• If your child is ill they must stay at home.
• Report your child’s absence in the usual way by calling the school office number: 02380 736417.
• If a member of your household presents with symptoms, then follow government guidance and all members of the household must stay at home and arrange for a test at the very first opportunity here.
• If a child does present with symptoms during the school day he or she will be moved to a room away from others and await pick-up from a parent or carer. In this instance, staff will be required to wear PPE.

In the first instance, the school will contact Primary Health England via the Department for Education helpline and follow the guidance based on their risk assessment.

The school will identify all close contacts with the infected pupil or staff member, including the class ‘bubble’ they work and learn in, and inform them that they self-isolate for 14 days from the day of the first sign of symptoms. This means that bubble will closed and move to remote learning. You can find our Remote Learning Policy on this page or by clicking here.

Parents and carers of children in this bubble will notified via ParentMail and be provided with guidance for their child and family. The school will also send out a letter to all parents and carers in the school to inform them of the positive case and provide them with relevant guidance.

Yes, the sibling has not been in close contact with the person who has tested positive for coronavirus and therefore can attend school.

If any any member of the household presents with any of the three main symptoms then contact the school and get a test as soon as possible.

The child in the closed bubble must continue to follow the guidance and self-isolate for 14 days.

You can find out what is meant by a ‘close contact’ in the useful links above.

As part of our risk assessment, we have asked all parents, carers and visitors to wear a face covering when they enter the school grounds.

Staff will also wear face coverings when on the playground at drop-off and pick-up times and when in communal areas around the school. Wearing a face covering in classrooms remains at the staff members discretion.

Yes, missing out on more time in the classroom risks pupils falling further behind. Those with higher overall absence tend to achieve less well in both primary and secondary school. School attendance will therefore be mandatory again from the beginning of the autumn term.

The government accepts that early years and primary age children cannot be expected to remain 2 meters apart from each other and staff. However, it is still important to minimise contact between people as much as possible, and we can achieve that and reduce transmission risk by ensuring children, young people and staff where possible, only mix in a consistent group and that group stays away from other people and groups.

• Each class will create its own ‘bubble’ and contact with other classes will be reduced as much as possible through staggering of the school day, including start and finish times and lunch and break times. (See Appendix A)
• Each group will have little or no contact with other class groups (although, for example, passing in corridors is considered ‘low-risk’). Adults can work across groups where this is needed to support our educational provision.
• Break and lunchtimes will be staggered to minimise the possibility of groups mixing. Lunch will take place in their designated classroom, with the exception of Year R who will have lunch in their classrooms.

• There will be no clubs, for at least the first 4 weeks of school, and this will be reviewed at the start of the Summer term, when we will hopefully resume some of our provision.
• Breakfast Club will run as normal, and will be available to all children and families.
• Peripatetic music lessons will continue under strict guidance in small, socially distanced groups.

• There will be staggered drop-off and collection times (by 10 minutes). (See Appendix A)
• There will be controlled school entrance and exit routes, including a one-way system, for you to enter and leave by  when dropping and collecting children. This might mean you will have to walk a little further. (See Appendix B)
• We have arranged for specific drop-off and collection zones for each year group. These are clearly marked on this plan (See Appendix C)
• Parents and carers must wear face masks on pavements outside of the school and when on the school grounds to protect themselves and those around them.
• Families must not arrive on site more than 5 minutes before start-time so that we can maintain social distancing on site.

• We will be implementing rigorous health and hygiene routines, for example, ensuring regular hand-washing at key points during the day, including, on arrival or after a sneeze or cough, before eating etc. Staff will have ready access to the hygiene and cleaning materials they need, including hand sanitizers and access to sinks to wash hands. Use of toilets will be managed to avoid too many children at any one time.
• We will be cleaning all toys and  equipment after every use with appropriate cleaning materials. All soft furnishings and toys that are difficult to clean will be removed from the classrooms.
• As much as possible, children will have access to their own resources to reduce sharing. Children will have their own stationery and where equipment is shared it will be kept within their group and cleaned between uses.
• The staff will be wearing face masks in all communal areas, and in some situations, in the classroom.
• Children will be required to wear school uniform (See Appendix E)
• Clothes washing can be treated as normal but you may choose to wash more regularly to err on the side of caution.
• Children should wear their PE kit to school on PE days. Your child’s teacher will let you know when this is.
• Children should bring in their own water bottle and use plastic lunch boxes (where possible) rather than fabric ones as they are easier to clean and disinfect. (See Appendix E)
• Classrooms and workspaces will be naturally ventilated by keeping windows open. 
• Staff are self-testing for COVID-19 using the Lateral Flow Devices (LFD) twice weekly.

Children should bring in their own water bottle and use plastic lunch boxes (where possible) rather than fabric ones as they are easier to clean and disinfect. (See Appendix E)

Shielding advice will pause on 1 August, subject to a continued decline in transmission so pupils who have family members who are critically extremely vulnerable can return to school.  Where children are not able to attend school as parents are following clinical advice, absence will not be penalised and they will have access to remote education.

For further detail on vulnerable children and adults we urge to seek further guidance from the materials provided online (see links above) by the government or, even better, by seeking medical advice from your doctor.

• The small number of pupils who will remain on the shielded patient list can 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.”
• Where children are not able to attend school because they are following clinical or public health advice, they will have access to remote education.

• Twice-weekly lateral flow tests will be given for free to all families and households with primary, secondary school and college aged children and young people, including childcare and support bubbles, to help find more COVID-19 cases and break chains of transmission. Primary aged children are not being asked to test at this time.
• With about a third of individuals with coronavirus showing no symptoms and potentially spreading it without knowing, targeted, regular testing will mean more positive cases within households are found and prevented from entering schools and colleges, helping to keep educational settings safe.
• Rapid testing detects cases quickly – in under 30 minutes – meaning positive cases can isolate immediately. This can be the difference between children being able to stay in school, or a class being sent home due to an outbreak. It could also be the difference between a workplace having to close for a period, or being able to stay open and running.
• Click here to find more information here about the importance of lateral flow testing.
• Click here to find out more information about how to get your lateral flow tests

• You can collect 2 packs of home test kits at a local collection point. Each pack contains 7 tests.
• Anyone 18 or over can collect.
• Most collection points are open from 1.30pm to 7pm. You can check online if the location is open or busy before you go. You do not need to make an appointment.
• Do not visit a collection point outside opening hours, as it may be used to test people with coronavirus symptoms outside these times.

Click here to find your nearest home test kit collection point.

• If you cannot get tested at your workplace, or are unable to go to a test site or collect test kits, you can order a home test kit online.
• Do not order online if you can get a test through other methods. This frees up home delivery for those who need it most.

Click here to order rapid lateral flow home test kits