Friday 15th May 2020
Dear Parents and Carers,
Re: Possible reopening of school to more pupils in June
We know you’ve seen in the news that schools may reopen on 1st June to Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 pupils if the government thinks it’s safe then. We have started to create very detailed risk assessments to try to meet this ‘ask’.
It’s a very unsettling time for us all, but rest assured that we’re going to be doing everything we can to try to accommodate these year groups if it’s safe for our school to reopen in the coming weeks. You must consider, as a parent, whether returning your child to school is the right thing for your child, and the teachers and staff who will also be in school every day. Working within a very constrained environment where social distancing and prevention of transmission of any viruses is difficult during normal school life, it may be a higher risk. School will not be the same, they will not be with their whole class and they won’t be mixing throughout the school day as each group of children will be in their own designated area. We must ensure that we are mindful that we have a duty of care for all our school family, just as we as a school staff do throughout the year.
We’re recreating a detailed action plan that we’ll share with you as soon as possible so that you know what the school’s reopening will look like in practice. At present this won’t be a full time timetable as we can only provide provision if we have enough staff allowed to be in school. Precautions we’ll be taking include:
There will be no provision for the siblings of children in these groups and they will continue with the home learning set by the teachers.
We will be unable to have any external agencies in school such as music teachers, therapists, counsellors or volunteers due to the restrictions we will have in place. Any 1:1 provision can only be put in place if it meets the social distancing guidance set by the government. This includes any physical interventions/needs due to personal or intimate care or behavioural challenges. We will endeavour to provide a breakfast club, but this will be on very limited numbers and only for those who are required to be in work before 9.00am.
We do not currently anticipate the school kitchen being open, but await clarification from the Government/local authority on this and free school meals expectations.
If your child is clinically vulnerable, you should follow medical advice to decide if they should come back to school. Please refer to government guidance for further details of these groups.
I want to reassure you that we’re not going to be pressuring anyone to send their children to school; the government have stated that there will be no penalty for non-attendance. We’ll keep you updated with all our preparations for making sure the school is as safe as possible, so that you can make an informed decision.
We know that some employers will be encouraging you to return to work, but we’re not in a position right now to extend places to other children until we receive further government guidance.
I would be grateful if I could ask you to share your initial thoughts of returning your child to school on the 1st June, should this happen. Simply respond to this email indicating your decision as soon as possible.
Please consider:
a. - I intend to return my child to school
b. - I have not yet made a decision
c. - I do not intend to return my child to school
We’d like to thank you for your continuous support in helping your child learn from home. We’ll keep you updated once we know more about when schools will be able to reopen for other year groups.
If you have any questions, please get in touch.
Warm regards,
Mrs J Kearney
Headteacher