Returning to face to face education on 8th March
Following the Prime Ministers announcement on February 22nd all children in England will return to face to face teaching from Monday, March 8th 2021. From this date attendance to school for all children is compulsory and remote learning will cease.
As an academy we are looking forwards to welcoming the children back into school in a few weeks’ time. In order for the return to face to face education to be successful we have to ensure that the safety of all of the children and staff is at the forefront of our plans. This letter will set out in detail what those plans are.
Testing
Before returning to school children must test negative on a lateral flow test no more than five days prior to returning to school. Once they have then returned to school they will receive a further two lateral flow tests, spaced three to five days apart. After they have received three lateral flow tests in school the government will be providing all children of secondary school age with testing kits to complete tests at home. The expectation is that children will complete two tests at home each week and will come into school if they produce a negative result. If the tests in school or the home tests show a positive result then the child and their close contacts will have to isolate for a period of 10 days as per the law.
We will provide more detailed information on home testing when we receive it from the government.
Parents must give consent for their child to be tested, if you have done this already then there is nothing for you to do, if you haven’t then you will need to complete the consent form by clicking on the link here.
If you do not consent for your child to be tested then they must still attend school from March 8th 2021.
When will my child be tested?
The academy will start testing on March 3rd 2021 so that we can test all children within the five days ahead of the return to school date on March 8th.
Children will be provided with the time they should attend school to take part in the testing via email, google classroom and parents informed via the Farnborough App.
Year 10 and 11 children will be invited into the academy on Wednesday March 3rd 2021.
Year 8 and 9 children will be invited into the academy on Thursday March 4th 2021.
Year 7 children will be invited into the academy on Friday March 5th 2021.
It is vital that all children attend at their designated time slot. Children will be on site whilst their test is being conducted, they will then be free to return home and parents will be notified of the result via text message to the phone number provided on the consent form.
Children are allowed to leave home during the national lockdown to attend a Covid-19 test, they must leave home and come directly to school and they must return directly home once the test has been conducted. They will have to follow all lockdown regulations when travelling to and from their test.
If parents wish to bring children for their test they can, but parents will not be permitted to come into the academy building.
It is important that children DO NOT eat or drink in the 30 minute period before having their test.
When does my child return to school?
All children who test negative on the 3rd, 4th and 5th of March, or those who do not give consent to be tested will return to school on March 8th.
Children who test positive and their close contacts will need to isolate for 10 days from the date of their positive test.
Children who miss their testing appointment will be contacted by the academy between March 3rd and March 5th to discuss their individual circumstances. It is vital that all children attend their testing appointment on time.
My child has a lesson when they should be having a test?
All members of staff will be aware of who is having a test and when. The test appointment takes priority over the lesson and children should attend their test appointment.
What time does my child return to school?
The academy day will run as it did before the Christmas holiday therefore children should arrive at the time and entrance point they did before Christmas.
How will school look and operate?
School will operate in the same way as it did from September 2020. Children will continue to have separate start and finish times, separate breaks and operate in year group bubbles. Children from different year groups will not be allowed to mix.
Children will be expected to sanitise their hands regularly, especially when entering the building, before and after breaks and at the start and end of lessons.
The one big change is that children MUST WEAR FACE COVERINGS AT ALL TIMES when on the academy site unless they are eating or are medically exempt from wearing a face covering. This includes walking on corridors, between buildings and in all classrooms. The only exemption to this is during a PE lesson where the wearing of a face covering would impact the ability of a child to participate in an activity.
Anyone who has previously declared a medical exemption from wearing a face covering will continue to be exempt. Any new exemption requests will need to provide evidence of their exemption to the academy.
We will be able to replace lost/forgotten face coverings from our academy supply, but as these are not provided to the academy free of charge and have to be purchased a 50p charge will be added to a child’s SQUID account every time they request a new face covering.
We appreciate that we are all experiencing challenging circumstances at this moment in time, but, hopefully the return to face to face education is the start of normality returning to all of our lives. As an academy and a trust we are working hard to ensure that all possible measures are in place to keep children and staff as safe as possible.
If you have any further questions regarding the return to face to face teaching then please do not hesitate to contact the academy.
Mr Jobling
Head of School