Important update regarding September 2020

9th July 2020

9th July 2020

PLANS FOR THE FULL RE-OPENING OF

LEMINGTON RIVERSIDE IN SEPTEMBER 2020

Please read the following important information carefully…

Dear Parents, Carers and the Community of Lemington,

You may have seen that last one week ago the Government announced the intention that all schools would fully re-open in September 2020 following the summer holidays. The Government state that it is now the right time to begin opening schools fully once again.

You will be aware that since the country entered lock-down in mid-March, we have continued to work hard at LRPS to provide a child-care provision for children of key workers and our more vulnerable children. More recently, we have followed the Government advice to open more widely to children in Year 6, Year 1 and Reception.

All through this time, strict social distancing measures have been in place and children have worked in ‘bubbles’ to ensure we keep our children, staff and parents/carers as safe as we possibly can.

In this letter I will explain how school will look and operate when we re-open on Tuesday 8th September. We are very excited to welcome all of our children back on a full-time basis from September, but please be aware, many social distancing measures will still be in place for everybody’s safety.

Bubbles

A bubble is a group of children and adults who remain together throughout the school day. Children from one bubble will not come into contact with children from another bubble throughout the day.

The Government guidance now states that bubbles can now be larger than the 15 limit we currently have. From September the bubbles at Lemington Riverside will be:

-          Bubble 0: Early Years (Nursery/Reception)

-          Bubble 1: Year 1

-          Bubble 2: Year 2

-          Bubble 3: Year 3

-          Bubble 4: Year 4

-          Bubble 5: Year 5 and Year 6

Staggered pick-up times and drop-off times:

The Government are still advising that times for children to be dropped off and collected in the school day are staggered to ensure children and parents from different bubbles have limited contact. We have a dedicated drop-off and collection zone on the upper playground that will remain in place in September. Parents dropping off/picking up should aim to maintain a 1 metre + distance from other families at all times. All children in Years 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 should be dropped off and collected from the designated drop off/pick up zone at the following times – do not arrive earlier than the stated time and leave immediately after:

Year Group

Drop-off time

Pick-up time

1

9:30am

3:30pm

2

9:15am

3:15pm

3

9:00am

3:00pm

4

8:45am

2:45pm

5 and 6

8:30am

2:30pm

 

Children in Nursery and Reception should be dropped off and collected from the Early Years Garden that can be accessed from the blue gate at the lower end of Sugley Street (opposite the corner shop).

Children in Nursery and Reception should be dropped off at the following times:

Year group

Drop-off time

Pick-up time

Nursery

9:00am

2:45pm

Reception

8:45am

3:00pm

 

If your child is in Year 3 or above and you give them permission to walk to/from school alone, please inform your child’s new teacher in September.

What is in place to keep my child safe?

Over the past few months we have put various measures in place to keep our children, staff and parents/carer safe. The following are some of the measures that are in place:

  • Your child will remain in the same ‘bubble’ throughout the day.
  • Staggered start and finished times mean children will arrive and depart school in smaller groups and there will be no large crowds at the school gates.
  • Children will have staggered play-times and lunch breaks so that they are only outside with children within their bubble.
  • Lunches will be served in staggered sittings. Hot lunches will be delivered to tables to the children by staff wearing protective gloves.
  • There will be no large gatherings such as whole-school assemblies or performances until further notice.
  • All children will sanitise their hands upon arrival and departure from school and at regular intervals throughout the day.
  • There will be regular hand-washing with hot water and soap throughout the day. This will be supervised by an adult.
  • There is a one-way system in place in school ensuring children do not pass each other on the corridors.
  • Children will have their own resources and stationery within class. Children will sit facing the front of the classroom when sat at desks. Children should not bring mobile phones or their own pencil cases in to school until further notice. Children are now allowed to take reading books between home and school.
  • Common touch-points such as door handles, taps, etc. will be sanitised by the caretaker throughout the school day.
  • PE will take place, but will not include contact sports. All equipment used in PE will be sanitised by staff before and after it is used. Children should bring in their PE on their designated PE day (to be confirmed in September) – it should then be taken home and washed every week.
  • iPads will be sanitised before and after use.

We have an in-depth, whole-school risk assessment which covers all measures we are taking in school to keep our children, staff and parents safe. Paper copies are available on request by calling the office on 0191 267 4315.

 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What will learning look like in September?

We know that all of our children have missed a lot of learning during lockdown. Our teachers have been working hard to create a recovery curriculum. This means that we have looked carefully at the key learning children will have missed and have put together a plan of how we can help them catch up as quickly as possible.

Children will continue to be taught all of the subjects in the National Curriculum.

Does my child have to attend school from September?

The Government guidance now states that all children should return to school from September “to minimise as far as possible the longer-term impact of the pandemic on children’s education, wellbeing and wider development.”

We understand that some parents and children will be anxious about returning to school, but we are all here to support you and your child in their return to school. We hope that the measures outlined in this letter will reassure you that school is taking all the precautions it can.

Many of the children who have returned to school over the summer term were anxious at first, as were their parents, but have soon settled back in and are enjoying the day to day routine of school life again and seeing their friends.

We will make all reasonable attempts to support your child’s return to school, but will be expected to follow up any non-attendance of school without a valid reason with the legal monitoring channels of the Local Authority - this may result in parents ultimately being fined or even prosecuted for their child’s non-attendance.

If you are worried or concerned about something, please talk to us.

Does my child need to wear uniform from September?

Yes, the expectation from the Government is that all children now wear where school uniform again. All of our uniform can be purchased from Elite Embroidery at Bells Close – a 10 minute walk from school. See the uniform page on our website for further details of what you will need to purchase.

Will there be hot lunches available? Can my child bring a packed lunch?

Yes and yes. Mrs. Carver and her fabulous kitchen team will continue to provide hot meals every day for those children who wish to have one. If your child wishes to bring their own packed lunch, this is fine too. Packed lunches will be kept under your child’s desk in class. Unless your child is entitled to a Free School Meal, the cost of school meals rises to £2.10 per day for children in Nursery and £2.20 per day for children in all other year groups from September.

Are parents/carers allowed on the school site?

Other than dropping off and collecting your child from school, you should not visit the school site unless you have made an appointment. You should not come to the school office without an appointment until further notice. We, like you, hope these measures will not be in place for much longer as we love having our parents/carers involved in the day-to-day life of our school, but we must follow the current guidance.

What happens if my child requires first aid?

For minor injuries, our qualified first aiders will continue to administer first aid, but will wear PPE such as a face mask/visor/apron/gloves if they need to be in close proximity to your child. If your child has a more serious injury or illness we will call you straight away and in the event of an emergency we will call 999.

What if my child or another child/staff member in their bubble develop symptoms of Covid-19?

The symptoms of Covid-19 are:

-          A dry, persistent cough.

-          A high temperature/fever.

-          Loss of taste or smell.

If your child or anyone in your household develop any of the above symptoms, the person with the symptoms MUST arrange a Covid-19 test immediately. You can book a test online through the NHS Track and Trace website (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-for-coronavirus/)

If your child develops symptoms at home they must not attend school and you must also inform us as soon as possible on 0191 267 4315.

If, following a test, the result is negative, your child may return to school once the symptoms of the illness have gone. If, following a test, the result is positive, the person who has tested positive should self-isolate for 7-days and everybody else in the household should self-isolate for 14-days.

If your child develops Covid-19 symptoms in school we will ensure they are isolated in a safe space in school with adult supervision from a short-distance. The adult supervising will wear PPE. We will call you immediately to arrange collection. You should then follow the steps above.

If there is a positive case in school, we will work with Public Health England and advise other children and adults who have been in close contact what actions they should take.

 

Will there be after school clubs in September?

There will be no after-school club provision for the first half term. We will review this just before the October half-term.

Will the school be taking place in sporting competitions and events?

At present, all sporting events and competitions outside of school are suspended until further notice. Swimming will also not take place in the first half term – we will review this at October half term.

Will school trips take place?

The latest guidelines state that day trips out of school can take place if social distancing measures are followed. We do not intend to plan any out of school visits in the first half term – we will review this just before the October half-term.

Will my child receive a free breakfast in September?

Yes! We are delighted to have secured funding to provide a free in-class breakfast, every morning, for all of our children from September. Upon arrival, your child will have the option of a toasted bagel with a drink that they can enjoy whilst reading a book for the first 15 minutes of the day. We have also secured funding to provide all of our children with two free breakfast hampers during the summer holidays – follow our social media channels and website for further details of when you can collect these from school.

Will I still receive free school meal supermarket vouchers in September?

No, this scheme ends at the end of the summer holidays as all children will be back in school and will receive their meals as normal again.

Is there mental health support available for my child?

Yes, we are one of the pilot schools for a mental health and well-being programme in Newcastle called RISE. Through this, we will have a trained mental health practitioner working in school every week to support our children with their return to school. To access further support for your child and tips of how you can help at home, visit https://www.rise-ne.co.uk/ .

What are the expectations around behaviour in school?

We have a new home-school agreement that outlines our expectations of children’s behaviour in school. This agreement must be signed and returned to school on the first day your child comes back in September.

 

Will the SATs tests and phonics/times table screenings take place next year?

Yes, we have been informed by the Government that the Year 1 Phonics Test, Year 2 SATs, Year 4 Times Table Test and Year 6 SATs will all take place as normal next year.

What happens if there is a local spike of Covid-19 cases in Newcastle?

If there is an increase in cases of Covid-19 locally we will be advised by Public Health England and Newcastle Local Authority of what steps we need to take. We will communicate these with parents/carers via our website and social media channels. If a school part or full closure is necessary, we will ensure online learning via our established private Facebook groups re-starts immediately.

Finally…

I hope that this letter gives you a clearer picture of what school will look like in September. We are very excited to welcome back our children – we have missed them so much during the past few months.

If you do have any further questions, we are available Monday-Friday between 8am and 4pm on 0191 267 4315 or you can drop us an email at admin@lemingtonriverside.newcastle.sch.uk

Thank you once again for your amazing support over the past few months and we look forward to seeing you all in September.

Take care,

Mr. Heeley

Head Teacher