13^th May 2020

Dear parents/carers,

Following the Government’s announcement about schools earlier this week, I am contacting you to try and provide some clarity over the current proposals.  Until we receive further guidance, I must stress that we remain open to support children of critical workers and our most vulnerable.  The majority of students will still need to continue to access their learning at home until there is more guidance on how we can safely open school to more students and staff.  The updated list of critical workers can be found here;

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-educational-provision/guidance-for-schools-colleges-and-local-authorities-on-maintaining-educational-provision

The updated guidance from the DfE refers only to students sitting exams next year; our current Year 10 students and asks schools to begin face to face support with Year 10 students in the summer term. This will not be a return to full timetables but rather some support to supplement the remote home learning being provided and could include face to face lessons remotely.  This approach aims to limit numbers within schools while ensuring that the children and young people who can benefit from attending most are able to do so.  Please find a link to an updated document for parents and carers regarding plans for June 2020.

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

We are told that further guidance will be issued in the coming weeks and whilst we have some provisional plans in place, there is much to do before any final decisions are made.  Our absolute priority is the health and safety and well-being of all staff and students.  We will share risk assessments and more detail on this in the coming weeks, as further guidance is issued.

In the meantime, please continue to look after yourselves and each other.  Encourage your sons and daughters to engage with the work being set on Google Classroom by teachers and other resources such as Bitesize and Oak Academy.

I also wanted to provide an update on the national food voucher scheme.  As you will be aware, the system has struggled to cope with demand which has caused significant delays in schools being able to access the vouchers.  We are aiming to post vouchers for Aldi out at the end of this week and ask that families also access the parcels at the Blacon Community Hub and Holy Trinity Church.  Please be assured that we are ordering vouchers in advance and working tirelessly to obtain and print vouchers to make it as easy as possible for families to use them.  Thank you for your continued patience.

I will continue to update you when more information is available.  We look forward to a time when we can enjoy being together as a school community once more.

Yours sincerely,

Rachel Hudson

Headteacher