Question for those with children in primary school

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CazCardiff

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On Rainy days, what is your schools policy/what does your school do in letting the children into the dry early?

Our School, on a "normal" day, we all wait and kids line up outside 2 doors depending if infant or junior, and the teacher comes to get them.
BUT When its raining, Its STILL the same! The kids are expected to wait outside in the tipping down rain for the teachers to open the door. This never used to happen, it used to be the doors were open 5-10mins early and all the kids let inside to the main hall until the bell goes.
Some parents have complained to the head, I complained to the head today as all the kids were literally drenched because the teacher was late opening the doors. Im also a Parent Governor and the head was really s***ty with me and totally disregarded the poor soaking kids.

So what does your school do on rainy days?
xx
 
I can see both sides.

Teachers have in loco parentis responsibility, so if the children are brought early to school a member of staff, or more, depending on the size of the school, would have to supervise the hall. Believe me, kids do not supervise themselves, and teachers are buzzing around from the time they get in, getting out stuff for the morning, dealing with phone calls, liaising with colleagues and a million other things.

As a PG if your next meeting is quite soon have it put on the agenda, or AOB.

2 ways forward you might want to suggest would be to raise funds for an outdoor shelter- these are good practice for hot weather, too - or organise a rota of CRB checked parents to supervise.

I hate the idea of kids being soaked at the beginning of the day, but as I say there are 2 sides to it.
 
I can see both sides.

Teachers have in loco parentis responsibility, so if the children are brought early to school a member of staff, or more, depending on the size of the school, would have to supervise the hall. Believe me, kids do not supervise themselves, and teachers are buzzing around from the time they get in, getting out stuff for the morning, dealing with phone calls, liaising with colleagues and a million other things.

As a PG if your next meeting is quite soon have it put on the agenda, or AOB.

2 ways forward you might want to suggest would be to raise funds for an outdoor shelter- these are good practice for hot weather, too - or organise a rota of CRB checked parents to supervise.

I hate the idea of kids being soaked at the beginning of the day, but as I say there are 2 sides to it.

The option of a shelter has been discussed at many governor meetings, but is just not going forward. There are no funds at all, and as the school is in a deprived area, parents will do nothing to raise funds. They wont pay for anything and are not interested. :(

The next meeting is not until September now.

Sorry, I missed out that the hall in the morning is Breakfast club, they have about 6 members of staff in there for that along with 3 volunteers. (Its a VERY small school with only 126 pupils).
xx
 
Ours all go straight into the hall when it's raining and line up in there as if it's the play ground x
 
This drives me nuts!! My sons school (the one I used to attend many moons ago) doesn't normally let them in but a couple of the parents got annoyed and will knock the door till a teacher lets them in. Quite rightly so. They are nice and dry inside and they wouldn't want to be sat in wet clothes for hours so why should the kids?
 
This drives me nuts!! My sons school (the one I used to attend many moons ago) doesn't normally let them in but a couple of the parents got annoyed and will knock the door till a teacher lets them in. Quite rightly so. They are nice and dry inside and they wouldn't want to be sat in wet clothes for hours so why should the kids?

EXACTLY!
I dont care about me getting wet walking to and from school to drop them off, but its when you see the teachers sitting in the nice dry classroom, chatting away drinking their tea/coffee and the kids are out soaking and dripping and expected to sit in wet clothes all day. Alot of these kids are not from well off families, have poor nutrition and only 1 set of school clothes and walk to school in hte heavy rain as the families dont have cars. Then they get letters home becasue the school has failed to meet its attendance targets becasue so many kids are off sick.
I thought by becomming a parent governor, I could make a difference. Not the case at all! :(
xx
 
So, thinking outside the box, could the school explore the idea of grants to set up a FREE breakfast club for any/all pupils?

I say this because you also mention the nutrition issue.
Being hungry is a barrier to learning.

You may say that it is financially a pipe- dream, but it isn't. I know that because we did it!
Firstly, not all parents will take it up.
Secondly, a slice of toast costs very little, but is better than nothing.
We employed the cook for an extra 5 hours a week, and, with her blessing, swapped a TA's hours around to provide supervision.
Colouring sheets, puzzles and crayons were there to keep them amused.
We did it out of the school budget, but of course we had to take from something else.

btw although teachers may look as though they're just lolling about I bet they're discussing the children/ lesson plans etc.
And actually at say, a private nursery, they very much stick to opening hours.
Plus, unfortunately - and I know this from experience - if you have a relaxed attitude to dropping off/picking up times a minority of parents will take advantage.

I really hope this helps.
 
So, thinking outside the box, could the school explore the idea of grants to set up a FREE breakfast club for any/all pupils?

I say this because you also mention the nutrition issue.
Being hungry is a barrier to learning.

You may say that it is financially a pipe- dream, but it isn't. I know that because we did it!
Firstly, not all parents will take it up.
Secondly, a slice of toast costs very little, but is better than nothing.
We employed the cook for an extra 5 hours a week, and, with her blessing, swapped a TA's hours around to provide supervision.
Colouring sheets, puzzles and crayons were there to keep them amused.
We did it out of the school budget, but of course we had to take from something else.

btw although teachers may look as though they're just lolling about I bet they're discussing the children/ lesson plans etc.
And actually at say, a private nursery, they very much stick to opening hours.
Plus, unfortunately - and I know this from experience - if you have a relaxed attitude to dropping off/picking up times a minority of parents will take advantage.

I really hope this helps.

I agree...

Our school has a free breakfast club and parents use it who don't work! I work and don't use it!

When I worked with schools and lifelong learning in Cardiff our school had the healthy menu. A lot of parents complained their children didn't like the food! This was simple things such as sausages and veg. Sugar free jelly. We ended up having a vote amongst staff. I voted for the healthy menu. Because unfortunately this meal would be the only healthy meal many of the children would eat! That school to this day does not have a processed chicken twirler or Choc cake in the building! And by god did we know it! Alongside teaching children an running a safe education environment we had to defend a healthy menu.

Only because I'm in your area you will see that most of Cardiff is under the all weather play initiative which means a child decides if they want to go outside and play regardless of the weather. So given that most children pick to go outside the school may have the thinking that ten mins in morning isn't a big deal? X
 
In my sons school there is a small shelter. When it rains all the clicky parents all huddle up in there and everyone else stands in the rain. I have my hood up and my son runs around with his hood up as he loves it lol

It does drive me mad that they can't let the children into the hall that Is 2 steps away from the door!!

When it's raining I tend to just wait in my car till about 3 minutes till they are called in.
 
We usually stand outside and all the children have a little line they get into when the bell rings.

There is a bike shed for shelter on rainy days, but on days (like today) when the rain is very heavy, the P.E. hall is opened and we can go straight in there untill the bell goes.
 
So, thinking outside the box, could the school explore the idea of grants to set up a FREE breakfast club for any/all pupils?

I say this because you also mention the nutrition issue.
Being hungry is a barrier to learning.

You may say that it is financially a pipe- dream, but it isn't. I know that because we did it!
Firstly, not all parents will take it up.
Secondly, a slice of toast costs very little, but is better than nothing.
We employed the cook for an extra 5 hours a week, and, with her blessing, swapped a TA's hours around to provide supervision.
Colouring sheets, puzzles and crayons were there to keep them amused.
We did it out of the school budget, but of course we had to take from something else.

btw although teachers may look as though they're just lolling about I bet they're discussing the children/ lesson plans etc.
And actually at say, a private nursery, they very much stick to opening hours.
Plus, unfortunately - and I know this from experience - if you have a relaxed attitude to dropping off/picking up times a minority of parents will take advantage.

I really hope this helps.

Breakfast club is already totally free here! It is very full, but it seems the parents that do not use breakfast club are the ones who work! Or whose grandparents drop the children off.
Im not sure there is an answer to the problem. Maybe ive been drawn into the fight of parents complaining about being outside in the wet, and complaining about wanting a shelter but not willing to be proactive and actually help the school to achieve this..
Thank you so much for your help/advice anyway, its certainly good to see other perspectives sometimes. Its all too easy to become blinkered by one side! xx
 
I had no idea about this! Explains why kids are out playing in the downpours at lunchtime! lol
x

Yep Hun. The boys are choosing to go and get wet ha ha :)
 
May I just say, CazCardiff, that I think parent governors can be unsung heroes.
Mine were wonderful; they saw the school on a day-by-day basis, and had a much more vested interest than local councillors, some of whom joined just to tick a box.

PGs often have a tough time; they are on the sharp end of parents' complaints, and often feel they have to solve problems.

I remember feeling really irate when one of mine passed on a complaint, by anonymous parents, that I had not done anything about an ice-cream van which parked, quite legally, at a short distance from the school at home-time. Apparently these parents told him that it was costing them a fortune. When I asked him to pass on my advice that they should just say no he was sent back to me saying they wanted to know how to! Poor man, he was just the messenger!

Anyway, well done you, and in your shoes I would be tempted to advise that they use the Breakfast Club; problem solved!
 

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