CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) UPDATES
COVID-19 School Opening Updates
As you are aware, the latest guidance from the government is now for all children to return to school. As a school, we have a comprehensive risk assessment in place to ensure that the health, safety, social and emotional needs of children, families and staff are met during this next phase. This risk assessment can be found by clicking here and will be constantly reviewed.
All children from Reception to Year Six, will return to school on Monday 7th September.
As per the government guidance, the focus will be firmly on robust hygiene and cleaning procedures, as well as creating small ‘bubbles’ of people within the school. At Rockliffe Manor, we will have four ‘phase bubbles,’ which will have separate drop off and pick up times as well as breaktimes and lunchtimes. Please see the drop off and pick up times for each of the year groups below.
|
Start |
Entrance |
Finish |
Exit |
EYFS Bubble Nursery and Reception |
8.50am |
Playground |
3.15pm (from 21st) (11.50 for Nursery from 14th through the front entrance) |
Playground |
KS1 Year One and Two |
8.40am |
Playground |
3.05pm |
Playground |
LKS2 Year Three and Four |
9.10am |
Playground |
3.35pm |
Playground |
UKS2 Year Five and Six |
9.00am |
Playground |
3.25pm |
Playground |
Reception children will have a staggered beginning to school. Details below:
Monday 7th September to Wednesday 9th September |
8.50am – 11.50am |
Thursday 10th September to Friday 18th September |
8.50am - 1.00pm Children will stay for their lunch in the hall |
From Monday 21st September, children will stay all day |
8.50am - 3.15pm
|
Nursery children will begin school on Monday 14th September after a week of stay and play sessions.
Drop off/pick up protocols – parent expectations
Drop off times and pick up will be staggered to ensure that everyone is able to practice social distancing by staying apart at all times. Please adhere to the times and do not arrive any earlier or later; we have staggered start and finishing times to reduce big groups congregating. If you are waiting outside the school gates, please make sure you are not congregating and are standing at a distance. We are asking parents to maintain social distancing at all times and we will only be allowing one adult to drop off their child. At the designated time, we will ask one adult and their child/ren to spread out on the bottom of the playground in their year group zone. Teachers will then collect the children from this area.
We will ask that parents do not come beyond the Reading Nook and the school office will be closed. A member of the leadership team will be on the playground each day and if you would like to have a meeting with a member of staff, appointments can be made via phone or email.
Siblings
If you have more than one child in the school and your timings are more than 15 minutes apart, you will be able to follow the guidance below if you wish.
Morning Drop Off:
Parent to drop off all of their children at their latest drop off time. Elder siblings or additional adult to walk the child to their classroom/s.
Afternoon Collection:
Parent to pick up all children at their earliest child’s collection time. Elder sibling or Year group TA to bring siblings from their year group down to designated playground/s to meet parent.
As was practice before the summer with the children in school, we will be sanitising and hand washing on entry, after each session, before and after break/lunch and before leaving. Each child will also be allocated their own stationery to use to help avoid unnecessary sharing of resources. Enhanced cleaning will be carried out throughout the day of the frequently touched surfaces (door handles, etc) and toilets. The tables in the hall will also be cleaned after a year group of children and before the next year group can use the area.
Children can bring in their book bags/rucksacks, PE kits and lunchboxes, and will be expected to wear full school uniform. Reading books will also be brought home and sanitized when back in school. Children are not permitted to wear face masks during the school day. If you travel to school by public transport wearing a face mask, we ask that these are removed from your child before they enter the school.
The furniture in the Year One-Six classrooms has been re-arranged so that each child is facing the front and not facing each other. There will be two children to a table, and this will be the same at lunchtimes. The EYFS classrooms have also been rearranged to allow for more space, with soft furnishings being removed.
Attendance will be statutory and our usual process of monitoring attendance will begin again in September. Please follow our attendance policy when reporting your child’s absence.
If your child develops one or more of the following symptoms:
- a new continuous cough
- a high temperature
- a loss of, or change in, their normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia)
it is very important that you do not send them to school. If your child develops one or more of these symptoms in school they will then be sent home and advised to follow the guidance for households with possible coronavirus infection
If your child has one or more of the above symptoms, you should:
- Request a coronavirus test immediately. Order a test. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/ask-for-a-test-to-check-if-you-have-coronavirus/ or order by telephone via NHS 119
- Everyone living in the same household/ support bubble, including adults and other children, should self-isolate for 14 days
- Keep the school informed about symptoms, self-isolation and test results.
It is essential that you book a coronavirus test for your child and provide us with the result once you have this so that your child can return to school promptly.
Should you have any further questions about any of the information in this letter, then please do make contact with us via the school office or e-mail sao@rockliffemanor.greenwich.sch.uk
We thank you for all your continued support.
COVID-19 Useful Information
We are keen to ensure pupil and community safety is our utmost priority and will continue to follow the advice given by the Department for Education (DfE) and Public Health England. All of the Department for Education’s coronavirus guidance for educational settings can now be found in one place on GOV.UK at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-schools-and-other-educational-settings
To help families and children understand what has happened and the implications for families, we have created a short video link that can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2uY74s7ZxE
DFE Coronavirus Helpline
The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:
- Phone: 0800 046 8687
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday), 10am to 4pm (Saturday to Sunday)
Advice for parents/carers during coronavirus
Whilst it is extremely important to follow Government advice during this period, it can be confusing to know what to do when your child is unwell or injured. NHS 111, GPs and hospitals are still providing the same care that they have always done. Please click here for some helpful advice.
Guidance for parents and carers: keeping children safe online
The Government information for parents and carers has been updated to include a section on keeping children safe online. It provides links to online resources that will help support parents and carers in keeping their children safe online. You can read this here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers
Lastly, we would like to thank you all for your continued support for our school. It means so much to all of our staff to know we are able to work closely together for the good of our children at this difficult time.
Information on Local Authority and Community support for families
School Opening COVID-19 Risk Assessment
Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy - COVID-19 Addendum