Information for Year 10 Only
So that you can find the information you require quickly, we have provided this version of our very detailed letter. Just click on each drop-down to read more.
The original letter is HERE in full.
As long as the government say that it is safe to do so, we will be opening for year 10 pupils from Monday 8th June 2020. Pupils will attend the school site on Mondays or Tuesdays until the end of the summer term when they will be able to access a teacher of a core subject. On Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays pupils will be able to access live lessons for their Option subjects via TEAMS. This approach is being used to reduce the amount of movement around the school site and to reduce the potential for contact between pupils.
Pupils will receive a specific time that they must attend school on Mondays or Tuesdays. It is important that they do not attend at a different time as they will not be allowed onto the school site.
All pupils must enter through the top gate and report directly to the Hall where they will be registered at a distance of 2 metres. All pupils will be escorted off site to depart from the bottom gate in the Sports Centre Car Park.
When they are on site, they will be grouped into teaching pods of a maximum of 8 pupils allowing for sufficient spacing between pupils in classrooms. Pupils will arrive at different times on a rolling timetable.
When pupils are on site they will remain in the same room for the duration of their lesson. Two lessons will be delivered which will each last for 90 minutes. Pupils will not necessarily be placed with the teacher that they were timetabled with before the enforced closure. However, a specialist teacher will be made available for each subject. The emphasis of lessons will not be new content. Rather pupils will have the opportunity to review the learning that they have been completing from home and to consider the next stage of their learning programme in preparation for year 11. All learning will still be made available online to learners and pupils will be able to communicate with their class teachers via TEAMS as they have been during the enforced closure.
As pupils will be on-site for a specific slot of two 90 minute sessions, they will not leave their allotted teaching venue except to use the facilities to clean and sanitise their hands. Pupils will be located at the same desk for the 3 hours that they are in lessons.
After the first 90 minute session, the teacher will change but the pupils will remain in the same venue. This is in order to reduce the potential for contamination of areas and to keep our pupils and staff as safe as possible. Pupils will be required to wash and sanitise their hands at the start and end of the day as a minimum.
Pupils will not be able to purchase any food or drinks. If a pupil wishes to bring a drink they must bring their own refreshment. Please remember we do not accept glass bottles on site and energy drinks are not permitted. We are now a cashless site so no money can be received.
When they are on site, they will be grouped into teaching pods of a maximum of 8 pupils allowing for sufficient spacing between pupils in classrooms. Pupils will arrive at different times on a rolling timetable.
Pupils must wear their school uniform. Although, I appreciate that there will have been some growing occurring over the past few weeks. I ask that you send your child to school wearing as a minimum: their school skirt or trousers; shirt, plain black leather shoes and school tie (adhering to the school policy). They are permitted to wear a school jumper if they have one. Once they arrive on site, they will be given clear instructions about how to wear their tie to avoid potential transmission of the virus. Pupils do not have to wear their blazer. The slight change to expectations is being introduced for the duration of this period as guidance suggest the cleaning uniform after every visit to school to reduce the risk of contamination from the virus. I understand that washing a blazer every Monday or Tuesday will not always be easy therefore it is hoped that this will ease that burden. I would urge you however, to clean other items of uniform worn.
We will not be providing school buses in line with the government’s advice to minimise the use of public transport. I would urge you to arrange for your child to walk to school, where possible, or for you to drop them via car at the school site. Staff parking will be at a minimum so there will be space available on the Sports Hall car park to collect pupils. Leaving times will be staggered so this should also help to collect pupils whilst maintaining a safe distance between pupils.
Once pupils leave the school site, staff will not be on duty in the community to monitor their adherence to social distancing so it is important that you remind them of these measures each time that they attend school.
Pupils will be registered in the school hall. They will be directed to stand at a 2 metre distance from their peers and they will be given clear instructions about the expectations of them whilst they are in school and when they are travelling home in order to keep them as safe as possible.
It is important that you speak with your child about adhering to a distance of 2 metres at all times to ensure that they are not putting themselves or others at risk. Behaviour Procedures, specifically to manage the current circumstances will be in place and these will be shared will all pupils when they attend. Your child will not return to the same structure as they left but we are working very hard to provide them with an environment where they can feel as safe as possible to reduce any anxieties that this challenging time has induced. Any pupil who does not follow the instructions of the school will not be welcome. They will be instructed to continue their learning remotely accessing resources online.
If your child receives support in lesson as part of their Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP), they will continue to receive this support when they are in school. The distance of 2 metres will also be adhered to between the supporting colleague and the pupil. If you would like more information about the support for your child please contact Ms Beards, SENDCO via postbox@barrbeaconschool.co.uk.
As I have already mentioned, pupils will not move between rooms during lessons rather the teachers will come to them. After the two 90 minute sessions, each classroom which has contained a pod of 8 children will be cleaned thoroughly in preparation for the following day so that pupils will be taught in sanitised rooms.
Pupils must bring their own equipment to school which should include two pens, a green pen, a pencil, a ruler, a rubber and a calculator. This will help us to reduce the contact between staff and pupils. Pupils will not be submitting work on paper to be marked by staff as this creates a risk of spreading the disease. Rather assessment of work will continue to occur via TEAMS so that pupils’ understanding can be gauged.
If a pupil demonstrates any symptoms of Covid-19, they will be directed to go to a designated area within the school where they will only be in contact with a member of staff wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). If your child displays any symptoms of Covid - 19 while at school, you will be contacted and you must collect them from the site
immediately. We will not be able to allow the pupil to travel home alone. First aid for any other illness or ailment will operate in the usual manner.
If a pupil in the pod of 8 in which your child has been taught begins to demonstrate symptoms of Covid-19, they must isolate for 14 days. I would ask that you inform us of this immediately if your child will need to isolate by contacting postbox@barrbeaconschool.co.uk. All children within their pod will also be required to isolate as well as the teachers and support staff. We will inform you if your child has potentially come into contact with a pupil who begins to display symptoms.
The Government published guidance on 15th May 2020 that stated “vulnerable children and young people across all year groups continue to be expected to attend educational provision where it is appropriate for them to do so.” Therefore I strongly recommend, where it is appropriate, (that is, where there are no shielding concerns for your child or your household, and following a risk assessment for your child if they have an Education Health and Care Plan) for Year 10 pupils to begin to return to on-site provision who are a Looked After Child, have an Educational Health Care Plan and those who have been assessed as vulnerable (allocated a social worker), so that they can gain the educational and wellbeing benefits of attending.
Please refer to the DfE Guidance if your child has to use public transport to travel to school. Full guidance can be accessed HERE
I appreciate that this is a very unnerving time and sending your child into school may be a difficult decision to make. I hope that I have been able to provide a thorough breakdown of how we will be working to protect your child whilst at the same time being able to provide them with some face to face contact with a specialist teacher. In this vein, if you decide not to send your child into school, you will not be fined at this time, in line with current guidance. We will contact you if your child does not attend school during their allocated time slots as a duty of care if you do not inform us that your child will not be in school.
