The Twentieth Republic - all back and its time to bubble bubble ...

[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.

No DfE muppets allowed

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, especially if you have not used the hand gel. Close the door quietly on your way out and put your mask on.

Have to be honest K0G, my school wouldn't spend it if they did...

I angry cried today. An arbitrary decision had to be made to reduce a class size and I'm furious about it.
It's all an absolute crock of shit.

To be honest, @Piggywaspushed, I agree from what you've said!

Think I heard some gaslighting on more or less just now. Only listen with bp tablets and gin available.

Is this real?! 😲 Wonderful work! 😂

It's bound to be a photoshop job but it's still good

@bettsbattenburg

Not for the easily offended Boris supporter.

Love this.

That Boris Pic

Got to be photoshopped.

What does 'own your risk' even mean?
Both mine and dcs' school are having them wear PE kit all day.
I have sets of pens organised in year group bubbles to hand out. I feel really lucky only to have two duties a week. Will see what next week is like with the kids back. For now have a lovely Friday night!

This is the picture the DfE have on their blog today about coronavirus transmission in schools!!

Having heard "Own the risk" myriad times in today's inset I conclude it means "It will be your own fault if you get it and we won't take any responsibility ".

Myself and ONE other staff member distanced during Inset. Head made a point of saying "Oh ofcourse, windows!" as I got up to open them. DH has no idea about personal space and made a point of visiting my room to wax lyrical about how spacious it is with a window and everything whereas she has a whole 2 more kids than me. Head has made the decision that covid signage and one way is scary for the kids and parents so there isn't any. The RA I signed clearly stated social distancing was necessary. It is not going to happen. Marking, observations, drop ins and interventions as normal only now I have to squeeze in more pissing pshe.

Am now going to own the risk of a bloody HUGE gin.

@phlebasconsidered

Having heard "Own the risk" myriad times in today's inset I conclude it means "It will be your own fault if you get it and we won't take any responsibility ".

Myself and ONE other staff member distanced during Inset. Head made a point of saying "Oh ofcourse, windows!" as I got up to open them. DH has no idea about personal space and made a point of visiting my room to wax lyrical about how spacious it is with a window and everything whereas she has a whole 2 more kids than me. Head has made the decision that covid signage and one way is scary for the kids and parents so there isn't any. The RA I signed clearly stated social distancing was necessary. It is not going to happen. Marking, observations, drop ins and interventions as normal only now I have to squeeze in more pissing pshe.

Am now going to own the risk of a bloody HUGE gin.

This is nuts. Have you spoke to your union?

Because they don't have to social distance from each other (we're meant to encourage it but they're animals), and are mostly bigger than me, it means in the corridor they don't even see me to stay away.

I'm wearing my mask next week for outside my yellow tape box.

Staff aren't socially distancing either. It's all been forgotten. A TA came in today and just walked straight behind my desk to talk to me.

But I can't touch their books? (I can pass them paper if I sanitise my hands first). Is paper the main culprit or something?

We're not allowed to share textbooks between groups in the same year. The are humping each other at break, but can't touch the same textbook.

Your school can't reopen without a risk assessment, and if the risk assessment isn't being followed this needs to be escalated. Union, who can take to whoever is in charge of the school (beyond the HT) if no improvement from the HT. Do you have some kind of H&S committee in your schools?
What's that law we can all invoke if our working conditions are simply not safe?

I would go mad if I had to clean desks, so I don't blame you, Salty

Our kids are in year group zones so even if they move to a different classroom it will have been only used by other people in their year group and hence cleaning isn't needed.

It has also been decided that staff don't need to clean computers or anything even though we're moving between all classrooms because we're all sanitising our hands.

I dunno how I feel about that, probably relieved that there's one less thing for me to do as I dash about the school.

The are humping each other at break, but can't touch the same textbook.

I laughed at this but it’s really not funny

We have two cleaners doing desks, handles, taps and other touchpoints every break and lunch. Our union has said we should not be cleaning.

Wait, what???"!! You've signed a Risk Assessment?
I've not even seen one.

Yes, they came back to me about the reduced break and lunch and helpfully said it was all legal. Waiting on a reply about working conditions. Not holding out much hope, now we are all academised. Academies can do what the fuck they like.

What is everyone's school saying on marking etc?

Mine is being pretty good about social distancing/mask wearing, but when people have asked about "quarantining" assessments or books before marking, the answers have been really vague. I do realise that surface transmission is supposed to be less of a risk, but the DH today was comparing an assessment a kid has breathed all over and touched for 30 minutes to a door handle, and I don't think they are quite the same thing!

We also have no plans in place for wet breaks because "the weather is supposed to be nice next week"...

Anyway, my classroom is all sorted (not that I'm using it at the moment) and I have planned all my lessons for Monday- I'm actually sort of looking forward to it!

phleb we need a self help group . The TINPan alliance.

I looked out my (open!) windows today (disclaimer: I have not knocked a wall out. This was my 'other ' room) and no one else had windows open.

We had loads of year 9s upset because they queued for 15 minutes of their 25 minute lunch break to go to the toilet so had no food. I even feel a bit U4T about that!

My school is being super strict. Visor or masks for all staff and students when moving around the site. We're allowed to wear masks or visors when teaching. 2 metre distance marked off in all classrooms between us and the kids. Each kid gets their own pack with pink and green highlighters (because we all know the world would fall apart without highlighting work in pink and green..) and a mini whiteboard. We're lucky we've got 5 buildings and 5 year groups so each year group bubble has their own building.

My main gripe is they've closed the staffroom and turned off all the water taps so we have to bring in masses of water every day and no way of making tea!!! Only had Yr7 in so far, the rest come on Monday.

Still grappling with how to teach Drama in a classroom with students unable even to turn to look at their neighbour....

Sansasnark. We have to 'quarantine' books for 3 days before and after marking. I'm taking that as permission to do very little marking!

My main gripe is they've closed the staffroom and turned off all the water taps

That is dreadful!

students unable even to turn to look at their neighbour....

Really?! My school seems to have gone "the kids are in bubbles, we're going to keep them away from other year groups, but within their bubble it's business as usual (+ hand sanitiser)." So we can have a set of textbooks that can move around classrooms in the same bubble, kids can share a class set of glue sticks/calculators etc.

Ok reading some of the stuff on here I feel my school is doing ok.

We had a q&a (as submitted via hod) and people had asked things like what if someone hasn’t got a pen (guide says they must have equipment no sharing etc) and the answer was give them a pen. Part of me went ooh but covid but really what is the alternative? To my mind form tutors should sort that with an equipment check first thing but I’ve already had to give a pen. Put it somewhere for him then got him to sanitise it and his hands.

Parent moan-what kind of parent can’t even put a pencil case together for the first fucking day and during a pandemic? I did not give him a warning but said I would if it happened again. It’s his mother who needs a warning and if the form tutor had done their job she could have been called/emailed