Dear Parents/Carers of children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6,

Again, thank you for your patience whilst we have been planning for the safest return to school for pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 from June1st. 

 

I hope the information contained here will help you understand more clearly the measures we are taking at School of Christ the King to re-open next week, to those wishing to attend our Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 classes from the 1st June,  on a phased basis.

 

Plead read the information below and feel free to ask any further questions by  phoning or e-mailing the school office. 

In normal circumstances, we welcome parents into our office area with queries, but for now we request that all contact with the school is via email or phone. We will be introducing a cashless system for all school payments very soon. 

 

Social distancing

The organisation of the classes has social distancing at its heart.  However, there is no absolute guarantee that children will never come within 2 metres of each other, especially in Reception.  Children in Years 1 and 6 will work at their own desks, spaced apart, and playtimes will be taken in a specific zone under close supervision.  Strict control in the toilet areas, including management of queuing, is aimed at enabling children to maintain social distancing. 

 

School Crossing Patrol

There will be no crossing patrol next week. Please take care crossing the road.

Movement inside and outside the school building

There will be very limited movement inside the school building by the pupils. Different start, play and finish times for the 7 groups have been timetabled to minimise contact.  Corridors have also been changed to a one way system with 2m spaces marked out. When dropping or collecting your child you will be asked to use a one-way system and wait in a queue with 2m marked spaces, to prevent people passing in close proximity.   

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Current government guidelines are that PPE should not generally be worn in schools by staff or children. However, we do have supplies of PPE available for staff who may need to use this in certain situations to protect your child and themselves. It is not advised that children wear face coverings to attend school as incorrect use may exacerbate the risk of further infection. If children come to school wearing face coverings they will have to remove and dispose of them before they can enter the building.

Hand-washing

This is the most important thing all children and staff can do to minimise the risk of spreading the virus. Therefore we have strict hand-washing procedures and expectations for each group in place. Each morning, and throughout the day when necessary, children will be trained in how to wash their hands thoroughly and effectively.  Please help us by spending time now practising hand washing procedures with your child, following the government guidelines of washing hands for at least 20 seconds or whilst singing the whole of the ‘Happy Birthday’ song. Here are also some good resources online to demonstrate:

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9VjeIWLnEg
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEzJ_QKjT14
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEzJ_QKjT14

Children will wash their hands on arrival at school, before and after eating, and after sneezing or coughing.  We will encourage them not to touch their faces, as far as possible.  We will also use the ‘Catch it, bin it, kill it’ approach to use of tissues.

 

Cleaning of the school

This is something that is a priority when it comes to reducing risks for pupils and staff alike. A timetable for members of staff to disinfect surfaces regularly during the day (when pupils are not in the rooms) has been drawn up. We will also ensure all spaces are well ventilated, in compliance with Government advice.

 

We are also applying the following measures: 

• Leaving lights on to minimise contact.
• Keeping doors and windows open all day, with the exception of fire and external security doors.
• Cleaning toilets and desks regularly.
• Friday afternoons will be used for extra cleaning and preparation for the following week.
• All bins have been replaced with new lidded ones

Pick-up and drop off of children

To ensure parents do not gather outside the school building and can follow social distancing guidelines, each group will have a different start and finish time. Please stick to the time your child is allocated as groups of children are not to come into contact with each other. You may be asked to come back later if you are late and another group is being let in when you arrive:

• 2 metre markings will be on the fences outside of school for parents and children to wait by.
• Children will enter school via the main entrance or the kitchen entrance (see timetable below)
• If at all possible, just one parent/carer to drop and collect children.
• If possible, do not bring younger siblings in buggies.
• Children must not bring bags – just their packed lunch in a plastic box or disposable bag, water bottle, sunhat and sun cream, if necessary.  
• Please stay outside the school gates and please pass on any concerns or queries via the office email address or phone.
• Current guidance is that it is best not to use public transport if at all possible. For those families for which this is unavoidable, we will provide further guidance from Public Health England on how to travel as safely as possible.
• To help avoid extra congestion around school we ask that as many families as possible walk, cycle or scoot to school. 

Timetable for drop off and pick up

To make the start of the day as safe as possible, when children enter and leave the school. We will be using two entrances:

• The main entrance
• The black door next to the kitchen (near the school hall)

There will be markings on the railings outside so that children and parents can line up, at a social distance, at the start and end of the school day.

Lunches

There will be no cooked lunches available on site.  Packed Lunches will be made in school and will be available for all Reception and Year 1 children, unless you decide you want to send your child in with a packed lunch from home.   They will also be provided for Year 6 children eligible for Free School Meals and Years 2-5 Key Worker children attending school who are eligible for Free School Meals.  All other children should bring a packed lunch.  We will inform the catering team of dietary requirements. On Fridays, children will eat lunch in school before they go home.  They must all bring their own clearly labelled water bottle which needs to go home daily to be washed.

 

Uniform requirements

Children will not be required to wear full school uniform when they attend school. We ask instead that children wear clean clothes each new day and recommend that clothes are washed at the end of each day. We will be using the outdoor space as much as possible to do physical learning, so please ensure clothing is sensible, safe and good for active PE lessons.  

 

Break time and lunch time arrangements

We have organised a strict rota for playtimes and lunch, to ensure groups can access their play zones without contact with other groups.  Children should have sun-hats, sun cream or waterproof coats if needed.

Transition

Arrangements are being made by the secondary schools who will be in touch with Year 6 parents during Term 6.

 

Home Learning

Activities will continue to be uploaded on to the school website for children to complete at home during Term 6. School will be closed to all pupils every Friday afternoon, except those of key workers, to ensure that teachers can upload work for their own classes whilst supervising the groups returning to school. There will be no additional homework for Years 1 or 6 during this time. 

Children with health concerns of children living with very vulnerable people

There are specific warnings for those pupils who live with the most vulnerable groups. Please let the office know if this applies to your family.

Important health reminder

Children must not attend school if they have symptoms or are self-isolating due to symptoms in their household. If your child were to become unwell at school they would need to be collected promptly and would remain in an isolation room until collected.  The previous self-isolation restrictions will apply: 7 days for anyone with symptoms and 14 days for anyone else in their household.  Parents should contact school immediately if their child begins to show any symptoms and we can advise on testing and inform other parents in the group. If a child, or adult, in the cohort tests positive then the whole group would need to follow appropriate self-isolation guidelines. 

Preparing our children

You can see from these pictures that the school now looks a bit different:

I also feel it is important to prepare your children for this big change from their current circumstances.  I ask all our parents to take time to ‘manage their children’s expectations’ and prepare them psychologically for Term 6.  For those children coming back into school, it is a case of explaining that this is not returning to school in any ‘normal’ sense. There will be fewer children in each group, they may not be with their friends or their usual teacher and they may also be in a different classroom from usual. We will do all we can to support children’s emotional well-being in school.  Our Year 6 pupils will not be able to experience the usual social activities which make Term 6 such fun, and this may cause upset. 

You know your child and your family best and whether returning to school under these new arrangements will be the best option. We are  happy to discuss further any information contained here with individual parents over the next few days

 

Please continue to stay safe and well.

Matt Condon

Headteacher

Dear Parents/Carers of children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6,

Again, thank you for your patience whilst we have been planning for the safest possible return to school for your children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6,  from June 1st. 

School staff and governors have been working to assess all risks and prepare the school site for the children coming back soon. I will share details shortly of what school will look like when we return, including some pictures, but today I just want to share with you provisional dates for each class to return. Our risk assessment will be submitted to the local authority and be formally agreed by governors. The government is also making further announcements tomorrow which may possibly change plans.

As you will already know, children will be working in one of seven ‘bubbles’ with no more than 15 children in each. Two for Reception, two for Year 1, two for Year 6 and one for the children of our key worker families. As children are in smaller groups, they may not be taught by their usual class teacher and their timetable will be different from what they are used to. 

We will text parents over the next couple of days to inform you which group your child is in. We have considered carefully when planning the groups. Please understand that we are not able to change your child’s group once it has been allocated.  

As we have planned our groups carefully, we can only accept those children where parents/carers have confirmed in advance that they are returning to school.

Phased Re-introduction of Children

Fridays

We will close after lunch on Friday of each week to ensure time to deep clean and make arrangements for the following week, with the exception of the children of the key workers group. 

I will send a further message soon which will include details of:

• Staggered pick up and drop off times and details of different entrances and exits being used
• School meals
• What we are doing to manage a safer environment in school
• Arrangements for children already in our key worker group
• Arrangements if there is a health concern

Please continue to stay safe and well.

Matt Condon

Headteacher

 

Dear Parents/Carers,

Reception September 2020

We currently have space for Reception Class for September 2020.  If you are interested in applying for a place, please contact the school office on 01179 664844.

Exciting news! New school nursery opening this Autumn

We are extremely pleased and very excited to announce that our new school nursery will be opening this Autumn for 3 and 4 year olds.

If you are interested in applying for a place for your child or think you may know someone who is interested, please ask them to contact the school office to express interest.

The current Year 2 classroom and Learning Hub 1 space will be converted into the new nursery with a new classroom being built in the school playground.

We think this is a very exciting opportunity and look forward to welcoming nursery children into our school family!

Headteacher’s Awards

Reception - 

• Lianater - for working really hard at school and with her home learning tasks.
• Rocco - For having a great attitude to his home learning and producing creative work.

Year 1 -  

• Leo - Fantastic attitude and achievement whilst working in school.
• Ralf- Super attitude to working in the school environment.

Year 2 - 

• Conrad - For continually impressing us and using his imagination to extend learning creatively.
• Wilfred - For working so hard at home, which his family are really pleased with!
• Josiah - For completing all home learning tasks to the best of his ability.

Year 3 -  

• Maisie- For working really hard at home and school to ensure her work is completed to a brilliant standard.
• Miley- For being thoughtful and thinking of others during this difficult time. 
• Merit- For being an enthusiastic learner and putting a fantastic effort into her home learning.
• Pamodou- For making massive improvements to his score on Times Table Rockstars this week. 

Year 4 -

• Rosa - For making time to catch up with work that was missed and for making a really tasty looking carrot cake!
• Emily Zietek - For using zoom for the first time! We could hear her, but we could not see her! 
• Kaya - For showing fantastic independence completing all of her work, whilst her mum has been busy working.

Year 5 - 

• Emmanuel - For adapting so well to the different way of life at school and being a model for the younger children to look up to. 
• Freddie - For adapting so well to the different way of life at school and being a model for the younger children to look up to. 
• Gabriel - for accepting the challenge and going for gold in his maths work!
• Jazleen - for her thorough and well thought-out approach to her learning which she often completes after her day at school and for setting such a great example and being great with the younger children whilst at school.

Year 6 - 

• Megan - for always being an active member of the home learning team. She encourages others and always tries her best.

Have a great bank holiday and half term break.

Yours sincerely

Matt Condon

Headteacher

Dear Parents and Carers,

Update regarding plans to reopen to pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6

Thank you very much for your patience, as we work our way through this current situation. 

Since the end of last week, schools have received further guidance from both the local authority and the DfE and I am now in a position to give you a clearer idea of how we plan to bring Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 children back to school after half term. We will also be continuing to provide for our key worker families and vulnerable learners as we have been through this school closure period to date.

I am afraid we are not yet in a position to confirm start dates for Reception, Year 1 and Year 6, although we are hoping that some classes start in the week beginning 1st June. Classes will return in phases over 5 school days - with one class returning to school at a time.

There will be no Breakfast Club or Chill Time Klub at this time.

‘Bubbles’

We are planning to create seven ‘bubbles’ with no more than 15 children in each. Two for Reception, two for Year 1, two for Year 6 and one for the children of our key worker families.

We will do all we can to ensure that these ‘bubbles’ do not mix during the school day. As many of our staff are part-time, a ‘bubble’ may have a staff team of two or three across the week, some of whom will not be part of your child’s regular teaching team due to clear guidelines on staff able to work in school.

Each ‘bubble’ will use one classroom only, with furniture organised (and some removed) so that space is given to each child. Equipment will be carefully selected so that it is not shared by children where at all possible. Where this is not possible, regular cleaning of resources and equipment will take place throughout the day.

Movement around the school

We are devising a one-way system around our building, to avoid congestion in the corridors. As mentioned above, children will be accessing their classroom from the external doors and avoiding the use of the corridors where possible.

We will ask that parents observe social distancing when waiting for children at the end of the day and also make contact with us by phone or email where possible, rather than coming into the building; this is to minimise the risk to everyone.

Handwashing and cleaning

We will be ensuring children are supported to wash their hands regularly throughout the school day and practise strong personal hygiene. Bins with lids are being purchased for each classroom (as well as many boxes of tissues) so that children can ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’, and we will spend some time during the first couple of days sharing some of the new arrangements and systems with children (in an age appropriate way) so that they understand how to keep themselves and others safe. 

Staff will be available to ensure regular cleaning of classrooms and toilets and regular wiping of surfaces.

Timings of the school day

So as to limit adult numbers at the start and end of the day, we will slightly stagger drop off and pick up times. I will communicate the exact timings of this next week.

At playtime and lunchtime the playground classes will be timetabled and the playground will be divided into ‘zones’ for each group to play in.

PPE

PPE is not being recommended for staff in schools unless we are dealing with a child who exhibits specific Covid 19 symptoms or if a staff member is supporting a child with intimate care.

We are in the process of writing a detailed Risk Assessment which will cover the above point, and many others, and this will be shared with governors, members of the school team and Bristol City Council so it can be signed off prior to June 1st. This document is absolutely key to us being able to reopen and will continue to be a working document as circumstances and guidance changes.

Early closure on a Friday

Our current plan is to close early on Friday to allow for a deep clean of the site along with whole staff training, planning and preparation time. This will ensure we do not need to introduce another teacher to a ‘bubble’ in order to cover this time.

Timings for pick up on a Friday will be confirmed early next week.

                                                                                 -

As you can imagine, we are still working on the details of a possible reopening and will communicate again early next week with further information and timings. We await updates from the government and acknowledge that the risk assessment is absolutely key to us being able to open. It will be important to manage children’s expectations and share with them that although the staff will do their utmost to carry on as normal and provide a stable and welcoming environment for their group, school will look and feel different when they return. We have some work planned around mental health and wellbeing for the first week in order to support our young people.

As always, please contact us if there is anything you would like to discuss or any questions that you would like to ask.

As I mentioned in a previous newsletter, schools have been told that we will hear on 28th May whether all of the key requirements have been met sufficiently to enable schools to start the process of reopening the following week. This announcement may impact on our plans, but in the meantime we will work together to plan for a safe reintroduction of children into our school. 

Stay safe and take good care.

Matt Condon

Headteacher

Dear Parents and Carers of children in the key worker or vulnerable group,

As you know we are working hard to prepare for additional classes joining us from 1st June. We will be continuing this work over the half term break to make the school even safer for all children. 

We are planning to continue to open to a smaller group of children key workers or vulnerable from Tuesday 26th to Friday 29th May. We will not be open on the Bank Holiday Monday (Monday 25th).

Because of this we have less staff available to look after the children who are normally in school as part of this group.

We are asking that parents only request a place during this week if IT IS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL. 

Can I ask that you consider alternatives for childcare if possible.

 

If we have too many children in this week then we may struggle to staff safely and may need to prioritise due to need.

Can you please contact Kath Roberts in the school office today on 01179664844 , if you have no alternatives for childcare and that it is essential that you child has a place during the half term week.

Stay safe and take good care.

Matt Condon

Headteacher

Dear Parents and Carers,

I thought I would write to you again today, giving you a further update on plans to re-introduce children into our school. This will hopefully help parents in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6, in your own planning for the forthcoming weeks.

We are planning really carefully for the proposed phased re-opening of schools, ensuring that everybody in school is as safe as possible. We are risk assessing our school buildings and environments; checking available staff numbers; planning the curriculum for both in school and remote learning; restructuring our teaching spaces to meet the social distancing requirements; ensuring that we have the correct PPE and safety equipment to protect pupils, staff and parents; and developing our daily structures to ensure that we are a safe environment for everyone.

Please accept my reassurance that we will not be expanding the reopening of our school until we are absolutely sure that it is safe to do so, and confident in how we will reopen.

The Government guidance has been that schools should start to prepare for a phased re-opening for specific groups of pupils from 1st June 2020, but not necessarily on 1st June. Schools have been told that we will hear on 28th May whether all of the key requirements have been met sufficiently to enable schools to start the process of reopening the following week. This announcement will give our school one working day (during the half-term break) to respond and plan for any last minute guidance or changes to policy. Because of this, we will not be open to any children, other than those in the identified keyworker and vulnerable pupil categories, until later in that week, and only if it is possible to do so.

It is our intention, once we have taken account of all available guidance, to share with you next week our broad plans for how our school will seek to meet the requirements that the Government has set out for us, including provisional start dates for each year group. We will also be able to give you a little more information about what ‘school’ might look like over the forthcoming weeks and how we will operate to ensure everybody is as safe as possible. It is likely that our plans will include:

• A start date with the week beginning 1st June - but not on Monday 1st June (except those in the identified keyworker and vulnerable pupil categories)
• A phased return over one to two weeks - with one class returning to school at a time.
• A staggered start and end of the day for different classes.
• Children will be in smaller groups and may not be taught by their class teacher. Children will remain in these ‘bubbles’ for the entire school day to minimise contact with others. This will include all playtimes and lunchtime.
• We may not open to classes for the full week, due to the need to deep clean classes and other spaces.
• There will be no Breakfast Club or Chill Time Klub.

Whilst I haven’t been able to share much definite information with you all,  I hope that I have been able to offer some indication of what our plan might look like. We also want to offer reassurance that we are working hard to be able to start the process of a phased reopening of our schools, and that we will only do so when we are sure that it is safe and practical to do so.

 

The safety of our children, staff and all in our community is absolutely paramount. Thank you so much for your continued support for our school and community.

Stay safe and take good care.

Matt Condon

Headteacher

Letter from Bristol City Council

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope this letter finds you and your family well in these difficult times. I know most of you

have been working closely with your child’s school, during the last few weeks, to provide a

home learning programme.

I am sure you will be aware that, following the government’s update guidance on education

settings, there are provisional plans for schools to begin to expand the current offer and

welcome back children, in some year groups, from 1st June. This will only go ahead if the

government is confident that the five key tests it has set out suggest that this is

appropriate.

Of course, every school wants to welcome children back as soon as possible, but

arrangements will vary from school to school, according to different circumstances. The

priority, at all times, will be the safety of children, families and staff. The school’s risk

assessment will be used to decide what the school can and cannot provide.

If your child has been attending school during the last few weeks, he or she should

continue to do so.

Primary and Nursery schools have been asked to plan for the readmission of children in

Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6, from 1st June, at the earliest.

Secondary schools, sixth form and further education colleges, including alternative

provisions, have ben asked to offer some face-to-face support for students in years 10 and

12, who were due to take exams this summer.

Special schools have been asked to plan a phased return, but without a focus on particular

year groups.

Every school’s head teacher and governing body or trust board will be planning

accordingly to reopen for the above year groups. In order to prepare, each school will

undertake a very thorough risk assessment.

This will involve a careful consideration of the individual school’s circumstances, buildings

and staffing levels to ensure they are able to keep children, families and staff safe.

These plans will involve a whole range of protective measures to reduce the risk of

spreading infection – including, for example, smaller teaching groups, staggered breaks

and lunches, use of outdoor spaces, arrangements for drop-off and collection and frequent

cleaning of surfaces.

Please be reassured that your child’s school will contact you before 1st June to let you

know the arrangements they have made and whether your child can start re-attending.

Parents will not be fined for non-attendance at this time.

Yours sincerely

Alison Hurley

Director, Education and Skills