Dear Parents/Guardians,
As we approach the end of the academic year, we begin to set our sights on the full opening of schools in September. Over the last four months, the whole school community has faced many challenges that we could never have imagined. You have all shown determination and resilience when juggling family commitments with home schooling and have needed to adapt to home learning.
In September, the Government have allowed schools to reopen fully and we look forward to welcoming back all our pupils. In order to manage effectively the risks that remain, things will be different when our pupils return to school for the new academic year. This letter outlines some of the changes and protective measures the government is asking schools to put in place to ensure that we can be as safe as possible for everyone. Please read the following information carefully in order to understand the measures and expectations to ensure the safety of all pupils and staff.
Attendance
In September, school attendance will be mandatory. This means that the legal duty on parents of children of compulsory school age will apply. It is vital that children return to school as quickly as possible for their educational progress, wellbeing and wider development.
Where shielding advice remains in place for your child, it is important that you communicate this information to the school office so we can ensure remote learning continues. We would ask for evidence from your child’s doctor or other medical professional, to support this requirement. The same support may be considered where a child is self-isolating with symptoms.
It is the expectation that parents will avoid a holiday in term-time as this will cause further disruption to their child’s education. Holidays in term-time must be in writing to the Headteacher using the appropriate form and providing details of the destination to be visited. A request will only be agreed where it is satisfied there is an exceptional circumstance that is in accordance with the Nicholas Postgate Catholic Academy Trust policy. If the area to be visited is at high risk of transmission of the coronavirus, the school must ensure that there is an individual risk assessment in place for the child to return to school. Legal powers to enforce attendance will be used where a child does not attend school without a valid reason and the absence is unauthorised
Precautions
We will continue to take precautions in line with DFE guidance such as:
- ensuring everyone at the school cleans their hands more often than usual
- ensuring good respiratory hygiene, by promoting the ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ approach
- enhanced cleaning, including cleaning frequently touched surfaces more often
- minimising contact and maintaining distance where possible
Other safety measures:
- Pupils to observe any markings in place around the school.
- Parents keep your distance from others whilst waiting for your child and allow them to come to you. Please leave the school promptly and do not linger.
- Parents of Year 6 children walking to or from school on their own should contact school and inform school in writing either by letter or email of the arrangements for their child.
- Public Health England does not recommend the use of face coverings in school. They are not required in school as pupils and staff are mixing in consistent groups and also because misuse may inadvertently increase the risk of transmission.
Pupil illness
IF IN DOUBT DO NOT SEND. You must not send your child to school if they have coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms or if you have someone in your household who does. We ask parents and carers to support school by engaging with the NHS Test and Trace process so that cases can be identified and action taken. If your child develops symptoms, you should arrange for them to get a test and you should inform us of the results of that test.
Staggered arrival and departure times
There will be specific arrival and drop off times. We appreciate this may cause some difficulties if parents have children in different classes, but staggering these times will help to ease congestion. Please try to follow the times as closely as possible and try not to arrive too early or too late. We will continue to use our EYFS and KS2 gates for drop offs and picks ups.
The table below details the start and finish times as well as the entry and exit points for each year group. If you have children who are in different classes, you should refer to the timings in the table for the family bubble. Similarly, if your child is being brought to school by a childminder or nursery provider who is dropping children across different year groups, they should refer to the family bubble timings. However, if the childminder or nursery provider is dropping one child or children who are from the same year group, then the timings for that particular year group will apply.
| Year Group | Entry point and time | Exit |
|
· Reception |
8:30am EYFS gate |
2:50pm EYFS gate |
| · Family bubble (Nursery plus Years 1 to 6 NOT RECEPTION).
|
8:30am KS2 gate
|
2:50pm KS2 gate
Family bubbles in yard together, socially distanced. School staff will send your children to you at the gate. |
| · Year 5 | 8:40am EYFS gate | 3pm EYFS Gate |
| · Year 1 | 8:40am KS2 gate | 3pm KS2 Gate |
| · Year 4 | 8:50am EYFS gate
|
3:10pm EYFS gate |
| · Year 2 | 8:50am KS2 gate | 3:10pm KS2 Gate |
| · Year 3 | 9am EYFS gate | 3:20pm EYFS |
| · Year 6 | 9am KS2 gate
|
3:20pm KS2 Gate |
| · Nursery | 9:05am EYFS gate | 11:55am to 12:05pm EYFS Gate |
At drop off, members of school staff will be at the school gates to welcome your child and to direct them to the entry point for their classroom.
Contact with School
All contact with school is via telephone and email. Please adhere to all measures in place, particularly with regard to drop off and pick up times. Please ensure that we have your most up to date contact details and that you are able to be contacted throughout the day. Parents must not enter the school building unless invited or an appointment has been made.
After School and Before School Clubs
For the time being, we will not be operating any before or after school clubs. This will be reviewed regularly.
Information about hubs and how pupils will be arranged
All children will be within their year group hub. Classrooms may have been altered in terms of furniture – desks may be in rows in Key Stage Two and in Year 2 where possible. Break and lunchtimes will be staggered throughout the day for each year group hub. Pupils will be assigned their own toilet areas and hand washing facilities. Toilet areas will be monitored by staff and stringent handwashing and hygiene measures will be in place throughout the day. There will be no whole school gatherings of any kind.
School uniform requirements and items from home
Children are required to wear their uniform when they return to school in September. Children can wear their summer uniform until the October half-term. A full PE kit will be needed. Where possible, PE sessions will be outside so warm clothing would be advisable when the weather becomes colder. Ensure your child brings a clearly labelled water bottle into school each day. This will need to be taken home with them at the end of each school day. Our water fountains will not be in operation. School will provide each pupil with individual stationary packs. Therefore, children will not need to bring in their own pencil cases.
Catering arrangements
The school is currently discussing requirements with our catering teams to ensure a full provision for all pupils requiring meals is ready and in place for the start of the new term. Pupils in EYFS and KS1 who are entitled to a universal free school meal, will be provided with a school packed lunch. This will take the form of a “grab bag with an additional hot hand-held food” offer. Pupils in Reception and Year One will eat their lunch in the school dining hall. Times for these year group hubs will be staggered in order to allow for the disinfecting of tables in between sittings. As part of their lunch time, children will also have an allocated time on the playground to socialise in their year group hub. Pupils in Key Stage Two and Year Two will eat their lunch in their classrooms. They will also have allocated time for playing outdoors – this will reduce the numbers of pupils in the playground and enable the children to keep within their year group hubs. If your child usually brings their own packed lunch, they can continue with this arrangement. Please make sure that their lunchbox is clearly labelled with their name and year group. Lunch boxes must go home at the end of each school day.
Behaviour Policy
We have adapted the behaviour policy in line with the current COVID-19 situation and this links to the school’s reopening post lockdown. This policy will be carefully explained to pupils on their return to school.
Recovery Curriculum – Mental Health and Well Being
We have been given clear expectations from the Government on what we are expected to teach when pupils return in September. We will continue to provide a challenging and personalised curriculum in all subjects in order to support the needs of our pupils and address the gaps as a result of lost learning time. This is known as a catch-up curriculum. School curriculum planning will be adapted to ensure that all pupils’ individual needs are met. Long term planning will include the previous year’s objectives to embed the key skills and knowledge and understanding of the previous year’s end of year objectives. As part of the Recovery Curriculum in St Bede’s, we will focus on social and emotional aspects of returning to school; it deals with physical activity and equips pupils with the coping strategies they need for dealing with a very different world than they were used to. The Recovery Curriculum is vital for a safe and successful return to school. Our Recovery Curriculum will soon be available on the website. For transition purposes, there will be an opportunity for your child’s previous teacher to work alongside (team teach) your child’s new teacher in order to aid their return to school.
September Return
School will close on Friday 17th July at 3.10pm for the summer break. We will not be open to children during the summer break. School reopens for pupils on Wednesday 2nd September. We ask that only one parent or guardian drops off and collects your child – please adhere to social distancing rules. Parents must not enter the school building unless invited or an appointment has been made.
Finally, can we just say a huge thank you to you all for your remarkable support and patience during this challenging time for all of us since 20th March. Your commitment to supporting this school with remote learning has been phenomenal. It has been wonderful to communicate with you all.
It has also been wonderful to see so many of our pupils return to school for the “face to face” year group visits last week and this. We also have to mention our Year 1 pupils and the key worker children who have been attending school in such a sensible and independent manner.
We cannot finish this letter without saying a heartfelt well done to our Year 6 pupils. This year has been a very different and unexpected end to their time in primary school. We want to compliment them all on their mature attitude and resilience during their time in the classroom over the last few weeks or at home. We want to wish them all good luck for secondary school. On behalf of all the staff and governors, we bid them a fond farewell. Please keep in touch.
We wish you all a safe, relaxing summer break,
Best wishes,
Mrs Brown, Mrs Bennett and Mrs Gribbon
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