Dear Visitor,

I hope you are all well, maybe enjoying a little more freedom now some of the lockdown restrictions have eased! I am writing to update you on our plans for September, following the government guidance that was released last week. We will not be opening over the holidays at all, again in line with the government guidance.

September -

From September all children will be able to return to school full time which is the news we were really hoping for. The key message from the guidance is that “Schools must do everything possible to minimise contacts and mixing while delivering a broad and balanced curriculum” and this is what we are basing our reopening plans on. We will be returning to our “pre-Covid 19” hours.

The children will therefore all be able to return to the new class as already communicated to you. We will endeavour to keep classes as a bubble, and limit contact between children and adults from different bubbles as much as possible. Within these bubbles children are not expected to socially distance. Classrooms will look very similar to Pre-Covid 19 times, although we will be organising children in rows rather than groups as this means they are not face to face with other children and therefore reduces risk.

Breakfast club and after school club will resume, please book in as before. More information is available via the office.

Equipment -

The guidance recommends that children do not share commonly used equipment such as pencils. We would therefore ask if each child in year one upwards could bring a small pencil case into school. This will need to contain – two writing pencils, colouring pencils, a rubber, and a pencil sharpener. If possible it would also be useful to have a pair of children’s scissors and a glue stick. If it will be difficult for you to provide this please let us know and we will help provide this. Children can bring book bags and lunch boxes into school as usual.

School Uniform -

Children need to wear school uniform as normal. This can be ordered from Rock-it! promotions via the school website. They will also need to wear PE kits on their PE days which will be communicated to you at a later date. This needs to be black joggers or black shorts, a black sweat shirt or hoody (school ones are available) and a white t-shirt. Children will also need to wear black or white trainers on their PE day.

School Lunches -

The school will continue to provide a free lunch to every child in Reception and Key Stage One. This will be a packed lunch only from September as lunches will have to be eaten in classrooms. The normal ordering system will be in used. Key Stage Two can of course continue to pay for a school lunch.

The government have been very clear that the vast majority of children should return to school in September. Shielding is ending on August 1^st, meaning children who were on this list can return. Any children with significant health issues should discuss their child’s health with their specialist and the school as soon as possible. This guidance means that normal attendance rules apply and children should be in school unless they are unwell or self-isolating. Absences will be followed up as normal and fixed penalty notices can be issued by the Local Authority if children are not at school. Any child or adult with any Covid 19 symptoms will need to be tested and remain at home until they know the result of the test. If a child is at home self isolating we will provide home learning for them.

I hope this update is useful. We will provide more information mid-August, which will give more detail to the above points and more operational information such as drop off and collection points. I hope you have a great summer. We will not be setting any home learning as we know many families use the summer to rest and recharge. However should you want to carry on with any home learning, Oak National Academy are keeping all their online lessons from the lock down on their website – these are all free, require no log in and are video lessons by teachers covering a wide range of subjects. We would also recommend regular reading over the summer for all children as this is such a vital skill!

I am glad to tell you that the teachers for each class will be the same in September –

EYFS (Nursery and Reception) - Mrs Eldridge

Year One/Two – Mrs Holdsworth

Year Three/Four – Mr Armstrong

Year Five/Six – Mrs Fennell.

They are all looking forward to seeing you soon!

Wishing you all a very good summer, and I look forward to seeing you all in September.

Mrs Lisa Jeffery

Head Teacher
Woodford CE Primary School