The Fifty-first republic - twice weekly tests and wear masks at all time till Easter

[StaffRepFeistyClub]

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.

Do not give the staffroom password to others 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. Do not sit on the chairs and wear a mask.

I see that Vicky Ford won't be answering all our questions because "she's busy"

More likely she looked at the questions and thought “fuck”.

She’ll answer the softball ones about catch-up no doubt.

Exactly as expected there noble.

I think the ones who are being tested and sent home need to log in to see their results?

Not at DS's school : juts told he would be phoned it it was positive.

No idea. There was a pack of 7 tests and 50 masks in my pigeon hole today. Apparently you can also now order online for other members of your household or bubble if you're a teacher or there's a school child. Yet when you go to do that it won't let you say how many people you need it for - you go through the whole thing without them asking and then they confirm they'll send you 7.

There are boxes reminding you that if you're willing to pick them up yourself you can get them today and you can have 28 I don't drive and nearest pick up point was a town away and surely it's more economical to send more than repeatedly send 7? Seemed rather punitive for people who don't drive and live rurally. Schools Week had an article the other day saying schools weren't to give out home testing kits and parents had to order them online. Yet I've heard others say their schools are giving them out.

I'm as confused as ever.

I think it was another thread today where I saw someone pointing out that people who don't have the means of picking up a child in the middle of a day basically can't give consent to lft anyway - if they can't get to school to pick a child up, and a condition of testing is that you have to come and pick the child up if positive then?

I picked up 14 tests literally no questions asked from a centre that had been set up specifically to dole them out to households of school kids. They didn't even ask if I had kids, just handed them over. No names, nothing.

Air and a chair and a wee
Just the thing to incentivise me!
I’ll teach over Teams
(Living out my worst dreams)
For air and a chair and a wee.

That’s for you, Mother. It’s my day off, I’ve ironed the sheets, and I’m bored.

@motherrunner

Air and a chair? That’s living the dream!

(Can I also have time for a wee?)

During the school day?! Won't you think of the children?

Thanks @borntobequiet.

I may just print that out (and laminate it) and stick it on my work space wall. That’s made me giggle so much I am willing to second my printer credits on it, my AVA credits on it and my precious blu-tak (well cheap ass substitute)!

*spend

Good luck with this, Welsh colleagues. www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-56285971

Although I've got a horrible feeling that we in England were supposed to be sitting down with each kid and discussing their grade with them? This was binned, right???

Vicky likes my username - preen

All the places that can give them out in our area are apparently "closed" so I have ordered online.

SLT are having those conversations with our pupils. I actually think it's a good idea, takes away the teacher from the discussion and means there won't be any crazy surprises come August. Parents aren't being included in the conversations although pupils can and will share once they know.

In school all day today. Nice to be back. I've decided to plan nothing at all for Monday. We'll wing it and see.

Glad you had a good day Rule

So I have learnt that we are not to say catch up , but recovery. Do Vicky tells us. I will remember this.

How is recovery a better word? It's worse!

The system is evidently back up as my DD was tested at 2.45 and I now have the text and email with her neg result.

First day of testing and our place seems to have gone really well. Y11 and 13. Just worked out from info which has been given, about 86% of those years were tested. No idea whether the 14% were no consent/couldn't get there/isolating already/forgot, probably a mixture.

I feel so much for SLT and others tasked with organising this ridiculous set of competing Vital Things.

Interesting to see the mixed views on holidays.

I love the long summer. I don't want more time off on dark, cold miserable days. If it has to change, I hope we still get 4 weeks minimum.

Vicky didn't answer the masks question!

"Common Room" tells us pretty accurately what sector Callum's old school falls int I think. I did try searching for a biog to check but only discovered that he could play the bagpipes by the time he was studying medicine. And that his father (I think) was an eminent physician and attended Her Majesty.

@Piggywaspushed

So I have learnt that we are not to say catch up , but recovery. Do Vicky tells us. I will remember this.

How is recovery a better word? It's worse!

Indeed! Why do we have to call it anything, in fact!?

I am popping in to say that I am in the ridiculously fortunate position of being fully vaccined-up. It's a "fell off the back of a lorry" job - a clinic needing to use up the Biontech vaccine due to people not attending. Am aware that I am extremely lucky.

I love the long summer. I don't want more time off on dark, cold miserable days. If it has to change, I hope we still get 4 weeks minimum.

Agree. I want to start taking child on long wandering road trips through Europe.

Vicky annoyingly lumped my question in with two others (I asked mine first!) even though it was a different question to theirs (not about waiting lists) and all she wrote that might have alluded to it was:

NHS mental health services have remained open throughout the pandemic, and have deployed digital tools to enable them to connect with people and provide ongoing support.

Deployed digital tools!? It has been a scandal that they have refused to see children and young people face to face considering teachers have had to.

She didn’t want to answer mine did she

Jan he went to Loretto which is very twee.