Thread by @karamballes

1/ Lot of media coverage for UsForThem in the last few days.

For a small grassroots organisation they've managed incredible coverage and access.

While DfE won't answer NEU FOIs on how many workers have died, UsForThem get into government meetings in no time

How?

2/ UsForThem Summer newsletter was sent to me.

When you consider parents groups campaigning for more safety measures in schools, considerations for CEV families campaign just as hard, UsForThem have done very well in media coverage.

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3/ They even got a meeting with Johnson, for grassroots they are particularly legitious liking pre-action letters.
Take great pride in preventing masks being worn in schools.

Bit of an anti union vibe going on

And I guess having a mysterious non disclosable advisor helps.

4/ Everyone's entitled to their own views, but today I heard and read a few things from them that is questionable

I know they think schools should have no safety measures, that children are safe, covid is nothing to worry about but...

No evidence transmission is an issue in schools?
No evidence staff aren't at any greater risk, infact they could be safer because they are surrounded by children and they are lower risk?
Children should only be kept off school if they have symptoms?
Children shouldn't be tested

Unsuprisingly supporters of GBD who say just live with it, herd immunity supporters and covid deniers are all keen to promote a group that wants school to pretend there is no pandemic.

Back to my favourite thread of the year, everytime I think its out of date it comes back.
ATM I don't think Gov is intentionally pursuing herd immunity but pressure groups and lobbyists around them are, Johnsons decisions are political not ideological.

https://twitter.com/karamballes/status/1247678149778866178?s=19

Sad thing is, none of us working in education want a battle, the unions don't, we just want a sensible approach to safety and reducing transmission, the NHS is going to struggle in January, blended learning till half term, vaccines could be rolling out fast by then.

This is how one of the leaders responded to the idea of having bubbles in primary school.

Sources that wish to remain anonymous have done some digging, they are worried about the backlash they could recieve from unpleasant supporters of UsForThem.

So will share their work on their behalf

They do make out that they have had considerable access and impact on policy decisions, bragging? Exaggeration?

Very good set of questions here, thank you to those who did all the work, I can't take take any credit for this.

Forget lockdown one of the key voices says. Then goes on with an explanation which describes how many feel about long covid

@halfon4harlowMP used to talk of blended learning, investing in extra space and staff but he appears to have abandoned this in recent months.
Happy to retweet UsForThem

Regular pieces in the Mail

Regular pieces in the Telegraph

So who is the mysterious benefactor and what work is going on behind the scenes?

We already have a lot of astroturf orgs in education and they all trace back to a handful of faces with close links to government.

Bit like the various campaign groups set up by Vote Leave

As a disclaimer, this is background work done by others, I made a decision to share their thoughts, some links to certain individuals can not be confirmed, but there are valid questions to be asked which I hope some journalists pick up to either prove or disprove

If you want to see how infections rose in schools from November to December, this is from some analysis done around time original Tier 4 came in, before these larger surges of hospitalisation, can we afford to continued at these rising rates?

Independent Councillor former Conservative explaining how she wrote an article with UsForThem with help of others who must remain anonymous

Get some interesting views posted on their Facebook, international pedophile conspiracies? Bit Qanon, I hope they report such posts

Just incase your wondering who DfE currently depends on for drawing up the magnificently inadequate advice to schools this year
CEOs and head of Public First policy and PR group who used to be at Policy Exchange
schoolsweek.co.uk/revealed-the-s…

Next time UsForThem are in the media I want them to be asked to explain why they don't think asymptomatic students who have tested positive should isolate.