We continue to follow government advice about coronavirus, COVID-19. The government's advice to everyone including schools changed on Thursday. Key changes:

• Schools to remain open and not close unless directed to do so.
• Pupils or staff with a high temperature or continuous cough to stay at home for 7 days.
• Advice to schools, including about travellers returning to the UK and confirmed cases of COVID-19 has been updated.

 

The importance of good personal hygiene, including regular hand-washing, to prevent the spread of infection continues to be stressed.

 

The government wants schools to remain open and not close unless directed to do so.  School trips abroad are recommended to be cancelled. We will continue 'business as usual' including all off-site trips, childcare, clubs and activities. For off-site trips, parents may withdraw consent for pupils to take part. We will respect your wishes. Pupils not taking part in off-site activities will remain in school in a different class. Our Year 6 residential trip to France takes place in July. It is too soon to take any decision about this trip.

 

The government expects pupils or staff with a high temperature or continuous cough to stay at home:

• Public Heath England, Stay at home: guidance for people with confirmed or possible coronavirus (COVID-19) infection.
• It is for parents to decide if pupils need to stay at home.
• If you decide your child needs to stay at home, tell us. Absence from school will be authorised.
• Individual members of staff will also need to decide if they need to stay at home.

 

Advice to schools including about travellers returning to the UK and confirmed cases of COVID-19 has been updated:

• DfE PHE Guidance to educational settings about COVID-19
• It is for parents to decide if pupils need to stay at home.
• If you decide your child needs to stay at home, tell us. Absence from school will be authorised.

 

We may experience more members of staff needing to stay at home. This may put pressure on our ability to operate normally. It has already become harder to find agency (supply) teachers to cover day-to-day teacher absence. The government wants schools to stay open. This means teaching and cover of main classes is our priority:

• we will use agency staff wherever possible but it might not be the same person covering a class every day;
• class sizes for Reception, Year 1 & 2 cannot be increased above 30 pupil by law;
• class sizes for Years 3,4,5 & 6 may increase to split classes where teachers are absent. This might be longer than typical;
• we will cover classes using our own 2 cover supervisors or 3 Higher Level Teaching Assistants. Small group and support teaching by HLTA's will be swapped in favour of covering main class teaching;
• class based leaders' release from class will be swapped in favour of covering main class teaching;
• teaching of PE, French and Music by specialist, non-class based teachers, will be dropped in favour of main class teaching.

 

There is much speculation about the closure of schools in the media. I do not want to add to that speculation. I will write again if the government directs schools to close when the details and expectations of any closure are known.

 

Our business as usual approach applies to Nursery and childcare, including during school holidays. These services remain open unless we are told to close them. We will follow the government's spirit of supporting as many people as possible financially during the coronavirus outbreak. Therefore we will refund any childcare bookings or Nursery top-up fees if we are forced to close.

 

Like me, you will hear about different schools taking different approaches, for example, cancelling parent consultation meetings, suspending off-site trips or even banning parents from the playground at drop-off and collection. We have not been advised to do any of these things.

 

I will write again when government advice changes.