always pat you on the back and say “there there”. It’s part of how we grow in the role.
Or something comes up in a staff meeting and everyone is there to chip in with their take on it, which isn’t possible with non-Zoom meetings banned and a Ships That Pass In The Night policy as you nip for a wee without stopping to chat to someone.

This worries me too. Our staffroom is where we can have a vent and reassure each other that e’re all feeling the same way. I’m really not looking forward to us not being able to use the staffroom.

I agree. I feel like a lot of staff will be on show all day, out in the open unable to let their guard down as they're constantly around students. Not having access to the staff room to moan, cry or vent is going to make for an even more miserable term.

@phlebasconsidered

Our DH is wellbeing lead which is ironic as she is a micromanaging controlling bitch who bullies people. She led a staff meeting and made us meditate and I just point blank refused to do it and said i'd rather have the 15 minutes to complete my marking. My card is marked.

🤣sounds a bit similar to past meetings for us and I would deffo have had my card marked with you!

@phlebasconsidered

Our DH is wellbeing lead which is ironic as she is a micromanaging controlling bitch who bullies people. She led a staff meeting and made us meditate and I just point blank refused to do it and said i'd rather have the 15 minutes to complete my marking. My card is marked.

Oh my, I had a Head who made us do that too-about 10 years ago! All I could think about was how much planning I could be doing as well!

Don’t they realise that pointless meetings and initiatives on wellbeing just create more stress, as it is taking time away from the important parts of the job that still need doing?!

To be honest our staff room is pretty toxic sometimes. There’s a small but persistent group of staff who moan about everything and it does get me down sometimes. I’m just looking to eat my lunch and chill out!

I mean, not everything is amazing obviously but the school is a good place to work.

I think our staff room is the opposite. The vast majority of us are really positive, can do, upbeat, willing staff who respect management and there are about 2-3 moaners. I know they feel "picked on" because the rest of us don't give them any time but what can we do when we don't agree??

I guess that's not really the opposite to what you said really

www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/21/coronavirus-iurope-dozens-schools-report-infections-berlin-germany-spain?CMP=fb_gu&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1598098920

Has this been shared already? Berlin students wear face masks in corridors but not in class. No idea how their numbers / bubbles compare with ours.

Sorry to hear about your mum jenny. The visiting rules are a bit rubbish.

Someone at home has just been fined £2,000 for going to pick up his medication and breaking the 14 day quarantine rules in the process. Which is harsh. OTOH our schools went back in full in June so I wonder what U4T would make of that. How far do you think they’d be willing to go to get what they want?

As you're talking about wellbeing, any tips going into training. I'm already feeling a little overwhelmed and I know it will get worse. I don't want to crumble and fail.

Also, are you of you Part time and also a student mentor? My teacher is going to reduced hours and I was wondering how this works with a student to look after?

@namechangedyetagain

As you're talking about wellbeing, any tips going into training. I'm already feeling a little overwhelmed and I know it will get worse. I don't want to crumble and fail.

Also, are you of you Part time and also a student mentor? My teacher is going to reduced hours and I was wondering how this works with a student to look after?

Are you primary or secondary? I’m secondary and part time and have mentored. On the days I’m not there there are others in my dept the mentee knows to go to for help/advice/issues but I have always been on the end of a phone or email equally. Because the lessons the mentee teaches on the days I’m not there aren’t mine they have support from that teacher too. We try to avoid it as it isn’t ideal but it has always been fine when we have done it! Make sure you know who to go to when your mentor is not in school. Most teachers are more than happy to support/chat/answer questions I’d say.

U4them trying a new tactic inventing fake friends and fake conversations on Aibu I see.

@namechangedyetagain

As you're talking about wellbeing, any tips going into training. I'm already feeling a little overwhelmed and I know it will get worse. I don't want to crumble and fail.

Also, are you of you Part time and also a student mentor? My teacher is going to reduced hours and I was wondering how this works with a student to look after?

Don't overthink and overdo things. Remember you have to fit everything you need to do into a finite number of hours and if you don't set yourself boundaries, the job will eat at your home life.

If you're secondary, try not to let it upset you when the kids are goading you. They will test you and some will take it too far - it's not personal.

Don't engage with parents who are looking for a fight. A good line manager will have your back.