Coronavirus
The following gives information about the current situation in the light of COVID-19. It includes updates on National and School issues.
How We Will Spend the Coronavirus Catch Up Premium
September 2021
We are pleased to welcome our pupils back to school with pre-covid procedures back in place.
Following the easing of COVID restrictions the DfE has updated the schools covid guidance:
● From 16 August 2021, children under the age of 18 years old and adults with double vaccination will no longer be required to self-isolate. Instead, children will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace, informed they have been in close contact with a positive case and advised to take a PCR test.
● Social distancing measures have now ended, the one-way system and staggered start and end times to the day will no longer be operating.
● Class bubbles are no longer required.
● Assemblies in the school hall can now resume.
● Lunches for all year groups in the dinner hall can resume.
● As in all public spaces, face coverings are a matter of personal choice and you are welcome to wear one on site if you wish.
● We will maintain our regular cleaning of areas and equipment, with a particular focus on frequently touched surfaces.
● We will continue to ventilate all classrooms to ensure that a comfortable teaching environment is maintained.
● We continue to have plans in place for remote learning should this become necessary.
● We have an outbreak management plan in place if we are required to tighten procedures if there were an outbreak in the school or local area.
When an individual develops COVID-19 symptoms or has a positive test - Pupils, staff and other adults should follow public health advice on when to self-isolate and what to do. They should not come into school if they have symptoms, have had a positive test result or other reasons requiring them to stay at home due to the risk of them passing on COVID-19 (for example, they are required to quarantine).
If anyone in the school develops COVID-19 symptoms, however mild, they will be sent home and you should follow public health advice. The household (including any siblings) should follow the PHE stay at home guidance for households with possible or confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) infection. This no longer requires household members to isolate if they have had a negative test.
Confirmatory PCR tests - Staff and pupils with a positive LFD test result should self-isolate in line with the stay at home guidance for households with possible or confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) infection. They will also need to get a free PCR test to check if they have COVID-19. Whilst awaiting the PCR result, the individual should continue to self-isolate. If the PCR test is taken within 2 days of the positive lateral flow test, and is negative, it overrides the self-test LFD test and the pupil can return to school, as long as the individual doesn’t have COVID-19 symptoms.
February 2021
We are delighted that we will be opening our doors, once again, to all children from 8th March. Our risk assessments and systems of controls for our Covid-secure environment have been reviewed in the light of the new guidance for full opening. We will still be asking any children or staff member with any symptoms of illness, which may be viral, to err on the side of caution and stay at home. Routines around isolation and testing remain as they were in the Autumn term. We thank everyone for their support in keeping our community safe.
January 2021
Following the announcement on 4th March, school is now closed to all but the children of critical workers and vulnerable children. We are providing remote learning in line with our policy and through our Google Classroom platform. We really appreciate the efforts of all of our families in supporting children's learning at home in these difficult times. Please see our home learning section for more support and information.
For children in school, the systems of controls for our Covid-secure environment have been reviewed in the light of new guidance. We are asking any children or staff member with any symptoms of illness, which may be viral, to err on the side of caution and stay at home. Routines around isolation and testing remain as they were in the Autumn term. We thank everyone for their support in keeping our community safe.
National Assessment Update January 2021
Statutory national primary assessment in Summer 2021 has been cancelled, so there is no requirement for the school to report EYFS, Year 1 phonics, Key Stage 1 SATS or Key Stage 2 SATS to the Local Authority or DFE. As a school, we will use the resources at our disposal and our best endeavours to make accurate assessments of children's attainment at the end of the year for all children and report to parents in an accessible way. This will include the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (early adopters), Phonics in Year 1, and reading, writing and maths in Years 1-6.
Autumn Term 2020 Information about isolation and testing and remote learning
As school is now fully open, it is crucial that everyone follows the government's guidance about management of symptoms, isolation and testing. We appreciate that there will be many frustrations in this due to the cross over of symptoms between Covid-19 and the usual seasonal coughs and colds.
Please bear with us, while we try to keep our children, families and staff as safe as possible.
The documents below describe what to do if your child has symptoms (Isolation and testing information) and explain what you should do in the event of the various scenarios that might occur (Covid pupil absence guide).
Assessment Arrangements 2020 - The Secretary of State for Education announced on Wednesday 18th March, that the 2019/20 national curriculum assessments will not take place due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
This means the following assessments planned between April and July 2020 are cancelled:
- Early years foundation stage profile for Reception
- Phonics screening check for Year 1 and some retakes of children in Year 2
- End of key stage 1 assessments for Year 2 (including tests and teacher assessment)
- Multiplication tables check for Year 4
- End key stage 2 assessments for Year 6, (including tests and teacher assessment)
- All statutory trialling
Performance measures for the academic year 2019-20 will not be published.
Department of Education - The DFE have asked parents to keep their children at home, wherever possible, and for schools to remain open only for those children who absolutely need to attend.
It is important to underline that schools, all childcare settings (including early years settings, childminders and providers of childcare for school-age children), colleges and other educational establishments, remain safe places for children. But the fewer children making the journey to school, and the fewer children in educational settings, the lower the risk that the virus can spread and infect vulnerable individuals in wider society.
Schools, and all childcare providers, are therefore being asked to continue to provide care for a limited number of children - children who are vulnerable, and children whose parents are critical to the COVID-19 response and cannot be safely cared for at home.
The following Q&A should be read alongside the:
Why do we have to prioritise children?
The first aim of the partial school closure measures set out by the Secretary of State for Education is to reduce the overall population of children moving around local areas as far as possible, in order to further reduce the number of social interactions and thus flatten the upward curve of the COVID-19 outbreak.
However, the second aim is to continue to care for children who are vulnerable, or whose parents are critical to the COVID-19 response, so that they can continue to work where alternative childcare arrangements cannot be made.
How are critical workers defined?
Children with a parent or carer who is listed on the government’s critical worker list should be considered for a school place, so long as their job cannot be done from home.
Many parents working in these sectors will be able to ensure their child is kept at home. And every child who can be safely cared for at home should be, to limit the chance of the virus spreading.
How are vulnerable children defined?
Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those children with an education, health and care (EHC) plans.
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