Update 52 - 02.07.2020
Dear Parents and Carers,
In case you have missed the news, it has been confirmed today that schools will fully reopen in September and will close as usual for the summer holiday period. Alongside this confirmation about re- opening, guidance has been provided for schools to outline certain measures which must be in place along with suggestions of further measures if appropriate. Obviously each school setting is different and the government have allowed a certain amount of flexibility in the arrangements for schools to tailor the measures to suit their own school.
I have, today, read the guidance in full and will be discussing my plans, on how we can minimise the risk for pupils returning to school, with the Governors next week.
The Government have made it clear they expect all pupils to return, with the exception of certain medical reasons.
Many of the expectations and suggestions made in the guidance are already in place at South View, it is about ensuring these will work effectively with all pupils returning.
I will, of course, share these plans as soon as they are finalised. I believe today’s update for parents is number 52, as I do feel it is imperative for everyone to be kept fully informed of what is happening. However, if you do have any questions never hesitate to contact me.
Annual reports
As I said on Monday’s update, annual reports have been written as usual. Of course they can only reflect what your child had achieved up to lockdown in March, but they will also provide you with an outline of some of the work your child missed as I know some of you would like to try and fill these gaps over the summer. They will also show you if your child was on track to achieve Age Related Expectations (ARE). Government guidance has been very clear on what we needed to include in the reports.
If your child is currently attending school, they will be sent home with their report on Monday 6th July.
If your child is not attending school, reports can be collected, by an adult, at the following times:
Monday 6th July: Year 2 (9a.m.-3p.m.), year 4 (9a.m.-12.30p.m.) and year 6 (12.30p.m.- 3p.m.)
Tuesday 7th July: Year 1 (9a.m.-3p.m.), year 3 (9a.m.-12.30p.m.) and year 5 (12.30p.m.- 3p.m.)
Wednesday 8th July: Year R and nursery (9a.m.-3p.m.)
If you have children in more than one year group, you can collect all of their reports at one time. Please go to the relevant school to collect the reports.
Obviously we are unable to provide a face to face parents’ evening but should you wish to discuss the report with your child’s class teacher then please complete the reply slip in the report and return it to school and the teacher will be in touch. Alternatively you can ring in to request a call, and the teacher will ring you back when they are available to do so.
Year 2 transition to the Junior School
Please refer to the update on Monday 29th June for details on the Year 2 transition programme. The children do not need to wear school uniform for this visit. During your visit you will be given your new book bag and relevant documents.
Nursery
If you have booked a place for your child to start nursery in September then you can collect their book bag and starting information from the infant school at any time from tomorrow.
If you need a nursery place for September then we still have both morning and afternoon sessions available as well as some 30 hour places. Please speak to the infant school office for further details. I understand some of you may be a little apprehensive about the children being able to manage Covid social distancing but I have to say the current nursery children have been amazing and have followed the guidance really well and I have no doubt the new intake will be able to do so just as well.
Parking and Permits
Can I remind you that parking on site is not allowed, even under the current circumstances. Due to the extended arrival and collections times there are even more people walking about the site than usual so please park outside of the school and walk your child into the grounds.
If you have a current parking permit then please contact the infant school office to find out if you are still eligible for a new one to be issued for the next academic year. If you need to enquire about a permit, again contact the infant school office.
Library Books
Thank you to so many of you for returning library books. We are still missing quite a few so please check your children’s bedrooms carefully as every book we have to replace means 1 less new book can be bought. There is a box in both reception areas where you can hand them in.
Reading books
Please, when collecting your reports, can you return any reading books you may have. We cannot afford for these to go missing as they are very expensive to replace and cannot usually be replaced on an individual basis but replaced as sets. Any lost books will need to be charged for to ensure that other children have the full range of reading material your child had.
As always, stay safe, keep washing your hands and social distancing.
With my very best wishes
Mrs Sheila Pape