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Money Diaries A charity shop manager in the south of the country trying to make ends meet

This week, our reader is a charity shop manager receiving the Covid payment while lockdown continues.

WELCOME TO HOW I Spend My Money, a series on TheJournal.ie that looks at how people in Ireland really handle their finances.

We’re asking readers to keep a record of how much they earn, what they save if anything, and what they’re spending their money on over the course of one week.

Are you a spender, a saver or a splurger? We’re looking for readers who will keep a money diary for a week. If you’re interested send a mail to money@thejournal.ie. We would love to hear from you.

Each money diary is submitted by readers just like you. When reading and commenting, bear in mind that their situation will not be relatable for everyone, it is simply an account of a week in their shoes, so let’s be kind.

Last time around, we heard from a primary school teacher renting a house in Dublin. This week, a charity shop manager in the south of the country struggling to make ends meet while receiving the PUP payment.

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I am a Charity shop manager and live in the south of the country. I live with my partner and we own our house which is mortgaged. We have about 14 years left to pay. 

My partner pays the mortgage, electricity and internet and I pay other utility bills such as solid fuel, the car and car maintenance. We share the waste collection bill and heating oil. My partner works from home and so we only need one car. I am also paying back a credit union loan. There are about 10 months left on this loan and when it is cleared I will immediately take out another one to put in a new kitchen.

I always have a good credit rating with the credit union which helps if I need money quickly. I do have savings of approx €4000 there and €23 is taken out of my payment and added to my savings each week.

The house is an old house and needed much money spent on it.  All of our excess monies are going into trying to upgrade the house, even with my partner doing a lot of the work himself.

I have been on the Covid payment this year so I’ve had to really budget for birthday and Christmas presents, and I very often put a €50 in from my wages so I’ll have cash when I need it.  I’m never overdrawn but I never have excess cash either.

Occupation: Charity shop manager
Location: South of the country
Monthly pay (net): Normally €2015  or €465 p/w but now I get €350 p/w on Covid so am dipping into my little savings to keep my daily bills paid.

Monthly expenses

Car repayment:  €271
Car Tax & petrol: €126 I travel to work 70 km round trip
Oil heating: €45 or €540 per year
Firewood: €55
Food: €300 each
Mob phone: €25
Health insurance: €117
Bin collection: €15
Credit union: €693
Total outgoings: €1647.60 which normally leaves approx €368 for myself and any other expenses which may turn up, but on the Covid payment, It means I have to add €185 from my savings.

***

Monday 

8.10 am: I get up and do some yoga. This is a real indulgence while I am off work as when I’m back at work I will leave the house at 8.15 and never have time for this.
Right now I am off because of Covid but will be back at work soon behind the scenes.

11.00 am: I do some chores in the morning and then I meet a friend we go for a walk.
It rains heavily and I get soaked to the skin, right through to my underwear. My coat is useless.

1.15 pm: My partner and I have lunch together, another indulgence or perk from being at home at the moment, we have Halloumi and salad with hummus I made myself. This is another up-side of the lockdown, having time to cook and bake. I’m loving it. After I’ve tidied up I put on the fire in the sitting room and I enrol in a refresher Excel course with Alison.com. Most of their courses are free

3.30 pm: I watch a place in the sun. Another indulgence!!

5.30 pm: I prepare dinner. Tonight it is vegetarian moussaka. There is quite a bit of work to it but is really worth it as it is delicious. We finish dinner around 7 pm so after the wash-up I peruse the internet for a coat but without much look. We watch a free movie from Rakuten, it’s not a great movie really so we both read for an hour or two.

11.30 pm: I go to bed.

                              Today’s total: €0.00

Tuesday

7.30 am: Today is fine so I’m up early. I have great plans as I intend to work on a painting which I started a few weeks back. I’m trying to get back into painting with a view to maybe selling a few to make some money. Dream on girl!! We are almost out of milk so I go to Lidl. I drive because it is too far to walk and I buy a few other groceries which come to €14.55.

1.00 pm: I’ve decided to make a soup for lunch, I had picked up butternut squash in Lidl for .89c and I add a few more ingredients. It turns out ok, we have it with homemade bread.

3.00 pm: I’m starving so I make toasted sambo’s for us, so much for my diet anyway. I’ve done everything except for my painting. Now I decide the light is too poor to paint so I’m going for a walk on my own.

5.00 pm: I dawdle around the house until it’s time to start dinner, tonight its quick, pork curry. It’s one of my favourite dishes and I make it all from scratch. I love the aroma of the spices.

8.10 pm: All tided up after dinner, now we watch a movie. We are watching part one of a trilogy, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I love it and love how independent the girl is in it.
I go to bed at 11 pm with a view to reading but instead, I just fall asleep.

                               Today’s total: €14.55

Wednesday

8.00 am: Today I have a zoom meeting with my line manager. To prepare I do yoga from an app that I have downloaded for free. It gives me the courage to endure this meeting.

11.10 am: I don’t have my breakfast until the meeting finishes, as I always fret before these meetings. It’s not a one-on-one, there are many of us present. Most managers are afraid to speak freely I never say anything either, it’s a bit tense. I’m in great form now that my meeting is over me so I’ll go for a walk as its fine outside.

3.00 pm: I’m back just in time to make a tomato and basil soup for lunch with garlic bread. It is very nice and quick too. I’ve cleared the kitchen table and spend over two hours working on a painting. I‘m pleased with it and my partner loves it. And he doesn’t usually gush. I’m so pleased actually I make us two Irish coffees. Live large!! I relax in front of the fire for a while and chat. We always have plenty of alcohol in the house as we buy in bulk at Christmas or if we have housekeeping money left over we buy whatever is on special offer. Also, because of the lockdown, we didn’t visit anyone over Christmas so we still have whisky and brandy left.

5.30 pm: and I’m off to the kitchen again. Tonight we are having a baked pasta dish with mozzarella and broccoli. It takes about an hour in total so I do the ironing while I cook.

8.15 pm: After dinner, we watch The Girl who Played with Fire, the second film of the Swedish trilogy. It too is great and real escapism.

10.15 pm: After it’s finished I spend an hour looking at coats online again, juggling my money to see what I can afford. My partner is fed up with my moaning so he offers to buy one for me but I decline. Still, it makes it easier for me to buy as I know if I am broke I can always ask him for money. Though that is rare. 

                               Today’s total: €0.00

Thursday

7.40 am: I’m up and running early today. Mainly because I have to do a big shop.
I go early because I hate the crowds later on. It’s not a very large town but the supermarket is not near large enough now. My shop comes to €127.00 but I have two vouchers which bring it down to €107.00. It doesn’t cover everything so I then continue to Lidl and get some extras. My bill here is €37.30 bringing my total shop to €144.30.

1.00 pm: We have a quick lunch. Salad with ham and olives. I bought some cooking apples so I make a tart.

3.30 pm: I am about to go for a walk when it looks like rain so instead I make up two parcels to the post office. One is a few vinyls for a friend who has just bought a record player. They are from my own collection but are ones I don’t listen to often. The other parcel is made up of a book and two DVDs for a relative who lives alone in Dublin and doesn’t meet many people. The total amount for postage is €16.25. I drive to the post office as this is not close by either.

4.45 pm: My partner is finished work so we have a coffee together after I put a free-range chicken in the oven. Free-range is double the price of a normal chicken but as they are only two of us I feel it is worthwhile. Though in fact, I would never buy chicken if I lived on my own.

7.30 pm: Dinner is nice and tonight we watch the last film in the trilogy. Love it too. Afterwards, we watch a bit more tv and go to bed at around 11.00.

                               Total’s total: €160.55

Friday

9.15 am: My partner is off work today so we go for a long walk first thing. We don’t return until 11.30 and then I cook rashers and sausages which becomes a sort of brunch.
Today I am preparing stuff to take to the recycling. I’m in the mood to really clear stuff so I fill the car. We won’t actually go until tomorrow as my partner is working on the house again.

3.30 pm: After a load of manual work and clearing out, we have tea and tart. Yum.
I look up coats online again and still I don’t think I can justify spending that much money. My savings are running low and I have to be careful. It could be another two months before I am back at work.

5.00 pm: Tonight’s dinner is easy to prepare. Salmon pasta made with a cheese sauce and tagliatelle. It looks good and I have a bottle of white wine chilled in the fridge. My partner hardly drinks at all but I have three glasses tonight. Happy days. It’s Friday. He is reading so I play my vinyls. We go to bed around midnight.

                           Today’s total: €0.00

Saturday

8.30 am: I normally go to the small market in our town but as I had already bought veggies in the supermarket I give it a miss.

12.00 pm: I make some bread and I meet my friend for a walk. We have a laugh which I find I’m having less of during the lockdown.

3.00 pm: It’s a fairly uneventful day, My partner is off work to-day also, and he is cooking tonight. Its a dish he learned from his mother, not at all my fav but I eat it anyway. We did some work on the house again but it is all very slow.

8.15 pm: We Skype friends who live in Canada. They are in lockdown also but it won’t last very long. We speak for over an hour and afterwards we discuss moving to Canada, not for the first time. We both agree that if we had the house finished it would yield a better price on the market but at the moment all that is a pipe dream.

10.30 pm: We start getting ready for bed. I’m not very tired so I listen to music for a while and go to sleep around 1.am.

                           Today’s total: €0.00

Sunday

8.30 am: First thing I do after my shower is walk to the shop to buy the paper and milk.
The bill is €4.40. I spend an hour over breakfast reading and afterwards I prepare the dough for a homemade pizza. In the meantime, I make a leek and potato soup.

2.30 pm: It’s been another lazy day so I get a spurt and take out my painting again. I’m trying something a little different but it doesn’t work out.

4.00 pm: I put all my gear away. The weather is pleasant and my partner cuts the grass. I take this time to look up coats again but now I’ve decided I cannot afford one right now. The good ones are too expensive at €190 and there is no point in buying a cheap one.

6.30 pm: We have dinner, pizza and garlic bread and afterwards watch a Hitchcock movie.

11.00 pm: My partner starts work at 7 so we try to go to bed by 11.pm. In the past, that would have been much too early for me but during the lockdown, I’m sleeping much better.

                            Total spend today: €4.40

Weekly subtotal: €179.50

 

***

Lessons I learned –

  • Looking at my week I see we spend €400 in bills including €75 each for groceries and €16.25 extra spend for the post. So I spend on average a min of €420.00. This has made me realise that I am not very well paid. I am really only scraping by and when Covid is behind us I need to look for a better paying job, maybe I need to up-skill for that. 
  • When my loans are paid off I will have extra cash for myself but that is not for a while yet. At the moment my outgoings are higher than my income, €420 going out p/w and €350 (Covid payment) coming in.
  • During normal times I would have €45 p/w left to buy clothes, doctor and dentist bills etc. I know I’m luckier than some but I don’t feel very lucky, to be honest.

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25 Comments
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    Mute Darren Mc Mahon
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:27 PM

    Great news for a lot of families out there.

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:24 PM

    @Darren Mc Mahon: not the families of those Teachers and SNAs tho

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    Mute Darren Mc Mahon
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:30 PM

    @IAmSCozzie: hopefully safeguards will be put in place for all concerned. Very challenging environment. We all look forward to the day that all this passes.

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    Mute Nioe
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:40 PM

    @IAmSCozzie: making them work for their pay. Shocking alright…. Covid controls are in place everywhere and support for the most vulnerable in society is and should be priority. Probably more likely to get covid when not working. Great news and delighted for all these kids.

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    Mute Aedín
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:14 PM

    @Nioe: covid controls …… have you ever been in a special school? Genuine question.

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    Mute Cosmos20202020
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:43 PM

    @Brian Shea: their job is to teach…but there is nothing that says they have to put their health at risk to do so….your so great you go do it.

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    Mute Brian Shea
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:57 PM

    @Cosmos20202020: Just curious that you are no doubt a teacher…I was a teacher for over 20 years left the profession due to hearing teachers self proclaim how hard they work and how hard done by they are.. Shopkeepers, nurses, refuse collectors and lots more all put their lives at risk. But teachers think they are better and above everyone. If you are that worried put a hazmat suit on.

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    Mute Nioe
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:26 PM

    @Aedín: yes.

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    Mute mr magoo
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    Jan 14th 2021, 5:50 PM

    @Aedín: or any school? No social distancing. A skimpy mask to protect from a deadly virus.

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    Mute mr magoo
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    Jan 14th 2021, 5:51 PM

    @Brian Shea: there is absolutely no way you were ever a teacher.

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    Mute Proinsias Ó Fearghail
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    Jan 14th 2021, 5:57 PM

    @Brian Shea: Seriously? You left the job because people gave out about work? Have to say,I have my doubts!!

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    Mute Joe Kennedy
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:17 PM

    @Proinsias Ó Fearghail: wasting yere time lads. Judging from the hazmat suit comment alone, he clearly has no idea what he’s talking about. Same goes for anyone comparing it to other professions.

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    Mute Ronan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 7:07 PM

    @Cosmos20202020: Health and safety at work act basics, employers responsibility to provide a safe work place, employees responsibility to comply with all safety rules. If they work together it can be safe.

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 7:24 PM

    @Nioe: Really !

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 7:29 PM

    @Brian Shea: Actually no teacher has in their contract to put their life or the lives of their families at risk during a pandemic. Have you ever tried to change the nappy of a 12+ stone fourteen year old, whos dosent social distance or wear a mask ?

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    Mute Elizabeth Barry
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    Jan 14th 2021, 8:38 PM

    @Brian Shea: the difference is all those sectors social distance and the people they deal with wear masks. Plus Health care workers will get the vacine way sooner than those working for the school such as Teachers, Special Needs Assistants and Bus Escorts, if they already haven’t received the vacine.

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    Mute Noo Ni Ailpin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 9:36 PM

    @Brian Shea: In the course of your research, What percentage of teachers think that they are “better than everyone else?”
    You might be right. I can’t find the data, but I would love to see citation.

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    Mute Elizabeth Barry
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:36 PM

    Didn’t realise that we had the Corona Virus sorted.

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    Mute Helen O'Neill
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:38 PM

    @Elizabeth Barry: that’s no helpful

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    Mute Mango mango
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:50 PM

    @Elizabeth Barry: The number of children in special needs education is very low probably under 2k. These children really need daily support outside of their homes. Managed properly this is hardly going to increase the risk anymore than creches staying open.

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    Mute bmul
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:52 PM

    @Mango mango: it will increase the risk for the staff as the kids cannot social distance

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    Mute phil balfe
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:59 PM

    @Mango mango: It states in the article that there are 30,000 children.

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    Mute Dan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:00 PM

    @Elizabeth Barry: we dont but teachers will be expected to put their health, and the health of their loved ones, on the line starting next week. The potential for getting covid just multiplied massively for those teachers. Each one of them will agree that special ed schools play a big role in the routine of kids. Each teacher will also agree that the potential for regression because of lockdown is significant for these students. Each teacher has spent the last 5 months banging their head off a brick wall while trying to understand why FFG have no back up plan for this. No discussion on what to do if things went bad. All we have had is a one line discussion that repeated the nonsense that covid doesn’t transmit in schools. Up until they closed schools to help stop the spread.

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    Mute Liam martin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:06 PM

    @Elizabeth Barry: madness

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:08 PM

    @Helen O’Neill: its true tho !!

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    Mute Mickety Dee
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:13 PM

    @Elizabeth Barry: Covid is the least of these kids worries. There is a small risk for teachers and in my opinion it is nowhere near enough to justify abandoning these kids

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    Mute Thomas O' Donnell
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:17 PM

    @Dan: By that logic, everyone going to work is “putting their life on the line” (completely over dramatic). Those of us still travelling to work places know there’s a risk to us but know our work is essential and that’s fine for the good of society. Surely special needs education is a very high priority?

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    Mute bmul
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:33 PM

    @Thomas O’ Donnell: at my workplace I can social distance wear a mask clean hands etc THIS WILL NOT HAPPEN EWITH THE KIDS so not the same

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:36 PM

    @Thomas O’ Donnell: Do you have to change the nappy of a 14st fourteen year old ??

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    Mute Dan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:51 PM

    @Thomas O’ Donnell: come back when the deaths have stopped climbing and tell me im over dramatic. It might also surprise you to learn that there are different types of jobs with different levels of contact. Do you go into a small, unventilated room with no screens or PPE for hours on end?

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    Mute Elizabeth Barry
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:10 PM

    @Dan: there are more than teachers. There are SNA’s and more importantly there are bus escorts that will not have social distancing in a small bus.

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    Mute Elizabeth Barry
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:12 PM

    @Mango mango: bus escorts have no social distancing in a small bus, so have you an answer for that.

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    Mute Marie Flaherty
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:24 PM

    @Mickety Dee: Excuse me? Abandoning? Teachers and SNAs have been working round the clock planning, teaching and supporting our students. All SEN children get additional online teaching plus continuous support and interaction from SNAs. Yes, it’s not perfect but it’s not safe right now. Children, especially SEN children, can’t understand boundaries and they’re coughing, sneezing etc on us, without masks or social distancing.

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    Mute Brian Shea
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:05 PM

    @Marie Flaherty: Working around the clock…..I doubt if you are totally correct there. Teachers are the only ones that will say that. Self praise is no praise. Wear a hazmat suit if you are that worried. I think you should go to work and do the job that you are paid to do. Not to just give children tasks to do via an email.

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    Mute Darren Mulligan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:31 PM

    @Brian Shea: You really come across as having a massive chip on your shoulders for teachers, I can only speak for my children’s school and their teachers but they have gone above and beyond for my kids.

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    Mute Ger McCloskey
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:35 PM

    @Dan: and the department cut ppe funding by 40% during the Christmas holidays for schools – and oh! concerned they are

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    Mute Ger McCloskey
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:36 PM

    @Dan: or have the windows open

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    Mute Liam martin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 5:19 PM

    @Brian Shea: somebody really has something against teachers, haha ! I’d say you were a great colleague to work alongside and also an inspiration to those you were giving an education……..

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    Mute 2thFairy
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    Jan 14th 2021, 5:34 PM

    @Mickety Dee: what do you base your risk assessment on?
    Why do you think it’s a small risk to deal with the daily intimate care needs of children who bite and spit. Why do you think it’s a small risk to create the movement of thousands of people in every community.
    Maybe it’s because you are not taking the risk and putting your family and your parents at risk. Maybe you are just selfish.

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    Mute Nicola Scott
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:00 PM

    @bmul: well what is the alternative then? Will teachers and SNAs stay home for the next god knows how long until they consider themselves safe?
    Any act of daily living puts one at risk these days. What about the daily risks to these parents and kids? Who is looking after them when they are witnessing their children lose hard fought for skills? What about the risks of self harm for these kids or aggression directed at exhausted parents?
    Think about the frontline staff working long hours and coming home to face these situations.
    Thankfully the government realise these needs.
    And yes I’m a qualified SNA myself and also a parent to a severely autistic child. So risks are considerable to children and families. If eminent public health teams can stand by this decision it should be enough.

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    Mute Nicola Scott
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:04 PM

    @Marie Flaherty: excuse me but it has been proven than online teaching DOES NOT WORK for these children. It also takes skills the the majority of parents do not possess to teach them.
    I have had not one phone, email or otherwise contact from an SNA for my severely autistic son.
    I think this is a good opportunity for some to rethink if they are in the right profession at all.

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    Mute Mickety Dee
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:25 PM

    @2thFairy: No one should be meeting their parents these days I’d they don’t want to put them at risk. A healthy teacher of working age is a completely different risk. Also, only about 20k children affected so thousands in every community is an exaggeration.

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    Mute Liam martin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:27 PM

    @Nicola Scott: you are a qualified SNA……why do you need another SNA to phone or email ?

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:46 PM

    @IAmSCozzie: it’s a continence aid

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:50 PM

    @Liam martin: Why would she not expect a call? They are after all getting paid

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    Mute 2thFairy
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    Jan 14th 2021, 8:16 PM

    @Mickety Dee: 1. My mother lives with us.
    2. Opening schools will cause thousands of people to move around our communities. The whole point of staying at home is to prevent movement of people. (Or didn’t you know this?)

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    Mute Mickety Dee
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    Jan 14th 2021, 9:34 PM

    @2thFairy: Yes but there has to be a trade-off vs the benefit. You could stop hospital workers from attending hospitals but the benefits clearly outweigh the risks. Some teachers/SNAs should be able to opt out where they can show they are at risk or present a risk to others. A blanket closure is doing damage to some kids with special needs that may not be reversed

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    Mute Noo Ni Ailpin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 9:50 PM

    @Mickety Dee: you are right.
    Teachers who are healthy and of a working age should, get over the virus…if they contract it at all. It is the families of teachers who might contract the virus from them that is the worry.
    Elderly parents, immunocompromised children, a partner who is a frontline worker, a partner who is ill. Epidemiologists worry about a broken link in the chain, and yes, all frontline workers are such links. The stress on those families must be enormous.
    As I understand it, government and NPHET look at the management of this virus on a micro and a macro level in order to determine what is ‘best’ for the population as a whole. I hope that whatever the decision, nobody gets ill as a consequence.

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    Mute NeddyQ
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    Jan 15th 2021, 12:33 PM

    I am a frontline essential service employee and each I work with 60 with no social distancing,. If i refuse to enter my workplace due to covid , my options would be resign or take unpaid leave. Not great options !!! End of the day the teachers have been accommodated and be thankful for this. There is alot of people forced into unemployement and living on covid payments . Think about this .
    Let me fill you in on my 3 kids school last year . Beautiful new school in ……
    Zero communication between teachers and pupils, teachers never once asked to see or correct homework that was thrown up. on the school’s website on a fortnightly basis . No feedback received over a 15 week period. Books not returned in a timely and in an appropriate fashion to pupils (dumped outside school, no staff member visible). No attempt to deliver synchronous/asynchronous online delivery of curriculum. No training received by staff in a timely fashion ie the week before summer holidays , on the application of appropriate online delivery platforms. No effort made by the school’s management to organise appropriate graduation send off for 6th class pupils. Effectively the school closed its doors in mid March and failed in its duty to remain in regular contact delivering the curriculum over this 15week period. Parents were left to struggle alone, with the most scant input (in some cases no input) by teachers, to educate their children….. despite several emails to the teachers , principal and department of education.
    All attempts to voice concerns formally regarding this unacceptable situation were met with indifference by the principal and BOM.
    All the promises can be made to deliver an education but if the school decides to do as little as possible there is NO ONE in the department of education that will rectify this .
    Sending in complaints is effectively asking the principal to police himself ..Pointless.
    I know not all schools were as poor as this but unfortunately last year this pretty much the norm in national schools .
    Have a lovely weekend guys .

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    Mute offtheball
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:38 PM

    Not too sure how a mainstream class teacher can be in school working with a child with special needs and teaching the rest of the class remotely at the same time.

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    Mute thesaltyurchin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:57 PM

    @offtheball: Vaccine?

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    Mute Susan Durcan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:15 PM

    @offtheball: my thoughts exactly! I’m teaching remotely, I’m online until 8pm most nights responding to kids (which I have no problem with), but how do I teach remotely AND teach in person if the kids with SEN are in my classroom with me all day. I don’t understand how this can work?

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    Mute Thomas O' Donnell
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:18 PM

    @offtheball: They obviously won’t be able to devote the normal amount of time to either but it’s way better than none

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    Mute David Corrigan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:30 PM

    @Susan Durcan: Unfortunately the minister for education has no idea how it would work too.

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:51 PM

    @Susan Durcan: Camera maybe???

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    Mute Lorraine Mac Rory
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    Jan 15th 2021, 11:08 PM

    @Sandra McBride: you haven’t a clue how modern school works have you? Do you honestly think 8 year olds get lectures?? Or a science practical in secondary – what should the camera focus on?

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    Mute Eddie Michael
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:03 PM

    Have the teachers and sna’s recived vaccinations ???
    Oh right that will be June or July, during the summer holidays….
    Just resign already Norma

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    Mute bmul
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:37 PM

    So what to the staff do if the kids can’t social distance ,? Do the staff get provided with full ppe .How do the parents cope if the kids get covid and have to isolate .

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    Mute Jolly Bourke
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:42 PM

    Just vaccinate the teachers and SNA .teachers are currently about 2nd last on the list. Prisoners in Mountjoy prison get it before them, yes because their roll in the community is much more important than our teachers .This minister is not up to the job should step down.

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    Mute lyndon
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:40 PM

    The Minister told the viewers of RTÉ’s Prime time on 07/01 that she was given a letter of assurance on that same date by the CMO stating that it was safe for 60,000 Leaving Certs to return to school this week. I’d like to see that letter please.

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    Mute Dave Harris
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:42 PM

    @lyndon: she’s a bit busy at the moment so can ya hang on for a bit?

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    Mute Dan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:52 PM

    @Dave Harris: busy my asre

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    Mute lyndon
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:30 PM

    @Dave Harris: Busy conflating the pressing need for the accommodation of SEN students with her solo-run on the Leaving Cert.

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:33 PM

    @Dave Harris: shes absolutely useless

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    Mute Ed
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:03 PM

    @Dan: She’s very busy making poor decisions and u turning on them

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    Mute Tony Dunne
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:33 PM

    What are these teachers and Sna’s to do with their young children at home

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    Mute IAmSCozzie
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:34 PM

    @Tony Dunne: i dont think Norma cares tbh ….

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    Mute Jim Smith
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:02 PM

    @Tony Dunne: The same thing every other parent in the country who is working has to do right now. Find some kind of solution themselves.

    The government are doing nothing to help working parents

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:54 PM

    @Tony Dunne: What is the rest of the country doing?? Paying private childcare

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:54 PM

    @Tony Dunne: What is the rest of the country doing?? Paying private childcare

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:54 PM

    @Tony Dunne: What is the rest of the country doing?? Paying private childcare

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    Mute Sandra McBride
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:54 PM

    @Tony Dunne: What is the rest of the country doing?? Paying private childcare

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    Mute Declan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:33 PM

    Had to happen and much appreciated by families at the moment under this added pressure.

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    Mute Caroline Redmond
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:09 PM

    There is one child in our special needs class that want to avail of this, the rest of the parents won’t send them till it’s deemed fit to open schools. We have two classes and it’s the same in the other. Technically that will be 6 staff, plus the principal, vice principal, cleaners etc, school lunch providers that will be there for 2 children. Does not make any sense at all.

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    Mute Looney Tunes
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:01 PM

    Teachers should be prioritised for the vaccine before they go back, ps I’m not a teacher

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    Mute Sam Glynn
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:57 PM

    Is there any help in place or exceptions for some of these teachers who have school children at home who are not in school while their mum or dad have to go back teaching while the other parent is still working on the frontline so have nobody to mind the children while both at work. Children too old for creche and cant ask childminder over nor any family members in same county.??

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    Mute Caroline Redmond
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:00 PM

    @Sam Glynn: Think it’s just like any other person who is working, you will have to sort childcare out yourself. It’s an issue for lots of people, not just teachers.

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    Mute Sam Glynn
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    Jan 16th 2021, 4:14 PM

    @Caroline Redmond: its such a pickle and a real issue if there is no family around to help out.

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    Mute Eddie Michael
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    Jan 14th 2021, 3:59 PM

    Once again, schools have not been informed ….

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    Mute Shane McCartan
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    Jan 14th 2021, 4:24 PM

    @Eddie Michael: They will read it in the red tops tomorrow

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    Mute John Power
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    Jan 14th 2021, 6:34 PM

    The word teacher should be replaced with the word child minder, don’t think it’s really fair to put somebody’s health at risk

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    Mute thesaltyurchin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:58 PM

    Teachers probably second from top on the vaccine roll out right?

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    Mute Elizabeth Barry
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    Jan 14th 2021, 5:19 PM

    @thesaltyurchin: they are second from the bottom of the line. Bus escorts are so forgotten.

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    Mute Lisa Quinn
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    Jan 14th 2021, 1:50 PM

    Sorry journal. Massively misleading headline.

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    Mute Jonnie Marre
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:30 PM

    @Lisa Quinn: how so?

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    Mute Lisa Quinn
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    Jan 14th 2021, 2:34 PM

    @Jonnie Marre: its not as black and white. A lot of stipulations and contingencies from Union they are asked to meet.no mention of that.

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    Mute Jonnie Marre
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    Jan 14th 2021, 7:10 PM

    @Lisa Quinn: ok thanks. I wasn’t sure

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    Mute Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 7:42 PM

    Another logistical nightmare for schools.

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    Mute Audrey
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    Jan 14th 2021, 9:05 PM

    My sister is a secondary school teacher in France and her kids are in primary school, all schools are open. They are making sure to keep schools open there, it can be done.

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    Mute Sorcha Ní Shúilleabháin
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    Jan 14th 2021, 10:36 PM

    @Audrey: They also have a pupil teacher ratio of 13:1, meaning you don’t get the scenario of 30 teenagers packed into small, poorly ventilated classrooms as you do here in Ireland.

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