Please also keep up-to-date and in touch via our FaceBook Page (Coombe Road PTA & Community)
| Name | |
|---|---|
| Letter to Parents_Wider Opening_19-20_VP (2).pdf | Download |
| Letter to Children_Wider Opening_19-20_VP (2).pdf | Download |
| BHCC - schools wider opening letter 10th June 2020.pdf | Download |
| COVID19 LETTER FROM BHCC_19-20_04.06.2020.pdf | Download |
| Letter to Parents+Carers Wider Opening_19-20_VP_ 04.06.2020.pdf | Download |
| Partial Reopening to Years R_1_6_Covid-19_Info for Parents_19-20_VP.pdf | Download |
| cco-childrens-guide-to-coronavirus.pdf | Download |
| Letter to Parents+Carers of Critical Workers or Vulnerable Children_19-20_VP 23.03.2020.pdf | Download |
| Letter to Parents+Carers_School Closure_19-20_VP 20.03.2020.pdf | Download |
| Letter to Parents+Carers_19-20_VP updated 17.03.2020.pdf | Download |
15/06/2020 ~ WE HAVE NOW OPENED MORE WIDELY TO YRS R/1/6 ~ PLEASE CHECK SCHOOL PING REGULARLY FOR INFORMATION
LATEST SCHOOL INFORMATION - UPDATED 18/06/2020
IT HAS BEEN WONDERFUL TO WELCOME BACK OUR YEARS R, 1 AND 6 THIS WEEK.
10/06/2020
10/06/2020 ~ Brighton and Hove City Council have issued another statement (see letter in downloads above).
To read information on Brighton & Hove's decision, please visit https://new.brighton-hove.gov.uk/news/2020/schools-update-information-about-decision-not-open-schools-more-widely#
Please read the information sent via Ping (and in the downloads above)
A thorough Risk Assessment has been carried out and the school is now prepared for wider opening to YrsR/1/6. When we are assured it is safe, we are ready for you!
Once we have assurance that is is safe (from our employers, Brighton and Hove City Council), we will begin to implement our plan.
Please keep in touch with all communications by reading School Ping.
Updated Brighton & Hove City Council statement (04/06/20)
Education, childcare and early years settings in the city have been working hard on wider opening and reopening plans. We are assured by the risk assessment and safety first approach. We continue to give our full thanks for this hard work during such a challenging and changing time.
Our current advice to Brighton & Hove schools and council nurseries remains that they should not open more widely for pupils at this time.
The council position remains that schools and council nurseries should only reopen to more children when it’s safe to do so. This will require full risk assessments and detailed planning so that we can make sure the settings are as safe as possible for children, school staff and the wider community.
We are keen to see children return to schools and nurseries as soon as possible to benefit from vital face-to-face education and social interaction. We recognise the work being done by schools to deliver home learning so well across the city. We also appreciate the difficulties families and learners are facing with the continued need for many to remain at home.
But, at this time, we continue to advise against wider opening based on considered advice from our public health colleagues. We are advised there is not sufficient reassurance that all the Government’s 5 key tests have all been met locally. In particular, the Test and Trace programme is in its early days and is not yet providing sufficient data in Brighton & Hove. We know local cases are being identified through the programme and we are likely to see the reported numbers of cases rise in the weeks ahead as a result. More time is needed to understand the local implications.
It is also important to recognise that schools and early years providers have been open throughout the pandemic, including the school holidays, to provide childcare for children of keyworkers and vulnerable children. The system in place to support this small number of children attending school is well established.
The wider situation will be kept under daily review. We will give as much notice as possible to support schools and early years settings when the advice changes. We encourage all settings to continue preparing their wider opening plans so we can all be ready to respond swiftly and appropriately when needed.
We would like to be clear that the final decision on whether to open an individual school lies with the head teacher, in consultation with the chair of governors, but we would encourage schools to follow our advice. Non-council early years settings can also make their own decisions based on their risk assessments.
End of statement
Brighton & Hove City Council statement 29/05/2020
Our city’s schools and early years providers continue to do a magnificent job opening for the children of key workers and vulnerable children and we thank them for their hard work during a prolonged challenging time.
Our advice continues to be that schools and Council nurseries should only reopen to more children when it’s safe to do so, following risk assessments and detailed planning so that we can make sure they are as safe as possible for children, school staff and the wider community.
We are acting on advice from our public health colleagues and there are reasonable concerns that the government’s 5 key tests have not all been met locally. In particular we are not confident that the test around effective testing and tracing is currently met given the very recent introduction of the government’s Test and Trace programme especially in a city with a high visitor footfall such as ours.
Therefore our current advice to Brighton & Hove schools and council nurseries is that they should not open more widely for pupils on 1 June.
Whilst education is hugely important for our children, the Council’s position has always been that the safety and welfare of our children, school staff and wider community has to be our paramount consideration.
The decision on whether to open an individual school lies with the head teacher, in consultation with the chair of governors, but we would encourage schools to follow our advice.
This advice will be kept under constant review by the council as we are keen for schools to reopen to more children, but only when it is safe to do so.
Latest PHE information - UPDATED 01/06/2020
Everyone is being reminded to follow Public Health England advice:
This guidance applies in England – people in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should follow the specific rules in those parts of the UK.
At this stage, from Monday 1 June:
- You can spend time outdoors, including private gardens and other outdoor spaces, in groups of up to six people from different households, following social distancing guidelines
- You should go to work if you cannot work from home and your business has not been required to close by law
- More shops are beginning to reopen, with a plan for more to do so later in the month
- Children in early years (age 0-5), reception, year 1 and year 6 can return to childcare or school in line with the arrangements made by their school
- You can be tested as part of the test and trace programme, which will enable us to return to normal life as soon as possible, by helping to control transmission risks
This plan is dependent on us continuing to successfully control the spread of the virus. If the evidence does not show sufficient progress is being made in controlling the virus to justify the easements, then the proposed lifting of restrictions may have to be delayed until such a time as it is safe to do so. If, after lifting restrictions, the government sees a concerning rise in the infection rate, then it may have to re-impose some restrictions in as targeted a way as possible.
That is why you should stay alert and follow social distancing guidelines. You must not:
- gather in groups of more than six people with people you do not live with
- visit friends or family inside their home or any other indoor place
- stay away from your own home overnight, except for in a limited set of circumstances, such as for work purposes
This guidance explains the measures that will help you to stay alert and safe as we continue to respond to the challenges of coronavirus. Key parts of these measures are underpinned by law, which sets out clearly what you must and must not do – every person in the country must continue to comply with this. The relevant authorities, including the police, have the powers to enforce the law – including through fines and dispersing gatherings.
guidance for parents & carers - keeping children safe online
We have updated our information for parents and carers to include a section on keeping children safe online. It provides links to online resources that will help support parents and carers in keeping their children safe online.
Full details can be found in section 6.3 of the guidance for parents and carers on the closure of educational settings:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers
Guidance can be found through the link below for key workers who are in need of child care to carry out their roles:
Latest information ~ 01/06/2020
Everyone is being reminded to follow Public Health England advice:
This guidance applies in England – people in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland should follow the specific rules in those parts of the UK.
At this stage, from Monday 1 June:
- You can spend time outdoors, including private gardens and other outdoor spaces, in groups of up to six people from different households, following social distancing guidelines
- You should go to work if you cannot work from home and your business has not been required to close by law
- More shops are beginning to reopen, with a plan for more to do so later in the month
- Children in early years (age 0-5), reception, year 1 and year 6 can return to childcare or school in line with the arrangements made by their school
- You can be tested as part of the test and trace programme, which will enable us to return to normal life as soon as possible, by helping to control transmission risks
This plan is dependent on us continuing to successfully control the spread of the virus. If the evidence does not show sufficient progress is being made in controlling the virus to justify the easements, then the proposed lifting of restrictions may have to be delayed until such a time as it is safe to do so. If, after lifting restrictions, the government sees a concerning rise in the infection rate, then it may have to re-impose some restrictions in as targeted a way as possible.
That is why you should stay alert and follow social distancing guidelines. You must not:
- gather in groups of more than six people with people you do not live with
- visit friends or family inside their home or any other indoor place
- stay away from your own home overnight, except for in a limited set of circumstances, such as for work purposes
This guidance explains the measures that will help you to stay alert and safe as we continue to respond to the challenges of coronavirus. Key parts of these measures are underpinned by law, which sets out clearly what you must and must not do – every person in the country must continue to comply with this. The relevant authorities, including the police, have the powers to enforce the law – including through fines and dispersing gatherings.
Updated handwashing advice ~ 18/06/2020
It is essential that everyone washes their hands more often, using soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Hand washing with soap employs mechanical action that loosens bacteria and viruses from the skin, rinsing them into the drain. Drying hands afterwards makes the skin less hospitable to the virus. Hand sanitiser can be effective if soap is not available or the situation makes using soap less feasible (i.e. when outside) but using hand sanitiser provides none of the virus-destroying friction that rubbing your hands together and rinsing with water provides.
The latest guidance and video on hand washing can be found at:
https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/best-way-to-wash-your-hands/
The e-Bug project is led by Public Health England and has a dedicated webpage for learning resources on hand washing and respiratory hygiene. E-Bug has published posters on hand hygiene, and covering coughs and sneezes, to display in bathrooms, classrooms and shared spaces.
The hand and respiratory hygiene posters and other educational resources can be found here:
Government coronavirus action plan
The government coronavirus action plan sets out what the UK has done to tackle coronavirus (COVID-19), and what we plan to do next.
The situation is constantly reviewed and action informed by expert science and advice, guided by the Chief Medical Officer and the Chief Scientific Adviser.
The action plan can be found here:
WASH YOUR HANDS
Wash your hands more often for 20 seconds with soap and hot water.
Watch this short NHS film for guidance:
Teach young children how to wash their hands with the NHS handwashing song:
Public Health England recommends that in addition to handwashing before eating, and after coughing and sneezing, everyone should also wash hands after using toilets and travelling on public transport.
Department for Education coronavirus helpline
The Department for Education Coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)
Please note, we are currently experiencing high volumes of calls and apologise for any wait that you may experience. Your call will join a queue and we will answer as soon as possible.
If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UKPRN) available when calling the helpline.
Where to find the latest information
Updates on COVID-19:
Guidance for educational settings:
Guidance for social or community care and residential settings:
Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas:
Educational resources:
Latest Department for Education information:
ONLINE information
Updates on Coronavirus:
Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas:
Public Health England blog:
