Update 21st May 2020
21st May 2020
Dear Parents/Carers,
We are aware that there has been a great deal of speculation regarding the possible reopening of schools for some year groups on 1st June. We hope that this has not been too unsettling for you in what is already an extremely challenging time.
We have been working hard on a plan which we believe will make it as safe as possible for some children to return to school after the half term holidays. We intend to re-open for Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 in June. There is nothing we would like more than to welcome back everyone to our wonderful school. We believe that being in school can make the world of difference to children’s life chances and that every day of education is precious. However, the safety of our children will always come first and we are planning to reopen in a measured way, taking a step by step approach. We will be constantly reviewing evidence on the rates of infection both nationally and, most importantly, in our area. We will only move forward with our plan for reopening if this data indicates it is safe to do so. .
For children in years 2 - 5, the government has said that they are aiming for them to return to school before the end of the summer term, but this decision will only be made if the science shows it to be safe. We will await further advice on this, but WILL NOT be allowing further children onto site unless we believe that we can do it safely. We do not currently believe it is appropriate to open our setting to Nursery pupils.
School will be closed to ALL CHILDREN for the half term holiday (Monday 25th May to Friday 29th May). Online learning will also stop during this time. This has been a difficult time for all of us, and we think it would be best that everyone (children, staff and parents) take this opportunity to rest, relax and enjoy family time together. If you do feel like you will need something to do with your child during the holiday, please check your child’s google classroom where there will be a link posted to the Oak National Academy who are providing half term activities.
Although the government has specified the 1st June as a start date, we firmly believe that some additional time is needed to prepare both the school and our staff for this new way of working. For that reason, the school will be closed on Monday 1st June, Tuesday 2nd June and Wednesday 3rd June to allow for staff training and additional preparations. We hope you understand. If you child is part of the Key Worker/EHCP group that has been attending throughout the closure, this group will be returning from Tuesday 2nd June (9am until 3.30pm).
Attending school from after half term- new procedures
The following steps have been put into place to ensure that the school is as safe as possible for invited children to attend.
Family groups - Children in Reception, year 1 and year 6 have been split into new “family groups”, with a maximum of 15 children working with 2 teachers. These family groups will alternate weekly. This means that the children will only spend time with their group and teachers, and will not come into contact with other groups or staff. These groups will do everything together, including learning, playing and lunch times. We will be contacting parents of children in reception, 1 and 6 if they are planning to send their child in and from there will select the family groups. We will then inform you or your child’s family group and the dates your child can attend school on Tuesday 26th May.
Drop off and Pick up - time slots - We want to make sure that there is no crossover between family groups during drop off and pick up so we are allocating time slots to each group. Please see the table below for the drop off times.
|
Year Group |
Drop Off |
Pick Up |
|
Reception |
9.00am to 9.15am |
2.30pm |
|
1 |
8.45am to 9.00am |
3.00pm |
|
6 |
9.15am to 9.30am |
3.30pm |
Drop off and pick up - where to go - Children in year 1 and 6 should enter the school by the top gate and go directly to the specified location. Reception children will need to be taken to the back entrance past the children’s centre. There will be no access to parents/children via the school office. Once you are at the designated drop off point, there will be markers on the floor to wait at 2 metre intervals.
|
Year Group |
Drop Off |
|
Reception |
Wait at back gate to be met by a member of family group team (2 metres apart using signs on the floor) |
|
1 |
Line up in bottom playground (with member of family group team (2 metres apart using signs on the floor) |
|
6 |
Line up in top playground with member of family group team (2 metres apart using signs on the floor) |
Triage stations - Once your child has met their group leader, they will quickly have their temperature scanned. As long as your child’s temperature is below 38 degrees, they will then enter their learning space (all family groups have been allocated an indoor and outdoor space for both learning and play to avoid unnecessary crossover). You will need to wait at the front marker until this has happened in case you need to take your child home with you. Children will use hand sanitiser before entering the building.
Parents and carers on site - We will only be allowing ONE ADULT to drop off and pick up. If the child attending school has a sibling that cannot be left at home during this time, please keep them close by you at all times. Do not allow children to run around in the playground. Parents will need to follow the one way system that will be clearly marked to leave the school. Unfortunately, you will not be able to discuss issues with your child’s group leader at this time. If you need to communicate a message to your child’s group leader, please call the main school number and someone will take a message for you.
Uniform - As much as possible we would like this to be a normal school experience for all children attending. For that reason we do ask that to the best of your ability, you dress your child in their normal school uniform. Children will need to wear fresh, newly cleaned clothes each day they are in school. If this means it is not possible for your child to wear their uniform everyday, we understand. Your child will not need to bring in a bag or any stationary. They should have a coat and hat for hot weather.
Lunches - Hot meals will be available from Thursday 4th June. All children will be eating within their family groups to minimise contact with other children. Social distancing measures will be in place whilst in the lunch hall and the catering company have completed extremely comprehensive risk assessments to ensure this is managed safely. If your child normally eats a packed lunch, please can they continue to bring this in with them. If you would like a hot meal, but are not eligible for free school meals, you will be charged via Parent Pay in the usual manner. We will not be able to give out water or milk at lunch time so please ensure your child brings a water bottle in with them.
We will continue to provide food support to those families who require it.
Key Worker/EHCP Children - If your child has been attending school throughout the closure period then they will continue to do so. We ask that these children only are brought into school via the school office between 9 and 9.15am, and continue to be picked up from the school office between 3.15 and 3.30pm. The routine for these children will remain much the same, with an increased emphasis on children completing their online learning.
Changes in Premises - Routine cleaning of the premises has already increased significantly, but there will be a thorough deep clean over the half term term holiday when the school is closed. Once we return, there will be some major changes to try to stop cross contamination including the following:
-
All hand dryers, air conditioning units and water fountains will be switched off and out of use.
-
Classrooms will be emptied of items that cannot easily be cleaned. This includes unnecessary furniture, soft furnishings including soft toys and rugs/carpets from the floor.
-
Tables in classrooms will be spread out with a 2 metre space between them.
-
Book corners and the library will be out of use.
-
Toilets will be used in a one in one out system.
-
Our corridors will be demarcated with one-way systems and staff will avoid contact with other groups by using walkie talkies to communicate with each other.
Mr Suarez is working incredibly hard to make sure that all these preparations are ready in time - thank you Mr Suarez!
Wellbeing
This has been an extremely difficult time. The experience of every child over lockdown has been different. One of the main priorities at Jubilee has always been (and will remain to be) our communities well-being and mental health. For those coming into school, staff will spend time talking through the children’s feelings and concerns. All children will be given the opportunity to talk about their experiences and share their ups and downs. For those that remain at home, we would like to remind you that we are still here and able to support you. Our Learning Support Assistants and Emotional Literacy Support Assistant will continue to work with identified children to offer support through telephone and video communication. If your child does not access additional adult support in school but you feel they would benefit from some emotional wellbeing intervention - please email our Inclusion Manager - Alia Zakir, who will set up some telephone or online welfare check ins. Her email address is azakir@jubilee.lambeth.sch.uk We have also extended our Drama Therapy services to help children during lockdown via virtual sessions. This service is provided by our trained drama therapist who usually works with the children in school. If you would like to access some online therapy, please get in touch with Ms Zakir. If you need any further advice on supporting your child, Ms Zakir is available to contact via email.
Online Learning Continuing
Firstly I would like to say a huge well done to all our staff and families who have been engaging so successfully with the online learning via Google Classroom. We are very proud of our teachers, who adapted so well to this new way of teaching, and have created such an incredible range of online learning opportunities for their year groups to access. We are also incredibly impressed with our children and families, so many of whom have embraced the online learning and fully thrown themselves in to this new approach. Well done everyone!
I would like to reassure families that this will not stop because some children are going back to school. Online learning will continue for all year groups, until we are fully open again. We will continue to support families who are finding it difficult to access their learning online. If you are having any difficulties with this please call the school office.
The current crisis is truly unprecedented and I have been so proud of how our whole community has pulled together to meet the many challenges that have been presented to us. I know that we can continue to work together as we move towards a new phase. In the meantime, we will remain here to support all of our families in any way that we can.
Yours faithfully,
Tom Prestwich
