The Thirty-Fourth Republic - Time to recharge our batteries and make the best of our festive break

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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 staffroom password just in case it attracts the wrong sort

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

I do not understand how ANYONE thinks a 4 day staggered start helps this testing to get up and running. If they said it was to reduce numbers for a week, at least that would make sense.

I wish Marr had pushed him more on the bullying of schools pre Christmas.

Hancock was awful about that headteacher!

That poor headteacher , he has now portrayed her as someone who ‘complains’ and doesn’t want children in school being educated. What a vile man.

Here you are. Woke up and wondered if I had dreamt last night.

@RuleWithAWoodenFoot

Seeing your home in proper daylight (with time to actually look), is a bit of a shock...the filth!!

I know. I made the mistake of looking at the edges of my kitchen floor today whilst the kettle was boiling. Our hairdresser came last saturday (mask and visor and apron bless her) and I thought I'd done a reasonable job of sweeping up the hair.

I was not a nerdy kid and got into trouble and missed quite a lot of school skiving off but even I got a shock on my first placement. My, earned me my own desk outside the headteacher's office, behaviour paled into comparison to the run of the mill 'not great' behaviour I encountered however many years on.

Yep, awful. Made it sound like one lone whinger. Awful man. (Controversial opinion: I think he's the heartless one and Raab is actually more human.)

Arrrrrgghhhhhh. Why does no one ever challenge them when they say "it's possible because it's already happening..." No, not with ZERO working days to plan and no extra bodies or money, it didn't. STOP LYING!

Did we all not Hancock saying there are weeks til the beginning of term?

Presumably he doesn't count the first week back as 'term'.

I am also still waiting for Gav to clarify what he means by an 'extra INSET day'.

Glad I'm not watching wanksock. Sounds awful. He's loving the 'teachers aren't special' rhetoric and running with it. Err no we're not special but exchange a lower salary than professions with similar years of training and education required because we work 39 weeks a year (plus the work we ALL do over the holidays but aren't paid for but appreciate we can do it in our own non directed time).

Just turning slt jobs into 7 day a week 52 weeks a year jobs without consultation or renumeration is not ok especially when you think it's special that you got up 5.30am once! ffs. Does he really think 5.30am is a particularly early start for someone on the salary he gets?

@Piggyinblankets

Did we all not Hancock saying there are weeks til the beginning of term?

Presumably he doesn't count the first week back as 'term'.

I am also still waiting for Gav to clarify what he means by an 'extra INSET day'.

Back on the 4th here-that isn't long. But that’s primary-nobody seems to care too much about us

We're back on the 4th as well but only exam year groups in and remote learning for the rest. We haven't been given a week off as he lets be implied. I do care about primary but I think you've dodged a bullet not having to magically create pop up testing centres in a day.

Yes he mustn’t be counting that week when year 11 and 13 are in , whilst you teach online and look after keyworker / vulnerable children.

Achristmaspudsskidu seems we are just ignoring what’s happening in primary schools.

Can we put all of our nicknames together for him? He's now Twat Wanksock.

Yes, were back on the 4th here too as Secondary. Does he mean Scotland or are we about to get another last minute announcement?!

It is already happening in the sense that the DfE are sending out countless tweets and drip feeding panic information as they have to justify their £1000 bonuses.

Mar could have asked about that too...

Yep, four different hats that week:

Teach exam groups in school.
Teach other year groups remotely
Babysit KW kids.
Set up and operate mass testing station.

DS is in lockdown. I can't fucking do next term, I just can't

Oh knowing I’m so, so sorry.

You need to get signed off.

Listen to Noble.

I know but you know why that's awkward don't you... I need to breathe and pull my big girl pants up. I could hear him laughing and singing in the background of the phone call I got this morning as he knows it's the day we see him. Xx

Oh Knowing so sorry

Knowing your school need to step up and deal with it. If your DH needs to be off too then that’s that.

Knowing I am so sorry. I know it is so hard to put yourself first but it would be worth it

Sorry Knowing it is shit for your family

Thank you everyone- you are all so amazing. You've all kept me going last term. DH is angry and just busying himself as a way to cope. I'm just a ball of mess atm.

@KnowingMeKnowingYule

I'm really sorry to hear this - it absolutely sucks for you. I agree with Noble and school will just have to cope. You need to look after yourself.

I'm not sure what's going on @KnowingMeKnowingYule having only just joined the group & nor do I need you to unearth everything to give me a back story but, solidarity anyway - it's so rough isn't it when you feel that you want tk be signed off (as nobel just suggested ) but you feel you need to carry on working for the kids etc. I've been signed off a lot due to chronic health conditions, and I've fought it with my drs tooth and nail every time but then it's ended up for the best.
If you need to be off work then ... It's nothing to be ashamed of