13^th May 2020

Dear parents and carers

I am sure you will be aware of the announcement from the prime minister on Sunday about the possible phased return to school from 1^st June.

The proposed reopening of schools remains dependent on the rate of infection (R rate) remaining below 1 as well as a number of factors being in place. The published guidance also outlines very detailed factors and actions that we need to have completed and have in place as a school to ensure that we protect every pupil and member of staff. 

At the moment I am in the process of discussing initial plans with governors and staff so that we can work through them in detail, ready to share with parents and carers. We will continue to follow guidance put in place by the government, DfE and Public Health England to comply with social distancing guidance and maintaining high standards of hygiene with the aim to keep everyone in our school community healthy and safe.

Approaches we are planning to take include:

• carrying out a risk assessment before opening to more children to directly address risks associated with coronavirus so that sensible measures can be put in place to minimise those risks for children and staff
• making sure that children do not attend if they or a member of their household have symptoms of coronavirus
• promoting regular hand washing and use of sanitiser and ensuring good respiratory hygiene
• cleaning more frequently on regularly touched surfaces, equipment and toys
• minimising contact through smaller classes or group sizes and altering the environment as much as possible, such as changing the layout of classrooms
• reducing mixing between groups through changes to timetable and break times and introducing changes to drop off and collection arrangements

Please take the time to read the document “Opening schools and educational settings to more pupils from 1^st June: guidance for parents and carers” (dated 11^th May).

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers/reopening-schools-and-other-educational-settings-from-1-june

Providing all factors are met and these measures in place, the year groups with a possible return to school from 1^st June will be nursery, reception, year 1 and year 6 pupils. The government’s aim is that all primary school children can come back to school before the summer holidays, for a month if feasible, although this will be kept under review.

Please monitor your email messages this week for up to date communications. We will be asking parents/carers of children in the above year groups to give us an indication of their intention to send children to school from 1^st June so that we can plan appropriately for their provision. Reducing the risks for children and staff is our utmost priority.

Finally, I would like to say a sincere thank you to all parents and carers for your continuing support since the school has been closed in these challenging times. The whole staff team look forward to welcoming back our pupils and families when it is safe to do so.

Warm regards

Richard Pearse

Head Teacher