15^th October 2020

Closure of School for students in Year 8

Dear Parents/Carers,

As you will be aware, following three positive cases of Covid-19 in school, we now have 150 students self-isolating and 6 staff due to being identified as direct contacts.  This combined with other staff absence related to Covid, has resulted in us having to make the difficult decision to close the school to all students in Year 8 and 11 in addition to those who are already isolating.

In order to operate safely for all students remaining in school and to manage the staggered timings to avoid crossover between bubbles, it is essential that staffing levels are at an appropriate level in school. As always, the health, safety and welfare of all students and staff is our priority. Up to this point, we have remained fully open to all students due to the way we have responded and adapted to the frequently changing rules.

All students in Year 8 can continue with their learning remotely.  I emphasise that this decision has not been taken lightly but in order for us to maintain safety in school, it is essential that I have enough staff to manage and support students.

Therefore, students in Year 8 should not be in on Friday 16^th October or for all of next week, 19th-23rd October. I must stress that only those students identified as contacts have to isolate and they have already been informed; all remaining students in Year 8 do not have to isolate.  All students should continue with their learning remotely.

There is now an absolute expectation for students who are not in school, to engage fully with Google Classroom on a daily basis.  All staff are uploading resources and tasks for students to complete for every lesson, and in some cases, we will offer lessons that have other virtual elements such as voiceover to support students in their learning.

For any students without access to a laptop or I-Pad, paper resources will be sent home for students to complete at home.  We are working hard with local businesses, charities and the DfE to secure additional laptops as soon as they are available and we will send further updates on this soon.

Tutors will make contact with all students next week to check on welfare and progress.  In the meantime, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact the school.

I hope that students are able to enjoy a well-deserved rest in the forthcoming half term and we look forward to welcoming students back into school on Monday 2^nd November.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs Rachel Hudson

Headteacher