September Reopening Information

Behaviour & Attendance

In light of the need for learners to behave differently when they return to school, we have had to change our behaviour policy and home school agreement accordingly.

Covid 19 Addendum Behaviour Policy

Covid 19 Home School Agreement      

Attendance

Attendance will be mandatory from the start of the new school year.

A small number of learners will still be unable to attend in line with public health advice because they are self-isolating and have had symptoms or a positive test result themselves; or because they are a close contact of someone who has coronavirus (COVID-19).

Shielding advice for all adults and children will pause on 1 August, subject to a continued decline in the rates of community transmission of coronavirus (COVID-19). This means that even the small number of pupils who will remain on the shielded patient list can also return to school, as can those who have family members who are shielding.

Some pupils no longer required to shield but who generally remain under the care of a specialist health professional may need to discuss their care with their health professional before returning to school (usually at their next planned clinical appointment). You can find more advice from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health at COVID-19 - ‘shielding’ guidance for children and young people.

Staff or learners who have coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms, or who have someone in their household who does, must not attend school and must follow government guidance.

 

During our recent partial closure, the school developed a comprehensive blended learning approach to ensure provision that differentiates by IT access, ability and wellbeing: Flexible Learning. We will need to be ready to immediately switch from learning in school to learning at home for a range of circumstances:

1.       Learners who are asymptomatic but having to self-isolate for up to 14 days;

2.       Year group bubbles who are asked to stay home following local health protection team advice;

3.       A localised lockdown means all but key workers and vulnerable children are learning at home.

We believe passionately in our curriculum and the importance of offering a broad and balanced curriculum. As such we will immediately switch as much of our curriculum as is possible online.

Contingency Planning - Primary Phase   

Contingency Planning - Secondary Phase

 

We are making all the necessary preparations to fully reopen by carefully following government guidance

This is the set of actions schools must take. They are grouped into ‘prevention’ and ‘response to any infection’ and are outlined in more detail in the sections below.

Prevention

1) minimise contact with individuals who are unwell by ensuring that those who have coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms, or who have someone in their household who does, do not attend school

2) clean hands thoroughly more often than usual

3) ensure good respiratory hygiene by promoting the ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ approach

4) introduce enhanced cleaning, including cleaning frequently touched surfaces often, using standard products such as detergents and bleach

5) minimise contact between individuals and maintain social distancing wherever possible

6) where necessary, wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE)

Numbers 1 to 4 must be in place in all schools, all the time.

Number 5 must be properly considered and schools must put in place measures that suit their particular circumstances.

Number 6 applies in specific circumstances.

Response to any infection

7) engage with the NHS Test and Trace process

8) manage confirmed cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) amongst the school community

9) contain any outbreak by following local health protection team advice

Numbers 7 to 9 must be followed in every case where they are relevant.

Reference

• Government guidance for schools
• Advice for parents and carers on looking after the mental health and wellbeing of children or young people during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
• NHS guidance

 

The safeguarding team are looking forward to seeing all our learners again in September. If you need to contact a member of the safeguarding team please use the contact details below:

There will be an updated Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy that will published on our website in September. This will reflect the new changes that have been made to  Keeping Children Safe in Education, statutory guidance for schools and colleges (2020), which comes into force in September 2020. 

There are a number of changes that will be made to the Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy in light of the new Keeping Children Safe in Education Guidance, one of the main changes is around the importance and recognition of mental and physical health.

New Definition for Safeguarding

Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is now defined as:

• Protecting children from maltreatment
• Preventing impairment of children’s mental and physical health development
• Ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care; and
• Taking care to enable all children to have the best outcomes.

There is also DfE guidance available on preventing and tackling bullying and mental health and behaviour, as well as Public Health England guidance on promoting children's emotional health and wellbeing. 

The mental and physical health of our learners will continue to be a prominent feature in our school curriculum when we return in September.

We are making all the necessary preparations to fully reopen by carefully following government guidance.

• FAQ Sheet
• Our risk assessment for full reopening will be uploaded here.

We know that many families have really appreciated the support from our wellbeing team during our partial closure. We understand that some families may appreciate additional support on our return.

Wellbeing Wednesdays

Secondary learners will access wellbeing sessions three times a week with their form tutor in the first half term. Sessions will vary due to learners’ needs in each tutor group.

Initial sessions will to aim to:

• To reflect on and understand the feelings and emotions brought on both during and following the Covid pandemic
• To establish how we can create a sense of safety upon returning to school and the community
• To develop coping strategies to support with mental health and wellbeing, such as mindfulness
• To produce a sense of self-efficacy through tasks such as goal setting and value wheels
• To increase resilience levels through Cognitive Behavioural Techniques

Latter sessions will focus on goal setting and aspirational thinking.

Primary learners will access Wellbeing sessions weekly, sessions will vary depending on their year group and the unique needs of each class. However, all classes will cover:

• Relaxation and mindfulness techniques and practices
• Gratitude
• Skills and strategies to enable themselves to be resilient, independent, supportive of others and problem solvers.

PHSCE (Personal Social Health and Citizens Education.)

In addition to this, where there is a need, PHSCE lessons and Wellbeing Wednesday sessions will be adapted to incorporate a series of PHSCE ‘Recovery’ lessons which may focus on:

Primary:	Secondary:
Respect for personal space and hygiene Belonging and feeling safe Reconnecting with friends Keeping safe and well Managing worries, fears and anxieties  Being positive and looking forward to learning Gratitude and appreciation Loss and Bereavement	Looking after myself Managing difficult feelings Loss and grief Remembering who I am and who I want to become Looking forward, beyond Covid-19…for me Looking forward, beyond Covid-19…for the world

 

Summer Holiday drop-ins or Wellbeing calls

Book online to see Mrs Wild face to face in school (social distancing rules apply), via a telephone call or Microsoft teams meetings.Website: www.schoolinterviews.co.uk  Code: js9bm

Wellbeing support

The Wellbeing Hub is running for an extended number of days in September over the lunchtime period for secondary learners, alongside the lunchtime drop-ins.

Relax kids club will continue at lunchtimes for primary learners alongside other Wellbeing clubs.

The Peer Supporters group run by Miss Bennett and the members of the Learner Leadership team will continue in September too.   

Please visit our learner wellbeing page for further details.