COVID 19 Update

Thursday 5^th November 2020

Dear Parents and Carers,

                                    As you know, today is the start of a new 4 week National lockdown for us all. There are so many documents to read and I know many people get very confused about what they can or can’t do so I wanted to ensure the key messages were shared in what I hope is viewed as a simple manner. You may still need to read the full guidance on gov.uk for more detailed information about certain areas.

Schools remain open to all pupils

We are very pleased that all children can still attend school- remote learning is not easy and we would much rather have all the children in school with teaching taking place face to face. However, like many people, we are concerned about the increasing number of positive cases both nationally and locally, particularly as we have many staff and pupils in school who fall into the higher risk categories as well as many staff and pupils who live with people that fall into the higher risk categories so we need to do everything we can to keep EVERYONE safe, and following these rules will ensure this. Clearly, the same procedures in relation to self-isolation and possible class closures will remain in place for any positive cases found within school and remote learning will be provided for any pupil who has to self-isolate.

Keeping safe

I’m sure you will have seen in the media images of many people completely ignoring the rules putting themselves and others in danger and really not taking this seriously. I know there seems to be lots of contradictory information out there but there are two things that everyone agrees with. 1. This virus spreads via close contact and 2. This virus has killed and continues to kill people every day. We need to remember these when we are asked to make sacrifices.

PLEASE ensure you follow the guidance consistently to ensure you help to keep our whole school community and their households safe. There are financial penalties for people not following the guidance but I would much rather people follow the rules because they know it is the right thing to do for themselves, their families and the community rather than fear of being prosecuted.

Key changes- It is really important that children and all family members understand these

• Stay at home- except for work, school, medical, certain events-e.g. funeral, buying food, paying bills, medical appointments, outdoor exercise. Where these can be limited, they should be. E.g. weekly shop not daily.
• Meeting others inside- you cannot meet inside with anyone in any indoor setting including houses except with your own household members apart from the following exceptions.
  • Meeting with your support bubble. (Many people seem to misunderstand the support bubble- these are formed by a household that only has one adult (with or without children) joining with any other household. These shouldn’t be changed. Many people seem to think any two households can join to make a support bubble-this is not true.
  • To give childcare for children under the age of 13 (you can form one childcare bubble to ensure children are looked after while parents are at work etc. Children should only go to this household when the child care is needed or the childcare giver should only come to the child’s house for the period needed for childcare.
  • To provide care for vulnerable people or respite care
• Private gardens - you cannot meet in private gardens with anyone except your household or support bubble.
• Exercising- you can exercise outside with your household bubble OR with one person from a different household. You cannot be with your household AND someone from another household unless this is the single person you have formed a support bubble with.
• STAY 2M apart- whenever you are near anyone not in your household, support bubble or childcare bubble, you should remain 2m apart. 2 m is quite a distance- many take a step back and think this is okay but that will not stop the spread of this virus.

Face masks

Even though we have staggered the start and end times to reduce the number of people outside school at any one time, we still do have lots of adults present and at times, these need to pass each other and sometimes stand less than 2m away from everyone else. To ensure school drop off and collection procedures are not contributing to the spread of infection, we are asking all adults (unless you are medically exempt) to wear a face covering when dropping off and collecting children and when waiting for different classes if you have more than one child with immediate effect. This is in line with the new government guidance where 2m distancing outside cannot be guaranteed.

Keeping warm

As part of the risk assessment in school, ensuring rooms are well ventilated in key. We need to ensure there is a flow of air through classrooms to keep risks as low as possible which means classroom doors are some windows are open. The heating is still on throughout school, though. Some children feel the cold more than others so as the weather gets colder, children may prefer to wear a base layer underneath their school uniform, e.g. an extra t-shirt or long sleeved top and tights or leggings underneath trousers. We will of course ensure the classroom temperatures stay within the guidance for appropriate working temperatures. Each classroom has a thermometer to ensure this.

Let’s hope everyone can find it within them to ensure these rules are followed during this second lockdown to ensure everyone is as safe as possible and to give everyone the best chance or a ‘normal’ Christmas.

Please do not hesitate to contact me by e-mail regarding any questions or concerns (headteacher@anthonybek.derbyshire.sch.uk)

Kind regards,

Mrs Johnson