When will my child need to wear a face covering at school?

Our prime concern is for everybody's safety. We are following government guidelines which may change again over time, e.g. local lockdowns. If they do change, we will contact you as soon as possible. 

Certain measures have been put in place in accordance with the government guidance from Tuesday 25th August. We expect all children to follow them.

We know already some children have valid reasons which make them exempt from wearing face coverings. If you believe your child to be exempt and we are not already aware of the reasons please get in touch via postbox@barrbeaconschool.co.uk

 

  • They will enter school site wearing a face covering
  • They will need to wear it when they move between lessons

  • They will not wear them in classrooms

  • Your child needs to come to school with: A face covering. We’d recommend a reusable one so that they can use it more than once, as they’ll need to take it on and off several times during the school day. If this isn’t an option, they will need to bring in several single-use face coverings each day. Their face covering should be secured to your child’s head using ear loops only.
  • A sealable plastic bag to keep their face-covering in when they’re not using it so that it doesn’t contaminate (or get contaminated by) other surfaces in school. 
  • Reusable and single-use face coverings are available to buy in shops or online.
  • Instructions from the government on how to make a cloth face covering can be found HERE.
  • Supervise your child if they’ll be making it themselves.
  • Watch the video from the World Health Organisation below with your child so they know how to wear their face covering safely.
  • Their face covering needs to cover their nose and mouth when they’re wearing it. They shouldn’t touch the front of the face-covering or the part that’s touched their mouth or nose.
  • They should wash their hands before and after touching the face covering, including to take it off or put it on. They should store it in an individual, sealable plastic bag between uses.
  • If it becomes damp, they shouldn’t wear it, and they should replace it carefully.
  • Single-use face coverings should be disposed of after use (not in a recycling bin).
  • Reusable face coverings will need to be washed at the end of each day, ready for your child to wear the next day.
  • You can wash and dry reusable face coverings with normal laundry – follow the washing instructions for the fabric and use normal detergent.
  • We’ll have a small supply of spares available at school.
  • To be safe in the knowledge that everyone has one, please make sure your child has their own so that we can keep our supply of spares for emergencies.
  • Face coverings must be plain and not have slogans on them or have anything representing sports teams. 
  • Yes, the guidance about this has not changed. Anyone using a bus, including school buses, needs to wear a mask while on that bus.