Letter to Parents: Reopening Plans
Fri 26 Feb 2021
26 February 2021
Dear Parent/Carer,
Following the Prime Minister's announcement earlier this week, I am now in a position to explain our arrangements to reopen to all students.
We will continue to deliver on-site provision for the children of critical workers and for vulnerable children, with remote learning continuing for all other students, until Friday 5 March.
The Government has stated that “Pupils should return to face-to-face education following their first negative test result”. To enable all students to return to the academy on Monday 8 March, we have planned for the first Covid test to take place in the week prior to this, although I understand that testing is voluntary and some students will not have the consent for this.
If a child has tested positive for COVID it's still the guidance that they don't recommence LFD testing until 90 days after a positive PCR result.
The table overleaf outlines the arrangements for next week. It is important that all students who have consented to the testing, visit the academy during their allotted time slot as indicated in the table for their first Covid test; if not, they will not be able to return to the academy at 8.25am on Monday 8 March and will have to wait for their test appointment. Students are likely to be on site for between 10 and 30 minutes and will leave as soon as the test has been administered; it is important that they return straight home and follow the current lockdown rules, remembering that they should not be meeting with others in the area. School uniform is not required for this visit but face masks must be worn (unless exempt).
2 subsequent Covid tests (for those who have consented) will be given in school over the next fortnight. If you have not yet given consent for Lateral Flow Testing, you may do so by using https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfV-pWllum5_oFC8BABM-2Ao5NajGfE7VPU9ShoPeXrF1Hj7g/viewform?usp=sf_link
This system should allow the huge majority of students to return to the academy as ‘normal’ for face to face teaching from Monday 8 March.
Once the academy reopens on 8 March, we will continue to manage the school in year group bubbles. This will ensure that we are able to limit how many contacts each student has and in the event of a positive case will enable us to only have to instruct a smaller number of students to self-isolate. Much of your child’s provision will remain unchanged from that experienced at the end of 2020.
Students and staff must continue to wear face coverings (unless exempt) but a current change to the Government guidance is that face coverings should now also be worn in classrooms.
I will share a video presentation with you next week, outlining more information and some reminders but in preparation for the return to school it would be worth considering the following points:
- Students will be expected to be in full school uniform.
- Items such as the Planner or equipment such as pens and pencils may not have been used for many weeks; please find these items and get prepared well in advance.
- After so many weeks at home, children may well have got used to wearing jewellery or have coloured their hair, for example. Please prepare for the return to school now and remember that no jewellery or piercings are allowed and that hair colours / styles should be sensible.
The wider reopening of schools is a positive step forward in the country’s response to COVID-19. Once school reopens, all students (with the exception of those instructed to shield) will be expected to attend. As a result, our live online provision will not be provided in the way that it currently is.
If you do have any further questions about your child’s return to school, please contact the academy via the ‘Contact Us’ button on the school website.
Yours faithfully,
Alison McQueen
Principal
