Coronavirus Update - published 17.03.20
Coronavirus Update: Tuesday 17 March 2020 4.45pm
As you know, all schools are following advice from Public Health England (PHE) and the Department for Education regarding Coronavirus and will not close unless instructed to do so by PHE and the Local Authority. However, due to the new guidance on self-isolation an increasing number of our staff are now not able to work in the school. For this reason, we are having to make the difficult decision to open for certain groups only and operate as a ‘skeleton school’ to ensure that we are fulfilling our health and safety obligations.
As of Wednesday 18 March, the school will be open normal hours for the following students only
- Year 7, Year 11, Year 12 & Year 13
- Children of keyworkers in all year groups (NHS, emergency services, school staff, care workers, Social Care etc.)
- Children in all year groups who are eligible for free school meals
It is important that you let the school know if your child falls in the key worker group as we may not hold this information. Our objective is to keep our school open and working as much as possible to support the wider national effort.
Sixth form students are expected to be in lessons as long as the school remains open, however they are allowed offsite during any free periods. Please use a common sense approach to morning registration- for example if students are free p1 we are not expecting them to come in until their lesson.
A copy of the text in the letter sent to parents on Thursday 12th March is below and available at the foot of this page as a PDF.
There are also copies of letters sent to parents on Friday 13th March and Tuesday 17th March and we ask that you make sure to read these, which contains information regarding Coronavirus and our contingency plans.
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Director of Public Health Office Thursday 12th March 2020 FAO School Headteachers Re: Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) You may be aware that cases of COVID-19 (also known as coronavirus) have now been confirmed in Sheffield. The city is well prepared for cases of the virus and this letter is to confirm that there has been no change in Public Health England’s advice. Wherever cases of the virus are confirmed, Public Health England will continue to contact people who have had close contact with them. Close contacts are being given specific health advice about symptoms and emergency contact details to use if they become unwell in the 14 days after contact with the confirmed cases. This tried and tested method will ensure any risk to them and the wider public is minimised. At the time of writing, there are currently no wider implications for any schools in Sheffield following recent cases here. However, we would like to assure you that if any cases of the virus are confirmed in school children or staff, PHE will be in contact with any affected schools to advise on any actions or precautions that should be taken, based on an assessment of each childcare or education setting. Schools should continue to follow advice from PHE and the Department for Education at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19 We would particularly encourage and recommend that schools continue to promote hand washing with soap and hot water for 20 seconds or more. The Department for Education has also launched a new helpline to answer questions about COVID-19 related to education. Staff, parents and young people can contact the helpline as follows: Phone: 0800 046 8687 Email: DfE.coronavirushelpline@education.gov.uk Yours sincerely, Greg Fell |
