CORONAVIRUS UPDATE     18^th March 2020

Please rest assured that we are doing as much as we possibly can to ensure that all of the children, parents and staff keep safe and calm.

All schools are receiving daily updates from the Department for Education and also from Public Health England. You will be aware that the guidance from the Government is that all schools should stay open and continue to function as normal.

You know that we have now cut down on ‘non-essential’ activities in school, including parents’ evenings, meetings, trips, swimming, etc.

We are now asking parents to drop your children off outside their classroom to try and prevent the spread of the illness as much as possible.

In terms of symptoms of the virus, the current advice remains the same – that the main priority for children is to continue encouraging children to wash their hands more often for 20 seconds with soap and hot water. All of the teachers and staff in schools are reinforcing this throughout the day. You can do your bit to help by making sure that the children wash their hands before coming to school and as soon as they get home.

The Government advice is if anybody shows symptoms of the virus, ie :

• a new, persistent cough or

• a temperature of 37.8% or above,

then they will need to ‘self-isolate’ for seven days. If one person has these symptoms within a household, then ALL members of that household should self-isolate for fourteen days.

In line with DfE guidance, if you suspect that any member of your family has symptoms of the virus, use the NHS 111 online Coronavirus service.  Please use the following link for more information and daily updates : www.gov.uk/coronavirus

The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is now available to answer questions about the virus. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline on 0800 046 8687

As always, the school is thoroughly cleaned at the beginning and end of each day and we have built in additional sessions regularly for hand washing in school including on entry and on leaving the school.  We are also talking to children about coronavirus and trying to answer their questions.        

All schools will strive to stay open, unless advised otherwise.

I am aware that there are a number of schools who are having to close as members of staff are now in self-isolation and are unable to work. If this is the case at Greenfields, please be assured that we would let you know as soon as we possibly can. We are also trying to get some packs of activities for the children to do in case of school closure.

We do understand how worrying this situation is for everybody and we are trying to deal with it as well as we possibly can. It is a difficult time and we know you are worried about the impact this might have on your families and the wider community. It is important we keep each other safe and talk about these events to help with any anxiety, and try to find solutions to any issues that arise.

We hope this is helpful to you and, as always, thank you for your continued support.

As ever, if you have any concerns about this situation, please feel free to come into school to talk to staff about it.

Best wishes

Terry Smith

Headteacher

Greenfields Community School