St Paul's Catholic Primary School

3rd June 2020

Dear Parents/ Carers

Please find information about the wider reopening of school from Monday 8th June. These are worrying times for everyone and whilst we wish to support any national efforts to combat the impact of the COVID-19 virus, we remain primarily concerned for the well-being and safety of our pupils, staff and families. Please read the information below carefully. We hope that you will then be in a position to decide whether eligible children will be returning to school next week. This is a parental choice and you must do what is best for you as a family. As the government have said, there will be no fines or further repercussions if you choose for your child to not return at this time.

When will the school reopen?

The government has now said that as a result of meeting the scientific tests that were previously set out, schools should be prepared to welcome back the children in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6. The dates that Lumen Christi schools will open for these children is as follows:

Monday 8th June Reception children will return to school
Tuesday 9th June Reception children in school
Wednesday 10th June Year 1 and Reception children will be in school.
Thursday 11th June Year 6, Year 1 and Reception children will be in school.
Friday 12th June Key worker and vulnerable children only.

Monday 15th June Nursery children return.
Reception, Year 1, Year 6 children also attend school along with key worker and vulnerable children.

Going forward, school will be open to Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 Monday-Thursday only. Friday is only for key worker/vulnerable children.

Start and end of the new school day

The start and finish times will be staggered for different groups to reduce contact between groups and help maintain social distancing. The details of this are as follows:

Start/end time                          Group of children                              Entrance/exit

8.45am- 3.15pm                      Key workers/vulnerable                      Hall doors
9.00am- 3.00pm                       Year 6                                                Library door
9.15am- 2.45pm                       Year 1                                                Playground (up steps next to library)
9.30am- 2.30pm                       Reception                                          EYFS door
9.30am- 12.00pm                     Nursery                                             EYFS door

• One-way system to enter and exit school site – entrance will be via main school gate; exit will be via playground gate. 
• Only one adult to accompany children to school
• Please do not be late. We need families to keep to the times they have been given for arriving and leaving so that we can avoid large groups of people on school site.
• Follow social distancing measures. Do not congregate around the school gates or anywhere on school site.
• When collecting your child, please follow social distancing and leave school site promptly. You must follow our one way system at all times. You will enter through the main school gate to the front of the building and exit by the side gate next to EYFS classroom. There will be markings on the playground to support with social distancing. Again, only one adult to collect please.

Further useful information-
- There will be no face to face meetings with parents, the school office will be able to take calls and answer emails (no parents will be allowed into the office hatch)
- Pupils will enter by a specified door (see table above) and will wash their hands as soon as they arrive
- Pupils will not take work or equipment home
- Staff will continue to communicate with parents via phone, email, texts and the school website

During the day
Please see below examples of typical classroom layout below. Children will sit individually on a table. This will be their seat every day.

The curriculum will be adapted to take into account recent events, different staff working with children, gaps in knowledge etc. The school day will not be as it was previously and this includes curriculum coverage.

Additional information about the school day-
• Children and staff will have the facility to wash their hands regularly.
• Classrooms and all areas used will be cleaned more regularly and bins emptied frequently.
• Children will be placed into smaller groups of 10-15 and will be in the same room and seat each day.
• The same staff will stay with each group as far as possible.
• Staff will remind pupils about hygiene routines, handwashing and not touching their faces and mouths. We will also share the ‘catch it bin it, kill it’ message.
• Children will not be allowed to mix with other children outside their bubble.
• Children of key workers and those who have already been coming into school will now join their year group if possible.
• Children will work with the same equipment which will be kept in school.
• Lunch and play times will be staggered.
• Children will wear school uniform as much as possible but will be allowed to wear their own clothes if needed to enable parents to follow government guidelines and wash clothes every day.
• Children will be allowed outside for fresh air and physical exercise.
• Staff will manage and monitor children’s toilet visits so social distancing is maintained.
• Pupils and staff will not be expected to wear facemasks
• Staff dealing with First Aid matters will wear PPE and this will be provided by school.
• Where possible doors will be left open (not fire doors) to avoid contact with handles.
• Where possible windows will be left open to improve ventilation.
Staff at school will not be routinely taking children’s temperature. However, if your child has symptoms, they should NOT attend schools. If your child displays symptoms when they are in school, they will be isolated and you will be called and ask to collect your child immediately. All staff and students who are attending an education or childcare setting will have access to a test if they display symptoms. Therefore, you should then apply for your child and anyone living with you to be tested. Your child will not be allowed to return to school until you have evidence of a negative test result.

Please be aware that if a child who has been attending school tests positive for COVID-19, the other children and staff member within that bubble will be asked to go home and self-isolate for 14 days. If a child/ adult goes home as a precaution due to symptoms being displayed, we have taken the decision to send a message to parents in that bubble to simply inform them that a member of your child’s bubble has left school as a precautionary measure. Can I stress that this is precautionary, the other children will be able to remain in school whilst we wait for the result of the test; however, we feel it is important families can decide whether their children remain in school during this interim period. We respectfully ask for sensitivity outside of school and you simply make a discrete choice on whether your children remain in school.

Staffing

Following government guidance and with necessity to split each class into bubbles, it is not possible for your children’s teachers to necessarily be teaching your child if they return. Each bubble will be taught by staff following a 2-week rota. Bubbles will not be able to mix and, as much as possible, this includes staff. Mrs Damms and Mrs Williams will be in most days every week. One of them will be on site all day Monday – Thursday.

Week 1 Week 2
EYFS BUBBLE A Miss Foster
Mrs Gagin Miss Foster
Mrs Sharpling
EYFS BUBBLE B Mrs Skidmore
Mrs Allen Ms Grinnell
Mrs O’Neill
YEAR 1 BUBBLE A Miss Concannon
Mrs McHugh (M-W) Miss Concannon
Mrs Jones
YEAR 1 BUBBLE B Mrs Ingram
Mrs Rooney (T-Th) Mrs McConvery
Mrs Ball (2days)
Mrs Bodlovic (2days)
YEAR 6
Mrs Barton Mrs Minchin
KEY WORKER Mr Doyle
Mrs Jones Mr Cadney
Mrs Craddock

Until we finalise numbers of children coming back to school, we are not in a position to confirm which bubble your child will enter. Decisions will be made by staff regarding which bubble your child will enter, taking into account various factors. Sadly, we cannot accommodate parental requests.

Can I take a moment to thank the staff for their continued hard work and the dedication they have shown over the last twelve weeks as well as what they are all so willing to do going forward. They will not only be all teaching in new classroom environments and, in many cases, children that they have not taught this year, they will be continuing to support home learning whilst offering pastoral support to all children and continuing to make phone calls to speak to the children in their classes who are not in school.

Please take time to consider your decision, and we would like, ideally, for families to make a decision for the next two weeks to aid our planning for the transitional first week (w/c 8th June) and the first full week (w/c 15th June). You will have the opportunity for your children to join class bubbles after two weeks. It is important that families give at least 48 hours’ notice if you are planning for your children to return to school so we can plan appropriately for this.

Thank you for your continued support.

God bless and stay safe,

Mrs Damms