The Thirty-Second Republic - Christmas count down - end of term in sight

[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.

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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 booze is stashed - Thirsty Tuesdays, Fizz Fridays now in operation.

If you come with a stick to goad us then that is not allowed in the staffroom and you will receive a detention

@RuleWithAWoodenFoot

Because it's a highly infectious respiratory virus that enjoys crowded places. I WIN I WIN!!

You are the new Chief Medical Officer!

Checking in, not much to say as I'm too knackered. Good luck for the last week everyone

Obviously, I understand where the head is coming from but this kind of messianic zeal is not helpful in a pandemic. It sounds somewhat like he is arguing himself into a position where school remain open 365 days?

www.kentonline.co.uk/thanet/news/closing-any-school-will-reduce-children-s-safety-239148/?fbclid=IwAR3pz26MLlHoXAtbTjg02tdow5J0NtQEjBfx0cZtvMted5qLMgLtNwvAhdk

When you get covid you have to fill in a form for the purposes of trying to work out where you got it from. For each location you have been to you tick if it matches the following criteria - closed space (meaning inside), crowded space, close contact - ticked all 3 for school, but just closed space for the supermarket...

Congratulations @namechangedyetagain

Good news @namechangedyetagain

Good luck for this week all.This thread has helped me carry on knowing there are others who feel the same, thank you.
My department are having a shared buffet for our meeting on Tuesday.I declined to participate in shared baked goods etc, given the circumstances and I've been made to feel like a Grinch by my Hod (who is going against SLT advice)Am wondering what SLT will do tomorrow if they realise she has overruled them!

If our HT found out about that, Rodigan, they would be getting soundly bollocked.

The thread Greenwich Schools Closing Tomorrow (Cv board) is worth a read. And noble gets an honourable mention (about 15 mins ago).

Congratulations name!! I knew you could do it!!! Enjoy the student life for a little bit before your next placement.

Rodigan that is crazy!!! We love a good buffet lunch in my department (we have one at Christmas and one in the summer usually, best days of the year, not least because of the fabulous buffet), but even we've decided it's not worth the risk this year . This is a great shame, as I work with some amazing cooks and the food is truly delicious (I provide the crisps and dips, as I am NOT an amazing cook)

Well done @namechangedyetagain! Hope you're feeling better @Flagsfiend and I hope that everything works out for your ds, @monkeytennis97.

I hope your dds are both ok, @Appuskidu and @MsAwesomeDragon too. Am sure I've missed lots of people out so for everyone.

Last week here. Got notification today that 3 of my 5 lessons tomorrow will be taught remotely (I'll be in school, they won't) so been adapting them for learners at home.

Best of luck this week, everyone.

Yes @Piggywaspushed (Turkeywaseaten, maybe? ), that Kent head's story is important but it's not like he goes on to say that his teachers spotted the abuse and rescued him or anything. I do hope he campaigns for better children's services.

And it's not entirely true to say that the risk to children is basically zero. And certainly not to their parents or grandparents, bus driver or, indeed, teacher.

Marking with mulled wine.

Congratulations @namechangedyetagain

Good luck everyone else. Not long now.

Got the dreaded email from ds's school but then breathed a sigh of relief as it isn't his bubble that has gone. No late night emails for me or DH. Have everything crossed.

Yes, it feels like he is reading from a DfE approved script...he ahs been on one of those Educating programmes I think.

Kids having awful holiday is a whole separate issue.

I though about Santawaspushed... or maybe Piggywaspished.

Amazed and pleased for Greenwich they have succeeded
Our head tried to close for remote only this week and was denied permission by PHE, i mean we only provided 17% of the districts cases last week so perfectly safe, nothing to see here.

BBC news just now made the Greenwich decision sound quite political, which I don't think is helpful.

Well, we don't know yet that they'll get away with it. The councillor states that he knows the DfE might push back.

Oh, this is all so awful. Really awful and unfair. How on earth a Headteacher is going to even function next week, I have no idea, particularly those of us in terribly high case areas or those who have decided to close but might have to back down or those who have backed down and now might see others get away with closing...

On top of the "are the closed year groups supposed to come back now?" issue from the reducing in SI times (having cancelled food orders for canteen or whatever)...

What a crock of absolute shite.

@RigaBalsam no, tier 2, I’m a London borough.

You can see where Greenwich falls within the London boroughs here... we’re aren’t that far below, same colour...

I mean if we could only identify that place where all those secondary ages students are catching it we might be able to do something about it... 🙄

I still don't quite get how he's gone out on a limb and no other boroughs have, and has this genuinely been done with the tacit approval of PHE? Because their rates are not as high as many others in London nor in other parts of the country. And it can't be something like one full local hospital, because surely they can move people to where there's capacity much more easily than anywhere else in the country?

The only thing I can think is that their rate is increasing rapidly and other borough are increasing more slowly perhaps? I know my head thinks our LA are very slow/backwards in their approach...

Other London LAs are quietly supporting schools that have switched to remote learning next week. They just haven’t made wholesale decisions to close. I am curious to see if any more follow suit tomorrow.

His letter reads like all PHE did was inform him how fast the borough's rates are doubling. They may have said more, who knows, but don't think they'll have told him to close schools otherwise he'd have said.

I agree. Definitely a "bold" move.

I wonder whether PHE want schools shut - it’s the DfE that are against it. Perhaps they’ve just given him the tools to do it, but without telling him to do it. Would be great if other boroughs/areas follow the lead but not holding my breath...