The Sixty-Sixth Republic - Who will be the medal winners on Results Day? Grade inflation predicted again

[Staffholidayclubrep]

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 for school staff to let off steam.

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 non-staff as it attracts the wrong sort of crowd.

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.

Gee noble, your latest thread has been acknowledged as the retreat of the MN sane!
🏆

We do not have class TA's unless they are for physicsl need and even then it's only in class when necessary. TA's are out of class doing intervention all the time. I hate it. I manage 34 kids of massively different needs alone. If I were a parent of a child in my class with funding i'd be raging. Theyrely on a) only very few parents being bothered and b) having made it an academy trust policy.

Hardly any primaries have class TAs now.

We have some ‘historic’ general TA posts. A very small number. They refuse to take on SEN duties for specific dc, so we have to recruit. It does mean there are a couple floating about for class TA duties. Which means interventions and small group work with dc who do not have EHCPs, plus class cover as Level 3s (none of the HLTA posts have been filled when post holder leaves).

Oh and one who always leaves 10 minutes early because‘ she’s on duty next’ err yeah, I don’t get to leave ten minutes early when I’m on duty

Yes. I probably need to be a bit more directive

I think you need to be a teeny bit more authoritative, Honey

Two thoughts:

There's going to be a lot of staff absence next term just in people going for PCR tests with the amount of colds and bugs that will be circulating, isn't there?

And: why is everything seemingly back to normal everywhere with no restrictions, but some companies are using Covid are an excuse for poor customer service still? Furniture delivery service will not enter our property (even masked) as we are in a postcode above national average rates

Furniture delivery service will not enter our property (even masked) as we are in a postcode above national average rates
Ridiculous! DFS delivered a new sofa in January, in an area with very high rates (and poss still blocked from travelling out of the county?). I mean, they didn’t hang about and we asked them just to dump it still wrapped in the front room, but they were fine to come in, masked.

Yep. Other similar firms have been fine. This one wants to dump on the street.

Yikes, just read about rates jumping in Scotland (only partly schools related, numbers of tests are not up and it’s largely in 20-24 yos as well as 15-29s. When do Scottish unis go back?

And there’s a new concerning variant....

Scottish unis won't have started yet. Same dates as England, give or take.

Cambridge was packed today.

I looked at booking opticians- it's running 30d in advance excluding emergency ones.
From nobles thread im quite surprised that rates in kids havent dropped. I mean some will be in holiday childcare, others at holiday parks. I guess it means an r of around 1
So many kids activities inside - swimming/climbing/even zoos have inside areas.

We have dentists for a check up next week after be g cancelled at the start of the first lockdown. And my gp Econsult is a godsend to sort things around work when you know that it is something that you don't need to be seen f2f for.

But the biopsy I had done at the very start of July....no results letter. No results on file at the gp. I've twice called through to the dermatology receptionists at the local hospital. They are unavailable and you get a message asking for ALL your details so they can call you back. I did this late July and last week and they haven't called back. My go just says they have told them they will send me my results directly.
I'm sure it can't be anything dodgy or they would have got in contact but I'd like to officially know.

Am tempted to spam them with a call and leave a message every other day for a while....

Screw it. We didn't have pals in Wales a while ago but do seem to now so I've emailed them.

Medical secretary at your gp practice should be chasing it. Get onto the practice manager

Thanks. In their last email to me they did say to get back to them if I got no joy. I'll message them too and hopefully something will get through.

@DrMadelineMaxwell

We have dentists for a check up next week after be g cancelled at the start of the first lockdown. And my gp Econsult is a godsend to sort things around work when you know that it is something that you don't need to be seen f2f for.

But the biopsy I had done at the very start of July....no results letter. No results on file at the gp. I've twice called through to the dermatology receptionists at the local hospital. They are unavailable and you get a message asking for ALL your details so they can call you back. I did this late July and last week and they haven't called back. My go just says they have told them they will send me my results directly.
I'm sure it can't be anything dodgy or they would have got in contact but I'd like to officially know.

Am tempted to spam them with a call and leave a message every other day for a while....

I was wondering about your biopsy results @DrMadelineMaxwell. That's poor from both the hospital and your GP - our GP had my dad's blood test results back within 48h (she had blood taken at the hospital). Is it worth getting your GP to chase on your behalf?

I've put in 2 requests via the econsult and have just been provided with the number to call to speak to the consultants secretaries. Who dont answer the phone. And dont call you back despite asking for details and a contact number.

I will ask a third time and tell them I'm getting nowhere..

The government's incompetency at anything related to schools is unbelievable.
www.theguardian.com/education/2021/aug/18/cambridge-to-cease-teacher-training-if-government-continues-with-damaging-reforms

What? Will read that in a min, after posting this:

Not sure why they’re acting alone (they do refer to the recent joint unions letter to Gav), but UNISON have sent a really good set of questions to the DfE asking how on earth contact tracing is going to work in schools, pointing out how high rates are, etc:

www.unison.org.uk/content/uploads/2021/08/UNISON-letter-to-Secretary-of-State-18-August-2021.pdf?fbclid=IwAR3hzmu4VUvHv_iQNajlpfmXlpAdLICh3OUx4s0X-gDbI-fE8-DlwbxhmRE

But there is no contact tracing any more... It's over, isn't it?

Great letter, maybe I'll change unions.

Contact tracing is still happening because unvaccinated need to isolate and contact tracers confirm vaccine status.

I know...I'm being sarky. School children don't count though as under 18 years 6 months.

By "it" I meant Covid

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9906737/Frosty-reception-unions-Government-suggests-teachers-hold-classes-OUTSIDE.html

The Daily Mail going with Unions trying to block outdoor lessons. They’re really scraping the barrel now. Guess it’s because we’re going back to normal they won’t be much to actually blame teachers for. My girls didn’t even want the windows open! I could imagine their faces if I said ‘we’re having our lesson on the field today’.

Posted this on Noble’s thread but thought I’d add it here too!

This providing work to those at home with covid, I don't have a huge problem with because we were doing it when they had to SI but it is the thin end of the wedge - I am not sure we will always know who they are and also won't know how well they are . The guidance says 'if well enough' or some such. But it does open the door to parents and students expecting work for every absence, and also suggests that if you are off school and have an actual illness, you should be working. not sure about that as a life lesson.

And as for outdoor lessons : well Mrs marquee woman off MN has obviously been lobbying them! Beyond the youngest children , I can't see it happening.