A letter to parents and carers from Mrs Glass including information about remote learning.

Letter to parents week 3

Please find the letter from Mrs Glass below on school/home learning arrangements from Monday 4th January.

Thank you. More updates will be posted later this week, keep checking back .

Information for parents and carers 3.1.20. UPDATED.docx

Please read the government guidance below for who qualifies as critical workers and the attached application form for school places.

Completed forms should be emailed back to school at:

bowburnprimary@durhamlearning.net

Vulnerable pupils ( those with a social worker) can also attend school from tomorrow.

Critical workers info

Critical worker form

Thank you

Due to concerns around increases in national and local coronavirus transmission rates, teaching and support staff are taking action following advice from their unions and professional associations. School will therefore be open from Monday January 4th 2021 ONLY FOR THOSE CHILDREN OF CRITICAL WORKERS AND VULNERABLE CHILDREN . All other children will move to remote (online) learning from tomorrow. This position will continue for two weeks initially.

I can only apologise for the late notification of this information , however schools and head teachers were only notified last night. I will be posting a longer letter on the school website and emailing to parents to expand on the information above later today.

Thank you.

Mrs Glass.

Please see the important letter below for parents /carers which outlines steps to take if a child tests positive over the Christmas holidays. You will need to follow these instructions so school can take part in track and trace as directed by the Government.

Reporting positive cases after school closes

You may have seen in the press that the DfE have suggested that schools close next Friday 18th December in order that they will not need to be on call to support  track and trace contacting beyond 23rd December. However,  schools do not have to do this if they do not want to rearrange the agreed term dates and teacher training days which will already be planned.

As a school we will therefore REMAIN OPEN up to the end of term as normal. School will close at 3pm on Friday 18th December and reopen on Monday 4th January 2021. We think that asking parents at this late stage in the term to make alternative childcare arrangements for the last day of term is unfair.

As school leaders are being asked to continue to support national efforts for track and trace , if a pupil tests positive for Covid 19 at anytime up to 6 days after the last day of teaching (i.e. up to and including 24.12.20), they will need to report this to school so that close contacts can be told to self isolate.  Beyond 6 days, schools will not be called upon to engage in supporting track and trace.

Further details on how parents should contact the school during the holidays to report positive cases of Covid will be shared before the end of term,  once the Local Authority provides us with advice on how best to manage this process.

Further details to follow.

Please read the important updates for Parents/Carers from Mrs Glass at the end of term, including updates around Covid 19.

We hope you all have a great half term.

School reopens on Tuesday 3rd November 2020.

Letter to parents 23.10.20.

If your child is diagnosed with COVID-19 during the school holidays it is very important that you provide information about who they have had contact with, both in school and out of school, with the NHS Test and Trace Service.

Your child should not return to  school following the holidays if they develop symptoms or are in the self-isolation period.

Find out more at www.durham.gov.uk/article/23337/Staying-safe-at-school-coronavirus-

An important letter for parents/carers from the NHS with advice about when (and when not ) to book a test for children.

23rd September – PHE letter to parents and guardians

We have had quite a few questions about what to do if a child or family member shows symptoms or is otherwise unwell. This quick reference guide for parents and carers summarises actions needed if a child or family member is ill.  Please keep us informed when your child is ill or absent from school.

covid-19-related-pupil-absence-a-guide-for-parents

It’s been just over a week since children returned to school and I’m pleased to say for the most part this has been a very positive experience for the children and staff. The preparation that has been completed ready to make school safe for children to return has on the whole worked well. I have made a point of speaking to all the staff this week: teachers,  support staff, caretakers and cleaners as well as our SAs and kitchen staff to see how things are going from their point of view. Teachers are thrilled that the children have returned safe and happy, and ready to learn ! Talking to the children this week they have all without fail said they are pleased to be back, which has been lovely.

Where procedures have needed to be tweaked slightly or changed to make them more secure we have done so. Yesterday and today I have spent time on the yards, in the cloakrooms and in the dining hall checking how things are going, ensuring that bubbles are keeping apart . I’m pleased that things are going very well and our procedures are working .

There are a few things which I must remind parents about so that everyone can continue to remain as safe as possible .

If a child or family member has symptoms of Covid19:

Do NOT send your child to school. Follow the Government guidance for booking a test, isolate and inform school.  If a test comes back negative your child can return to school. Please inform school of the outcome of the test so we can take the appropriate action.

Illness: 

We hope all children will be fit and well to attend school regularly. If your child is unwell e.g. with cold, they can come to school. Just as in normal times if their cold is really bad they might need a day or two off to get better. Please let us know , and ensure they have hankies with them and encourage them to practice good respiratory hygiene. If they have a new continuous cough or a high temperature or loss of small /taste,  follow the Government guidance for booking a test and isolate. If they have sickness, tummy upsets and diarrhea,  children should not be in school until they have been clear of symptoms for 24 hours for sickness, 48 hours for diarrhea.

Start and end of the day:

As I mentioned in my earlier letter, it is tricky to move 360 children on and off 2 sites and from 3 buildings twice a day !  In order to make it as easy and safe as possible , in order to not lose excessive learning time and to prevent parents waiting around unnecessarily , we have adopted a flexible admission and dismissal time . Each building has a timeframe for pick up and drop off to allow parents to get between year groups or sites.  This will be kept under review. To remind everyone :

Nursery- afternoon sessions: Flexible pick up between 2.50-3.20 pm. Please queue socially distanced outside the nursery.

Infant building: 2.50- 3.00pm ( please don’t arrive too early, we have had some parents arriving as early as 2.30pm) The main gate can get busy so please do not loiter around it or block the gate when others are trying to leave. Y2 may enter and leave via the car park gates at the end of the day; please distance when waiting.

Junior Building: 3.00-3.15pm . Please ensure that you enter via the pedestrian entrance and leave via the vehicle gate. Markings on the path and drive have been added today to guide you. Please don’t try to go out of a gate when someone else is coming in . Staff will be at the gate and I have asked them to point out the correct gates to use .

Distancing:

At the start and end of the day and when moving around the site please try to distance from each other. This keeps everyone safe. Staff cannot supervise or enforce this, it is up to everyone to please act as sensibly as possible. Given the current situation , we are again advising parents to leave the site as quickly as possible and not to stop to chat to other parents. If you need to speak to member of staff,  try not to do so when they are dismissing children. Please phone school once you get home . Parents may of course wear masks when picking up children if they find it is difficult to distance. If your child wears a mask on the way to school please ensure you remove it safely before they come in at the start of the day.

Only ONE adult should be collecting or dropping off children please, again this reduces congestion.

Thank you for your co-operation.

Immunisations for Influenza.

As in previous years we are working with the NHS to ensure as many children as possible are immunised against flu virus this winter. This year all children in school will be offered the immunisation. Letters about this are coming out tomorrow (FRIDAY), please follow the instructions carefully to ensure your child receives this immunisation, which will be delivered at school. This winter , more than ever,  the NHS need people to get flu vaccines to help prevent hospitals becoming overwhelmed if there is a Covid resurgence.

Year 6 Secondary school place preference forms. 

Year 6 children will be coming home with these forms tonight (THURSDAY.) Please do not return the forms to school but places need to be applied for online.