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Latest update on CORONAVIRUS / COVID 19 for schools

Government guidelines for Trinity pupils 

7pm Wednesday 18th March

Dear Parents/Carers,

The key message at 5pm from the Government today is that schools will be closed from the end of Friday 20th March 2020 until further notice.  The school will be open for Thursday and Friday and the rules below still apply.  From 3.15pm Friday school will be closed and we are currently looking closely along with the Local Authority about having a provision for pupils from families that are Key Workers and those that are vulnerable.  More details will be posted once plans have been formalised.  Also, those in receipt of Free School Meals will have a provision - again we are working closely with our caterers to ensure this is ready to run from Monday.  Finally, the Government has announced that all exams will not go ahead (this includes GCSE and all primary tests).  We understand that this will cause a lot of stress for the pupils as they have worked extremely hard preparing for these exams.  We will be meeting year 11 to discuss what this means tomorrow morning.  The government has made it clear that the message is GCSEs and A Levels will be awarded on the basis of moderated assessment with the exam boards and Ofqual.  We do not have more detail about this at the moment - and will let you know as soon as we do.  It is key that year 11 ensure their books and assessments they have done within their books are completed and presented well.  All work set remotely over the coming months need to be completed to provide further evidence of their ability to cover the material - instead of heavily focusing on preparing for exams we need to support year 11 to gather evidence of what they can achieve that can be used as evidence for grades given.  presentation and detail in books is crucial.  I know this does not give enough detail, but we will honestly support all pupils fully throughout this time.  They need to reply fully to all our requests on WeDuc to ensure we have the evidence.

Thank you once again for all your support.

David Lucas

Stay at home guidance can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection

Advice for vulnerable people:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-social-distancing-and-for-vulnerable-people/guidance-on-social-distancing-for-everyone-in-the-uk-and-protecting-older-people-and-vulnerable-adults

Coronavirus/ COVID-19 Update –                                                                                   updated 17th March 2020

Following updated government guidance, if any pupils or staff members develop symptoms, as listed below, they must stay at home for seven days:-

• a high temperature

• a new continuous cough

For most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.

Do not go (or take your child) to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital.

You do not need to contact 111 to tell them you're staying at home.  Testing for coronavirus is not needed if you're staying at home.

If your symptoms worsen during home isolation or are no better after 7 days, contact NHS 111 online. If you have no Internet access, call NHS 111. For a medical emergency dial 999.

If you live with others and you or one of them have symptoms of coronavirus, then all household members must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days.  The 14 day period starts from the day with the first person in the house became ill.  It is likely that people living within a housefhold will infect each other or be infected already.  Staying at home for 14 days will greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the houshold could pass on to others in the community.

Stay at home guidance can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance

For most people, Coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild infection.

Please let the school know as soon as possible if your child is unwell.

If anyone becomes ill during the school day they will also be sent home and asked to remain at home for 7 days. Please make sure that the school has up-to-date contact details for you and that you keep phones on so we can get in touch with you if necessary.                           

Public Health England and Department for Education current advice for schools in London is that staff and pupils should monitor themselves for symptoms and self-isolate if they experience symptoms. People who do not have symptoms are advised to carry on as normal and do not need to self-isolate. We understand that parents are concerned about the risk of their children catching Coronavirus and that some may wish to keep children at home even though they have not had any medical advice to do so. All children who are well enough to come to school and who do not fall into the two categories described above, should attend school as normal.

We continue to follow the advice of the Department for Education and Public Health England in school.  We are encouraging all children and staff to wash hands properly and regularly and we are taking extra care with cleaning. We will continue to follow advice and we will keep you informed of the situation and what we are doing about it.

The school will send texts and messages on Weduc to alert you to cancellation of trips, afterschool activities and musical events. The decision to make cancellations is to reduce the risk to our staff and students, and so that staff capacity can be prioritised for the day to day running of lessons during school hours.

I would urge you to check the NHS and government websites daily:

https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19

Rest assured that the safety of pupils, staff and the school community remains our priority.

Yours Sincerely,

David Lucas

Executive Head,
Trinity School Lewisham