Dear Carers and Parents,

 

UPDATE - Covid-19 School Closure

 

Following the announcement yesterday (16.4.20) by the UK government, we are remaining closed in line with other schools in the UK. However, we are running a very limited childcare service for pupils whose parents are key workers or if the child has a Child In Need plan, where it is possible to do so with regard to pupils and staff safety. All the parents concerned have been contacted.

The guidance remains that if at all possible then a child should remain at home. The home is the safest place at this present time. That is why we are operating as above, similar to other special schools.

It is also crucial that we safeguard the health of our most vulnerable pupils and therefore have said that pupils who are in the following group should not be at school as this could increase their risk of contracting COVID-19.

1. The vulnerability of our learners; due to underlying health conditions and their learning needs.  Strategies suggested by Public Health England and the NHS to keep people safe cannot be rigorously enforced in our setting, for example, we are responsible for a lot of the personal care needs of our young people.  The latest guidance states;

‘We are advising those who are at increased risk of severe illness from coronavirus (COVID-19) to be particularly stringent in following social distancing measures.  This group includes those who are:

• under 70 with an underlying health condition listed below (ie anyone instructed to get a flu jab as an adult each year on medical grounds): chronic neurological conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), a learning disability or cerebral palsy’

 

We have managed to create a staffing rota that reduces the risk of staff contracting COVID-19 on site as well as making it safer for the pupils attending.

Please stay safe and we look forward to welcoming your child back to school when it is appropriate to do so. Of course, I will update you as and when new information or guidance becomes available.

If you have any questions about the above information please don't hesitate to contact me

We thank you for your ongoing support.

 

Kind regards,

Jon Hewitt

Headteacher