The Thirty-ninth Republic - Covid Carnage continues and spring term is just about to start

[SantaAssociationRepresentitve]

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

BTW, outside of mumsnet, I really do think support for teachers on this is quite strong, including among parents.

I know lots of parents of primary aged children with safety concerns.

Why are Essex closed till weds? Is it to sort out the chaos and organise KW?

On a side note, just to be a pedantic Scot for a sec, it's KEIR Kier are a construction firm..

Miss, Miss
I knew that, Miss [smugface]
only because DH had to deal with the latter in the middle of the night during a storm when they were supposed to be on call boarding up a pile of shite building that was falling over and they wouldn't answer the sodding phone 🤷🏻‍♀️🤬😂

, & best wishes to all of you.

Well done pussycat and commiserations to DH!

This whole different councils doing different things makes a mockery of the whole Greenwich thing, it really does.

It must be like a War Room at DfE atm with pins in maps and phones ringing.

Reading a thread on cv board, looks like Surrey are too or are they Essex, all the same to me down there.

The council I live in has tweeted to say primary to open as usual, we are tier 3 though and our numbers are much, much better than they were in November... They also said they are monitoring the situation, implied they may change the advice if numbers go up.

I really wanted to wait and see what happened tonight/tomorrow (we have an inset) but our trust head sent an email last night asking for any section 44 letters asap, which seemed a fair request.

I decided to send it in the end because according to the NEU's school covid map our local area rates are now over 900. Our local hospital is not coping.

Not had any emails from the head or trust today. They tend to wait until quite late, so we'll see.

It must be like a War Room at DfE atm with pins in maps and phones ringing

Ah well, they got paid a grand. It was like a war room here this afternoon today and I've not been paid for that.

Lots of Berkshire schools closing. Reading BC supporting closure decisions.

I personally think it's the wrong move if you're not imminently being asked to teach classes. Again, personally, my workplace will be safer tomorrow than it has been at any point since september therefore I'd want to holster my weapon or whatever the expression is until the guns were needed.

The 18th may be an entirely different ballgame. I'm not sure how someone at a school like mine could argue it was unsafe to go to work tomorrow. We apparently have a grand total of 60 ish kw and v kids spread out into year group rooms expected tomorrow and tons of space for staff to distance. Literally will be the safest it's been since early May.

@Piggywaspushed

This whole different councils doing different things makes a mockery of the whole Greenwich thing, it really does.

It must be like a War Room at DfE atm with pins in maps and phones ringing.

That has perversely really cheered me up Piggy!

It must be like a War Room at DfE atm with pins in maps and phones ringing.

You seriously think any of them are working today? 🤔

thanks for the star

It makes a change for it to be them dancing to last minute changes instead of us.

@PussyCatInChristmasStockings

It must be like a War Room at DfE atm with pins in maps and phones ringing.

You seriously think any of them are working today? 🤔

thanks for the star

Aah good point. A bit deflated again now.

I imagine the them4us brigade are watching in horror saying LOOK! they think it's a game!

We don't. We've just been subjected to politicians acting as if our students education and our colleagues safety and sanity was a game to the point we're somewhat inured to the gravity of the situation plus we work with teenagers who in some cases would fail to grasp the gravity of a nuclear bomb and still be dicking around with the 2 last remaining glue sticks on earth.

Have mercy.

@NeurotreeWenceslas making me tell the kids ! That's the bit that's going to floor me. I love my tutor group. I'm wavering already. I chose the wrong year to do Dry January (but I was drinking too much so need to).

@NeurotreeWenceslas

Reading a thread on cv board, looks like Surrey are too or are they Essex, all the same to me down there.

I've hunted the internet (though not the CV board) and I can't find Surrey saying anything... Off to brave the CV board!

I think Surrey might be the ones that sent the heavy handed letter saying schools were still open.

TheHoneyBadger

twats4themselves will be ok as they have their 'parent army' of 'possible volunteers' that will spring in to action.

Your head is making you tell the kids?!

[quote mumsneedwine]@NeurotreeWenceslas making me tell the kids ! That's the bit that's going to floor me. I love my tutor group. I'm wavering already. I chose the wrong year to do Dry January (but I was drinking too much so need to). [/quote]
Will just cautiously put it out there that the period soon after cutting out alcohol (and experiencing increased anxiety and a lack of familiar soothing options aka wine) is not always the best time to make major decisions.

Maybe if they offer improvements and a 'wait and see' you could utilise it?

It's the "notified at 5pm" thread (if it's true of course.)

@TheHoneyBadger

I personally think it's the wrong move if you're not imminently being asked to teach classes. Again, personally, my workplace will be safer tomorrow than it has been at any point since september therefore I'd want to holster my weapon or whatever the expression is until the guns were needed.

The 18th may be an entirely different ballgame. I'm not sure how someone at a school like mine could argue it was unsafe to go to work tomorrow. We apparently have a grand total of 60 ish kw and v kids spread out into year group rooms expected tomorrow and tons of space for staff to distance. Literally will be the safest it's been since early May.

On the zoom call, NEU advice was specifically not to go in for in person INSETs, though- as this is not "working from home if you can".

I agree, INSETs are safer than school was at any time last term, but following discussion with our rep, our head has agreed to make our INSET online, which I think is really positive. We do have staff who have to travel to work via public transport (train mainly) so this makes it a lot safer for them.

I've said I'm happy to go in to supervise keyworker provision, though- as in the letter, and will do so.

I'm still on edge and checking BBC news every 10 minutes waiting for a last minute update... Meanwhile chomping through the last of the Christmas biscuits

@TheHoneyBadger

I personally think it's the wrong move if you're not imminently being asked to teach classes. Again, personally, my workplace will be safer tomorrow than it has been at any point since september therefore I'd want to holster my weapon or whatever the expression is until the guns were needed.

The 18th may be an entirely different ballgame. I'm not sure how someone at a school like mine could argue it was unsafe to go to work tomorrow. We apparently have a grand total of 60 ish kw and v kids spread out into year group rooms expected tomorrow and tons of space for staff to distance. Literally will be the safest it's been since early May.

I don't know if you were talking to me, but I'm primary so I should theoretically have thirty children in my classroom on Tuesday. I don't feel it's too soon to send the letter now, I feel bad enough for the children/parents that it's this last minute- at least we do have an inset day.