Letter to Parents/Carers on 29th May 2020

Dear Parents & Carers,

Re: Potential Reopening of the School to More Students in June

Firstly, I would like to say that I hope you and your family are safe and well. Unfortunately we have received the very sad and tragic news recently that some families have lost loved ones due to the COVID-19 virus and our sincere condolences, as well as thoughts and prayers, are extended to all those suffering bereavement at this time.

I would also like to thank all families for the extremely valuable role that you have played in supporting the home learning of your children over the last ten weeks. I know that this can be very challenging but we are grateful that the vast majority of our students have managed to maintain their education and progress as a result of this. We hope that the regular phone calls and emails from your child’s PLG have proved to be useful – we will continue with these for the remainder of the summer term.

I am sure that you will have seen in the news that secondary schools have been instructed to partially reopen on 15th June to Year 10 students, if the government continues to think it is safe to do so. The guidance states that this should not be on a full-time basis, but will allow students to experience some face-to-face contact with school staff to support their ongoing home learning.

At the moment there are unfortunately no plans for students in other year groups to return to school before the end of the summer term but this too is being kept under review and may change in the future. Students not attending school should continue to engage with the home learning set for them via the Frog site (or using the paper packs if they have difficulty accessing the online resources).

The overall situation continues to be an unsettling time for us all, but please be assured that the school is doing everything we can to make sure we are prepared and ready to receive these students in the coming weeks.

We are creating a detailed action plan that we will share with you as soon as possible so you know what the school’s reopening will look like in practice. We have carried out some initial research with the families of Year 10 students and we are currentlyundergoing a period of consultation with our staff and governing body. Precautions we will be taking will include:
• Creating a ‘rota’ of attendance so that not all Year 10 students are in school on any single day
• Limiting class sizes
• Limiting the time that students and staff are in school
• Staggering break times
• Increased cleaning
• Keeping students and staff with coronavirus symptoms at home

I would like to reassure you that we will not be pressuring any student to come into school and we will continue to follow the government’s guidance regarding attendance (which currently states that families will not face the usual consequences if their child does not attend). We will keep you updated with all our preparations for making sure the school is as safe as possible, so you and your child can make an informed decision about whether to come in.

We expect to be able to send out the detailed plans and safety arrangements to you before the end of next week.

In the meantime, the school is still open only for vulnerable students and the children of critical workers. We know some employers will be encouraging you to return to work, but unfortunately we are not in a position right now to extend places to other students until we receive further government guidance.

If you have any questions, regarding any of these issues, please do not hesitate to contact me at the school.

Yours faithfully,

Mr. J Cregg
Headteacher