Shaw-cum-Donnington C.E. Primary

Dear Parents At 11.55pm on Thursday 19th March the government published details in regard to eligibility to access the childcare schools are being asked to offer for a small group of eligible pupils from Monday 23rd March. The guidance for parents notes that there is no compulsion for eligible children to attend school. It is at the discretion of the parents. It also notes that a child will be eligible if one or more parent is employed in a ‘critical sector’. The guidance for schools notes that: Many parents working in these sectors may be able to ensure their child is kept at home. Every child who can be safely cared for at home should be. It goes on to give detail about what are considered ‘critical sectors’. The relevant detail about critical sectors is copied below for your reference. Parental Guidance https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers#critical-workers School Guidance https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-educational-provision/guidance-for-schools-colleges-and-local-authorities-on-maintaining-educational-provision If you think your job makes your children eligible for childcare from Monday 23rd March, please email office@shaw.w-berks.sch.uk immediately so we can plan effectively. As you might, expect due to the increasing impact of the measures in place to combat the virus outbreak, it is almost certain that a full staff team will not be available to be in school during the coming days and weeks. As such it is vital that we know if you need child care, if you are entitled to it, and can make no other arrangements. Therefore, please email office@shaw.w-berks.sch.uk to confirm eligibility, please also indicate when childcare will be needed. This is also important because if we are not able to be partially open due to staff shortages, your need for school based child care will be passed on to the Local Authority. A reminder that if you are entitled to a free school meal as a result of qualification by circumstance (not Universal Infant Free School meals), we will contact you directly. Thank you for your ongoing support. Kind regards Miss Vicky Murray Headteacher

Dear Parents In light of the imminent school closures in England next week, we have set up the following home learning activities to support you with the continuity of your child’s education. Today your child will bring home a home learning support pack that will provide learning opportunities for you to use up to the Easter holidays. Your child will be given exercise books in which to complete work and share with us upon return to school. All personal logins for websites that the school provides will be included in these books. Children will also be provided with several reading books. After the Easter holidays, each class will have a blog on Purple Mash set up for them by their class teachers, where work and communication will take place. Please ensure that your child can access Purple Mash before this time. Work will be set weekly on a Monday morning in their class blog. There will also be a weekly school newsletter sent to all parents via SchoolPing, which will include current updates. It will also be an opportunity for us as a community to celebrate home learning achievements, in line with our regular feature of celebration collective worship on Fridays. Tomorrow, Friday 20th March, we will be having early Easter celebrations at school. The children are welcome to come in non-school uniform, wearing colourful and cheerful clothing in exchange for an item of tinned or packet food which will be distributed to those most in need by the local Food Bank. If your child is currently at home, please collect the home learning pack from school tomorrow (Friday). If you and your family are self-isolating, please contact the school and we can arrange to bring it to your house if you are unable to collect it. If you have any questions, please speak to the class teacher or contact the school. Thank you for your support. Yours sincerely

Dear Parents At 5.15pm yesterday, the Secretary of State for Education gave a public statement that all state-funded schools in England would be closed from the end of the school day on Friday. He also indicated that all the GCSE, AS and A-level examinations due to take place this summer, have been suspended; and that students would be credited for their learning in some other way. Having indicated that all schools would be closed, he then indicated that they would be expected to remain open for the children of key workers and for those in various vulnerable categories – providing a safe place and access to meals. We are expecting a definition of ‘key worker’ tomorrow from the Cabinet Office. It will take time to determine the nature of this provision. Although we have been anticipating such an announcement, and prepared for various scenarios, the limited details so far released raise considerably more questions than answers. You will all have your own legitimate concerns and queries. The Secretary of State gave no undertaking that schools would be expected to sustain a pattern of normal learning during the closure; rather that any available staff would be expected to support other frontline efforts. Our school response is yet to be determined. I am working with my senior leadership colleagues, and all staff, to clarify as best we can what this announcement means for the school, for our pupils and for you. I anticipate providing more details later today. Thank you for your support and for your patience in the meantime. For the next two days, pupil attendance is expected to continue as normal within the COVID-19 Public Health England guidance. Yours sincerely Miss Vicky Murray Headteacher