Broom cupboard 4 - soon be time to think about heating this place

[TheHoneyBadger]

Will post this on the end of the other thread too but I have just found this:

If you are identified as a contact and asked to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace, including by the NHS COVID-19 app you may be entitled to a payment of £500 from your local authority under the Test and Trace Support Payment scheme. If you are the parent or guardian of a child who has been told to self-isolate you may also be entitled to this payment.

^Presumably that is all of the 'thought' that has gone into the situation I've been talking about. Still doesn't tell us if we would be seen as taking unauthorised leave or able to work from home or anything - need union specific advice on that.

I think you get sent to the (demon) headmaster who will hypnotise you into the correct way of doing things, Jan.

👀

I don't want manufactured fun at work. Or anywhere.

I want a proper lunch break to use as I choose.

Oh God. Organised fun!

I hate organised fun.

I started a thread about open evenings. Really interesting that some expect an online option and that some expect mitigation measures. My school is doing neither!

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/coronavirus/4352236-Secondary-school-open-evenings-back-to-normal

We're having lunchtime behaviour issues at the moment - too many kids in a small playground, but also some significant individuals. Talk is around reducing our lunch break time. I'm loving having 45 mins - I can mark a set of books, resource the next day's lessons AND eat my lunch in a staff room with actual other people. Part of me just thinks that lunch time behaviour isn't my problem, I'm not paid to deal with that stuff on my break, part of me obviously gets that it's my responsibility too.

They can reduce lunch but if they don't also reduce the school day as a whole, it'll do interesting things to directed time!
We pay staff (free lunch all week) to do lunch duty.

I've got 30 hours directed time 'free' before the end of the year according to my directed time thingy.

JCVI member who is all over the news telling parents to be wary of the vaccine approvingly quote tweeting Molly Kingsley isn't doing much to enhance my trust of his advice.

@RuleWithAWoodenFoot

I've got 30 hours directed time 'free' before the end of the year according to my directed time thingy.

That's a win! They're not allowed to just fill it up once the calendar is published either

SOme more work being done on improving COVID measures in schools:

www.surrey.ac.uk/news/university-surrey-help-protect-schools-airborne-covid-19-transmission?fbclid=IwAR1CdySpq6c90yMCKY7lI2Jug9p9Mutt_bpGl_5uabfu2_8T8tgsE7hlm0M

(Don’t try taking the existing tool linked in the press release though - it basically suggests doing things we already know would help, many of which we’re not allowed to do!)

A teacher friend has just tested positive. Her husband - who teaches in another school - and kids can, of course, go to school... what could possibly go wrong?!

A teacher friend has just tested positive. Her husband - who teaches in another school - and kids can, of course, go to school... what could possibly go wrong

If they all sit or stand behind the magic hazard tape on the floor it will be fine

On Friday we were all commenting on the high number of pupil absences. Also half of year 11 seem to have a cough suddenly.
Covid is rift in the local primary schools too.

This autumn and winter are going to be tough. I really feel for those working in the NHS.

We've removed the magic tape. We're all doomed

We never had magic tape. Our very walls provide the magic, which is lucky as I know of several families where positive parents are sending in their children as normal (which they are of course allowed to do). What could possibly go wrong?

I've tested positive, and I feel like shit. We've removed the magic tape, are no longer encouraged to wear masks (we can wear them if we REALLY want to), and should be circulating the room as normal. That's how I caught it, I'm sure. I have shared a classroom with at least 10 pupils who then tested positive in the last 2 weeks. Year 11 are dropping like flies. Year 12 and 13 all seem to have colds (including a cough), but "it's not covid, there's a lot of colds going around and their LFTs are all negative". Newsflash: my LFTs are still negative too, but I'm definitely positive and feeling rather ill.

I'm sending DD for a PCR test and waiting for the results before I send her back to school. She's got a sore throat and a headache, so I'm pretty certain she's got it and will be keeping me company at home this week.

That’s awful MrsA

With staff getting sick it will be a miracle if there aren’t local closures.

I'm sorry to hear that, MrsAD. Hope you don't get any worse.

I agree there seems to be still oodles of kids coming in with symptoms but "a negative LFT." A couple were sent for PCRs by school this week with really obvious hacking coughs.

Two of our year groups have like 2-6 confirmed cases in each class and then several others just off "with a sore throat" or "headache" not getting tested. Apparently still not at PH team concern level. Though two local primaries have whole year groups or phases out due to volume of cases.

Hope it doesn’t get too bad for you, MrsAD. There are an awful lot of suspicious “colds” about. The intransigence of public health officials in refusing to extend the initial 3 symptoms to those we know are Covid symptoms has allowed too many people to avoid a PCR.

I was working in close contact with a child for 30 mins a week or so ago. That child tested positive the day after. No one bothered to tell me for 6 days (I am part time). I have raised this as an issue of concern, but apparently it is not their job to contact trace any more. Errr…..no, but common courtesy in case I was off to visit vulnerable relatives that weekend?
So no more sitting next to children or opposite them for me. That makes some interventions hard to deliver so I’ve flagged that up so senior team can work out what to do about it.

I’m also fizzing about being expected to work with anti-vaxxers. 2 have “done their own research” and one is protecting herself with “herbs”.
Staff who are advised not to have the vaccination are taking extra steps (distance, masks in offices and communal areas) to mitigate the extra risk. I have no problem at all with that, but don’t stand right next to me sharing your breath gobbing off about how “we are not being told the Truth”

We've got at least 2 staff out with covid and one year group has several children plus we have good old sickness bugs and colds back.

HT is at least stopping the year group most affected from mixing but rest of us (including siblings of that year group) are carrying on as normal.

It's herd immunity by the back door and it's school staff now taking the brunt of it.

I am so sorry Mrs A. I really hope you don’t suffer with awful symptoms. It’s rotten to be in a situation where it is obviously inevitable you would catch it (and you Saucery) and that is not okay.

Dd was off this week with headache, sore throat and hacking cough. PCR negative. While we were waiting for the result I masked up, kept my distance and let everyone know so they could take extra precautions around me. Felt so wrong being in but what can you do?

My 13's look (and sound) like they should be in A&E but lfts are negative and I believe them 100% that they are testing religiously.

There are a lot of other infections around right now. Gives parents the opportunity to diagnose their kids themselves which is not what we need.

Hope everyone is ok being back and for those less so.