5th January 2021
School Closure
Dear Parents and Carers
You will now be aware that a new national lockdown has been announced to run from 6th January until February half term. In line with the guidance from the government, school has now closed to the large majority of our children. I am very relieved to say that our decision not to open the school yesterday was very prudent and has avoided us having 400+ children in the same space with so much being unknown about the new variant of the virus.
The school remains open to a limited number of children who are classed as vulnerable or children whose parents are critical workers who are required to continue attending their work places (under the strict definitions as issued in the updated government guidance.)
Vulnerable children and young people include those who:
Critical workers
Parents whose work is critical to the coronavirus (COVID-19) and EU transition response include those who work in health and social care and in other key sectors outlined in the sections detailed at the end of this letter.
Whilst we wish we could have all children in school, it is currently safest to only have a very limited number of children on site and this enables us to implement better social distancing measures for both adults and children. Thank you to those critical workers who have already contacted us requesting spaces, this has helped us to quickly set up our provision (info@newlandsprimary.co.uk ).
Remote Learning (Home Learning)
Our teachers plan meticulously for deep learning and our curriculum will continue online on our website. Children are expected to work from home – this is not optional! Primary school pupils are expected to work for an average of 3 hours a day if at home.
https://www.newlandsprimary.co.uk/home-learning/
Click on your child’s year group to access the weekly home learning grids and resources. Teachers are busy planning for children’s learning at home and will shortly be posting videos to support the children and to stay in touch. We realise that not everyone has access to online learning and therefore we will continue to provide paper work packs for those who request them if you cannot access things online.
Teachers are available on the year group emails and look forward to hearing from you if you need any help or want to show off any great learning from home. Teachers will also make weekly contact with children via phone calls.
Benefits-related FSM Eligibility
If your child is entitled benefits related Free School Meals, we will be providing food parcels for them. The school has made the decision to put this support into place immediately whilst we await any further information on whether the government will use a national scheme for this period of lockdown. The school will make contact with families about how to go about collecting food parcels if you are entitled.
We understand that this is a worrying time for all families, but it is important that families continue to follow Public Health advice and if you should have any health worries, please go to 111 online in the first instance. Remember if you are unwell or self-isolating, you should not be leaving the house for a period of 10 days.
If we all follow the rules, we will get through this together.
Should you need to get hold of anyone at school over the closure period, please call the school office or email the school at: info@newlandsprimary.co.uk. Staff will be checking this email daily, but may not be able to reply straightaway.
If you have a question about learning, please use the year group email address:
Year R year.r@newlandsprimary.co.uk
Year 1 year.1@newlandsprimary.co.uk
Year 2 year.2@newlandsprimary.co.uk
Year 3 year.3@newlandsprimary.co.uk
Year 4 year.4@newlandsprimary.co.uk
Year 5 year.5@newlandsprimary.co.uk
Year 6 year.6@newlandsprimary.co.uk
We will send out any updates during the closure period via MarvellousMe, email and our Facebook page, or text message if needs be. Please ensure we have up to date contact numbers and email addresses and that you keep your MMe notifications turned on.
Thank you for your on-going support and stay safe. We hope to see you soon.
Karen Mellor
Headteacher
CRITICAL WORKER LIST:
Health and social care
This includes, but is not limited to, doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social workers, care workers, and other frontline health and social care staff including volunteers; the support and specialist staff required to maintain the UK’s health and social care sector; those working as part of the health and social care supply chain, including producers and distributors of medicines and medical and personal protective equipment.
Education and childcare
This includes:
Key public services
This includes:
Local and national government
This only includes those administrative occupations essential to the effective delivery of:
Food and other necessary goods
This includes those involved in food:
Public safety and national security
This includes:
Transport and border
This includes those who will keep the air, water, road and rail passenger and freight transport modes operating during the coronavirus (COVID-19) response and EU transition, including those working on transport systems through which supply chains pass and those constructing or supporting the operation of critical transport and border infrastructure through which supply chains pass.
Utilities, communication and financial services
This includes: