Returning To School

Following on from my previous article, the well-being of our staff is a key area of consideration moving forward.

Things to Consider:

The government ‘back to school’ directive will bring with it a myriad of emotion for all school staff, whether they work with primary or secondary children, with the key question: is it safe for the children and for us? The fact that this is unanswerable in any definitive way at the moment will inevitably be causing feelings of stress or panic for many.

Whilst school staff are aware that many other industries have been working on the front line during this difficult time, we have a responsibility towards our young charges to keep them safe and well whilst they are in our care. This gives us the same dilemma faced by parents up and down the country - can we protect them whilst we are in loco parentis?

Juggle of Staff & Students:

On a school level, many have been open looking after the children of key workers and staff have attended to carry out this important role. However, schools have been able to staff this with senior leaders and other staff who have been willing and able to attend. This has meant that, to date, there has been a fairly low-level response to returning, but this is now set to change with the next-step plans and schools will need an increased number of personnel available.

As with all other workers, many school staff are parents and carers themselves, adding to the consideration needed regarding coming into school and ensuring they don’t take the virus back to their loved ones. There are also staff who are shielding and unable to come in, thus reducing the pool of availability – another important consideration when planning. Teachers and support staff possess a high level of professional integrity, driven by the needs of their students. Those unable to attend will probably feel anxious for ‘not doing their bit’, alongside the feelings of isolation social distancing can cause.

Schools of all phases have done a sterling job of providing home learning for students over the past few months, often providing online face-to-face support and lessons on top of the general offering, and many secondary teachers in particular may be concerned about the ability to maintain this and teach in a school at the same time. The level of responsibility for maintaining learning for all year groups means the current emphasis on Year 10 and 12 could impact negatively on the rest of the school cohort, unless mitigations are put in place.

Duty and Care

As leaders of schools, it is our responsibility to ensure that our directives and policies support our staff with their emotional and professional wellbeing. There are many companies out there who offer support and advice, such as 24-hour helplines and counselling. These types of wellbeing packages are an enhancement to what needs to be part of everyday practise in school from now on Communication, contact (however that looks for each individual), guidance and continuity are the themes by which our school community will continue to thrive and our most valuable asset, our staff, remain healthy we emerge from this difficult period.