Archbishop Rowan Williams Church in Wales VA Primary School

‘I can do all things through Him who strengthens me’

Philippians 4:13

 

Crick Road, Portskewett, Caldicot.  Monmouthshire  NP26 5UL

Tel:  01291 420526

www.arwprimaryschool.co.uk

2^nd September 2020

 

Dear Parents/Carers/Families,

 

Well! We have had a jam packed couple of days here is school preparing for the full return of staff and children, and a number of additional aspects have been finalised. I will outline plans as clearly as possible, and share key information. As always, if you are unsure of any details, please do not hesitate to get on touch via our school email address which is: arwprimary@monmouthshire.gov.uk

 

I will start by outlining each day from the 3^rd to the 8^th September (which is the same information as the letter sent on the 27^th July 2020), and will then share key messages, finishing with responses to some frequently asked questions.

 

Thursday 3^rd September

• Reception transition visit- children will visit their class with an adult. (Arrival times-Mrs Hoare’s class- 9 a.m., Miss Burtons Class-10 a.m., Mrs Robertson’s class- 11 a.m.)
• Transition visit for identified pupils- these pupils will have been contacted directly with timings.

 

Friday 4^th September

• Reception independent transition visit- children will visit their class without an adult. Adults for this week only can bring their child to the curved gate within the school grounds to drop off their children (Mrs Hoare’s class- 9 a.m., Miss Burtons Class-9.30 a.m., Mrs Robertson’s class- 10 a.m.)
• Transition visit for identified pupils- these pupils will have been contacted directly with timings.

 

Monday 7^th September

• Half day transition visit- Year 2 to year 6. Timings have been sent during the holidays, but if you have not heard or are unsure, please contact the office.
• Year 1- arrive at 9.15 a.m. and stay for the day. The morning will be just year 1 children, and after dinner they will welcome the Reception pupils in their class. Year 1 pupils to bring a packed lunch please. Year 1 pupils will need collecting at 3.15 p.m.
• Reception pupils- arrive at 1 p.m. and need to be dropped at the curved gate for children to join their year 1 friends in class. Reception pupils will be collected from the bottom gate at the car park at 2.30 p.m., giving the children a practise run at walking down to meet their families.

 

Tuesday 8^th September

• All pupils return, and will follow the staggered drop off and pick up times noted below. Staff will be on hand to welcome children and guide them to their classrooms.

 

 

• Please be punctual, as we are going for an aspirational 5 minute stagger. Drop your children off and vacate the car park as soon as you are able to, to enable the next group of learners to arrive. We can adapt these timings in the future if necessary.
• If your child is upset, you may need to park up to settle them for a short while. If there is not space to do this, please feel free to ‘go round the block’ and try again after a few minutes.

 

Key Messages

Class bubbles: Children will be in their ‘class bubble’ so that they have contact primarily with their usual teacher/Teaching Assistant, their peers and in their own classroom or the outdoors. Within the class bubble, children can mix with each other, but will need to maintain 2m distancing with staff where possible and practical. Hygiene will be explained and taught by staff so that all bubble members will be as safe as possible. Outdoor time is staggered so that again, each class maintains its bubble, and does not mix with other children/bubbles. When Breakfast and After School Clubs start, they will also be organised so that children have a designated area to maintain their class bubble.

Cleaning: The school uses cleaning and hygiene products that have been supplied by MCC as they meet their stringent requirements.  Classrooms and high touch point surfaces are clean regularly, a minimum of 4 times a day, and all tissues and disposable cleaning cloths are disposed of in lidded bins.

Physical Exercise: will take place outside, weather permitting, including participation in the Daily Mile.

Attendance: Excellent attendance will be promoted as per usual.  If your child is unwell, please contact the office on the first morning that your child is unable to attend.  However, under no circumstance should learners or staff attend school if they;

• Feel unwell, have any of the identified COVID-19 symptoms (a new continuous cough, or a high temperature, or loss of or change to their sense of taste or smell) or have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 10 days.
• Live in a household with someone who has symptoms of COVID-19 or had tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 14 days.

Contingency planning: It is our intention for all learners to return to school, however, there may be occasions where home learning is required e.g. if we experience localised outbreaks of COVID-19.  Information will be communicated on the school website and via email if necessary. Information from the ‘Home Learning Survey’ will also guide our future plans, so thank you for taking the time to complete it.

P.E: On your child’s P.E day, please can they can wear their trainers, t-shirt and shorts, with their school sweatshirt/jumper and a pair of grey jogging bottoms over the top.  This will be worn for the whole day and means that children do not need to store P.E kit in school.

 

Frequently asked questions

 

What does my child need to bring to school?  Pupils only need to bring; a labelled water bottle to school (this is important), cap (if hot), coat (if cold or due to rain), lunch if not using the school ‘Grab and Go’ lunch made by the canteen (children can use a lunchbox {hard surfaced where possible} or throw away bag as preferred). These items can be brought in one bag that is easy to clean/wipe. Children can bring a healthy snack or fresh fruit/ vegetables for break time which needs to be put in its own pot/small bag, and not in the packed lunch if they are bringing one from home. Children do not need to bring in pencil cases.

Are you going to provide each child with their own pencil case? Children from Years 2 – 6 will be provided with a zippy wallet containing materials/stationary. Children in years R/1 will share materials, as their learning style is practical and varied, using different areas of their learning environment throughout the day. For these children, frequent handwashing will be encouraged and hand sanitiser will be placed around the room to be used prior to handling new equipment, and cleaning regimes are in place. As noted in Welsh Government publication Operational guidance for schools and settings from the autumn term (version 3)- How schools and other providers can make their sites safe for staff and learners, it states that ‘Classroom-based resources, such as books and games, can be used and shared within the contact group; these should be cleaned regularly, along with all frequently touched surfaces.’

Will there be school dinners? The school kitchen will be open and any pupils requiring a cold ‘Grab and Go’ meal can purchase through Parent Pay. Pupils are still able to bring their own packed lunch and children can bring a healthy snack or fresh fruit/ vegetables for break time.

Will there be Breakfast and After School Club? We are working very hard to get both clubs up and running as quickly as possible. As long as there are no new regulations, and that Risk Assessments are agreed, the aim is to open on the 14^th September. We appreciate that this will be challenging for some parents for the first week, but we cannot take any risks in our preparation and planning.

Why are children having different transition days? The usual transition process has been completely disrupted this year as a result of school closure and covid-19 restrictions. Therefore, we are trying to provide some transition opportunity for children, whilst also getting them back into school as soon as possible. We have arranged for all children to have a half day to spend time with their new teacher and see their new room. This visit will be with half of their class so that the teacher can personalised the visit as much as possible to the learners. Additionally, some children have been offered an additional transition visit prior to the half day visit to enable them to engage more confidently in the half class transition visit.

Should we send in book bags? We are waiting for guidance from MCC as to the protocol for book bags, and we will update you when we have more information. Therefore, for the time being, no book bags/reading books to travel between home and school.

 

I hope that this covers most of your questions at this time, but please get in touch if have any further queries,

 

Kind regards,

Caroline Swann

Head teacher