Important Message Regarding School Return

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope that you and your family had an enjoyable Christmas, notwithstanding the Covid-19 restrictions that we are all living with.
As you know, we have worked incredibly hard since the start of the pandemic in March to keep our schools as safe as possible, and that work has continued over the Christmas holiday period. I would like to thank our incredible staff for their commitment and professionalism, which has seen many working over the holidays.
My letter today includes important information relating to your child’s return to school this term.
Due to the current coronavirus conditions, we have taken the decision to delay the full return of all pupils to school until Thursday 7th January. 
As you may be aware from recent news, guidance for schools has been rapidly and frequently changing over the past couple of weeks. Delaying our full return will allow us additional time to ensure our risk assessments and health and safety measures are comprehensive and up-to-date, in line with all of the latest guidance from Public Health England and the Department for Education.  The situation is fast-moving, and if there are any further changes to our full opening plans or dates, we will keep you informed. Indeed, there are set to be further announcements by the Prime Minister at 8pm this evening, which may further affect our plans.
For Tuesday 5th January and Wednesday 6th January, most pupils will have remote learning. However, we will have on-site provision available for pupils classed as vulnerable and for the children of key workers.  
This means that:

• If your child is classed as “vulnerable” or if you or your partner is a key worker, then your child will return to school on Tuesday 5th January. 
• If your child is not classed as “vulnerable” and if neither you nor your partner is a key worker, then your child will not return to school until Thursday 7th January. Your child is expected to engage fully with their remote learning during this time so they keep up with their education. I will of course let you know if there are any changes to this date, particularly given the impending announcement from the Prime Minister this evening.

A reminder of the definitions of ‘vulnerable children’ and ‘key workers’
Vulnerable children are those who:

• Have a child in need plan or child protection plan
• Are looked after by the local authority  
• Have an education, health and care (EHC) plan and have been determined, following risk assessment, that their needs can be as safely or more safely met at school
• Have been assessed as otherwise vulnerable by the school or local authority, including children who are:

• On the edge of receiving support from children’s social care services
• Adopted
• At risk of becoming NEET (‘not in employment, education or training’)
• Living in temporary accommodation
• Young carers

Key workers are those who work in:

• Health and social care
• Education and childcare
• Key public services (including the justice system, religious staff, charities delivering key frontline services, those responsible for the management of the deceased, and journalists and broadcasters who are providing public service broadcasting) 
• Local and national government who are involved in delivering the coronavirus response or essential public services
• Food and other necessary goods
• Public safety and national security
• Transport
• Utilities, communication and financial service

Please complete the survey below if you are a critical worker. Please email me directly if you are in the vulnerable category and wish your child to be in school. I am very sorry for the short notice, but if you can do this today that would be incredibly helpful. 
As before, a great deal of planning and risk assessment has gone into ensuring that our school continues to be as safe as possible for pupils and staff, in line with latest Government and Public Health England guidance. We will continue to take decisions in the best interests of our pupils and staff, working with you and keeping you informed every step of the way.
We will be in touch tomorrow as to how to access remote learning. We are moving towards all KS1 and KS2 children having access to Google Classrooms, but we have had some technical hitches today. 
In the meantime, thank you for your continued support and understanding as we all deal with these challenges together. Please do continue to take care and stay safe.
Yours sincerely,
Tara Penny                  Elizabeth Underwood 
Head of School            Executive Head 


https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=kG0HO7J4vUqeBcIPJiicRq65m3QRRsxIl7MqPXy_mOVUNElSQThJMENCUEhaMUNFUDQzRkVXQVI2WS4u


Fill | Survey of Chagford CE Primary School Critical Workers: January 2021
If you are a critical worker please complete this questionnaire, having read the accompanying letter to parents regarding the move to blended learning on Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 6th January 2021. This will help us plan for school-based education of critical workers' children over the next 2 days. All other children will have access to blended learning in accordance with our Three Hares Remote Education Plan. Thank you.
forms.office.com