Latest News

8th March - return for all pupils

Mon 01 Mar 2021

All children are expected to return to school from Monday 8^th March 2021. Full attendance is required unless a child has a particular reason, such as shielding or isolating.

Whilst Government guidance remains in place for COVID-19 and its variants, our bubble structure will continue, as part of our risk assessed control measures, limited mixing and maintaining appropriate physical distancing.

Families and visitors to the site will be expected to wear face coverings. Staff will wear a face covering when meeting families at drop-off and pick-up times. The one-way system will be reintroduced.

Enhanced cleaning, including handwashing etc, will also continue.

Staggered start, break, lunch and finish times will also remain, to minimise physical contact:

Class	Start time	Break (15mins)	Lunch (eating)	Finish
Nursery	8:45am			11:45am
Reception	8:55am		11:45am	3:25pm
Year 1	8:45am	10:15am	12:00pm	3:15pm
Year 2	8:55am	10:30am	12:30pm	3:25pm
Year 3	8:55am	10:30am	12:30pm	3:25pm
Year 4	8:45am	10:15am	12:00pm	3:30pm
Year 5	8:45am	10:00am	12:30pm	3:30pm
Year 6	8:55am	10:45am	12:15pm	3:25pm

Breakfast Club will continue. Please book in advance here.

If anyone is unwell, displaying symptoms of COVID-19, they should self-isolate and be tested without delay. If the test is returned positive, the self-isolation should be for at least 10 days. Please let the school office know. School will continue to liaise with NHS Test and Trace, following their advice and guidance. In the event of a positive test, others within the appropriate "bubble" may be asked to self-isolate. A class bubble could be sent home at very short notice.

If any of our children become unwell with COVID-19 symptoms within school, we will contact families immediately and expect that they will come to collect their child straight away. Whilst waiting, the child will be isolated away from other children - but always reassuringly supervised by a familiar member of our staff. It is, therefore, vital that we have your most up-to-date contact information and that you are available to be contacted throughout the day. We are sure that you will understand.

Spring 2021 Lockdown - Update

Sun 10 Jan 2021

Dear Families and Friends,

Thank you, and a hopeful New Year to you! As we all looked back on 2020 over the Christmas holidays, I am sure that we also looked forward to a more positive year to come. Whilst it has been a shaky start, we must remain hopeful, and encourage each other to stay confident, determined and optimistic.

Our online nativities were viewed by so many of you and your families - and the feedback was so encouraging and positive. I hope that you enjoyed each of them whilst they were available. We can't make them available to buy or keep, but we are planning further online offerings in the coming months, so watch this space!

Restricting attendance during the national lockdown (as the Government have called it) did not come as a surprise to me. The news and announcements in the run up to 4th January were all leading to some sort of action to curb the growing spread of Covid-19 and its variants. For us, it was a considered, necessary decision to limit the number of children in the school building, as we awaited further information, scientific data and instruction. These eventually came and, even yesterday evening (Saturday), the Government was updating and tweaking their guidance to schools and our families. I am sure that there will be more to come.

One of the hardest parts of this new lockdown, is that we have many more children of critical (key) worker families to teach in school - in every year group. Some classes have over half of their children in the building, and we have had high expectations placed upon us to cater for both "in school" and "at home" children's learning. As we became aware of the demand for the "in school" places, we have had to adapt our plans for the coming weeks to make them manageable and effective. Our website is the place to head for everything you need, and we will use our App and email to keep our families updated. Please keep us updated with any changes of contact details.

Many have asked about who can attend school during this lockdown period. As last night's Government guidance for families says: “Children and young people are eligible to attend school or college if at least one parent or carer is a critical worker, and they can’t keep their child at home. Critical workers are those whose work is critical to the coronavirus (COVID- 19) and EU transition response’ This means that, currently, we have about a third of the pupils in the building, and all staff are in school each day. Whilst we will endeavour to offer places to all who need them, please consider whether this is actually necessary for you. The Government changed their criteria during the last lockdown, which disappointed some families, and they may do so again this time. We do not want to turn anyone away, but our local health and safety risk assessment may mean that we have to, in order to provided the safest place possible for all. Our most vulnerable children will always be catered for, the best we can.

Another question that I want to answer here is this: will we be offering "live" lessons? The simple answer is no, but let me briefly explain the three main reasons:

We must offer all of our children equity of access to our teaching. Not everyone has a working device that is suitable for online learning yet. We are aiming to distribute our limited supply of extra laptops, to those struggling families, over the coming days. This will help even out the digital divide, but will not eradicate it. Most families will have to share their limited devices amongst multiple family members - so how can more than one person join a "live" lesson at the same time (especially when the other child is of secondary age)? And, mobile data is expensive.

We have to use our expertise to provide resources that actually work for the children's learning. "Live" lessons rarely offer that, when compared to pre-recorded resources. In fact, the evidence suggests that the opposite is true. When a teacher prepares a video or audio lesson in advance, the children can watch it at their chosen time, and multiple times. Instruction and modelling can be shared and replayed again and again, which will also help the adults support their child's learning in a way that works for them.

We always have to consider safeguarding implications. With children in the classrooms as well as online at the same time, it is more difficult to fulfil our statutory duty of care to everyone. Yes, there are solutions, but none that outway the first two issues above.

This does not mean that we will not provide "live" sessions for each class. On the contrary. Regular contact is vital so, as we did in the summer term, we will begin using Zoom (or an equivalent) in the coming days - but this will be for short discussion and catching up sessions, rather than direct teaching for the moment. Remember, we will do all that is necessary to provide the highest quality of learning, trying to reduce the burden for you as parents and carers.

So, all of our teachers have been preparing and sharing pre-recorded video for the appropriate age and stage of the children. Each class will vary, depending on what we know is best for each child. The Home Learning sections of Class Pages will have a new link, for each week. Just follow the date at the top of the page! The 'All Children' page will also link to other free resources that we will make available, as we did last time. We have decided not to use the Blog feature for the moment. Early Years families will continue to have access to Tapestry for communication.

We have prepared some short home-learning packs, for many families who need help in the transition to online, remote learning. A message will be sent on Monday, once everything is copied and ready.

The Government expects schools to provide a few hours of core learning each day - about 3 hours for Reception and Key Stage 1, and 4 hours for Key Stage 2. This does not mean that the children should be online for that whole time - whatever they may ask for! We are offering various activities that are away from the devices - so please watch your child's screen time. We are also trying to minimise printing, as this isn't always possible and can be expensive. Just look at the learning activities and see what the children can do "offline". All feedback is through the contact form on the Class Pages, and via email at the moment. Please use your own email address, rather than that of the child (if they have one). If you want to send work back into school, a quick scan or photo will be fine. This can be throughout the week. Our aim to use "Feedback Friday" has had to change due to the demand in school. Instead, teachers will be posting work and checking their class email each day, addressing any issues and clarifying anything necessary.

There are more developments to follow - including offering every child a free version of Microsoft Office and content whist they remain with us. The BBC, of course, is also broadcasting 3 hours of new content for primary aged children on CBBC, from Monday morning.

If you have any particular issues with our ongoing arrangements, please let me know in the first instance - emailing headteacher@homesupport.org.uk. The Government have said that you may also contact Ofsted if you wish.

We are here for you. School is not closed. I am delighted that our Breakfast Club can still continue and, from next Wednesday, hot meals will be served again in school. Food parcels are, and will be available for our families as they need them - and I expect the quality to improve! But, we cannot help if we do not know - so, please, stay in touch!

Your sincerely,
Mr. Restall (and the whole St Bart's Team)

Home Learning Update

Tue 05 Jan 2021

Dear Families,

As we establish new routines, we are very aware that all the children should receive the best possible teaching, whether in school or at home. We know that you all carried the burden during the first lockdown, but this time is different. Whilst we work within the capacity given to us, we intend on building up new routines for the coming weeks, where our staff team deliver the teaching and follow-up activities, mainly online. We must also continue to work within the safeguarding guidelines.

The main place we will be sharing resources is via our website Class Pages. Each class has its own page, and the activities will be placed in the Home Learning section, dated for each day. There will be an English and maths lesson, as well as some other subjects including science, RE and PE. During the week there will also be a mixture of video content for new learning, written activities and some that involve being as active as possible.

Whilst we aim to provide this range for everyone, each class will have age and curriculum-appropriate content.

There will be some direct communication, each week, with all families – including using some live video – with the expectation that every child will have completed the tasks set. Time capacity means that feedback will only be given at the end of the week. Therefore, Class Pages will be updated from Monday to Thursday, and Friday will be used to respond to the work submitted and issues raised.

As you will know, every class has a its own home support email address. This is where any work may be submitted for the class teachers to look at, but please do not expect an immediate response. Remember, it’s Feedback Friday – but anything urgent can be sent to the main office address.

The number of critical (key) workers in the school building is much higher than during the previous lockdown. This limits the amount of time staff have, and a fair balance needs to be struck between those in school and those at home. Thank you for your patience as we work this through over the coming days.

Please also remember that, if you have any safeguarding concerns – either contact school directly or ring the Front Door on 0345 2000 109.

There will be further updates in the coming days.

We hope that you are all well.

Take care,

The St Bart’s Team

Spring term arrangements

Fri 01 Jan 2021

Dear families and friends,

The spring term begins for all children on Tuesday 5th January.

As you will know, a new variant of the Covid virus is spreading quickly across the country. This new virus, whilst very similar to the main virus that we have been dealing with, appears to different in the ways it can more easily spread.

Whilst we await more data and guidance, it is clear that we must do all we can to prevent the spread of all viruses, especially at this time of year. To do this, we all must continue to wash our hands more regularly, keep our distance and wear a face covering when near those not in our household or support bubble.

Therefore, we are asking all visitors in school, including those who drop off and pick up the children, to wear a face covering whilst on the playground.

This does not include the children, as we would not ask them to wear a face covering.

Can we also underline the importance of keeping at least 2m apart, even whilst your face is covered. Extra markings will be painted on the path to help Early Years families maintain their distance.

Even though many of us have already been wearing a covering on site, please would you explain this to the children, so that they are not put off by not seeing adult faces.

Staff will not be wearing face coverings when working with the children, although they may see adults wearing them when in and around school - as they did during the autumn term.

We hope that you understand and support this decision. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Mr Restall or Mrs Whitaker directly.

Yours,

The St Bart's Team

Change in End of Term Arrangements

Thu 10 Dec 2020 R Restall

Dear Parents and Carers,

On Tuesday afternoon, very late in the term, the Government asked all schools to consider making Friday 18^th December an INSET (Teacher Training) Day. This is to support the contact tracing which we do, in the pre-Christmas period. After some careful consideration, and speaking with our Chair of Governors, St Bart’s will have our final day of the term on Thursday 17^th December. Friday will be a training day for staff, replacing the day planned for the summer term.

I do understand that this change will put some of you in a tricky situation for childcare, and I am sorry for the very short notice. Under normal circumstances, it is something we would never want to do. My hope is that, as well as supporting contact tracing, and aiding the provision of free school meals in the holiday period, the date change will reduce the likelihood of our families having to isolate for the Christmas period and make for a more enjoyable time.

Please bear in mind that, even with this reduction in term length, the school and Public Health England may contact families with a request to self-isolate. If you are not contacted by 23^rd December, then there will be no further Covid-19 infection risk linked to your child attending school during the last week of term.

If your child develops symptoms during this time, especially if they receive a positive test, please contact school directly on our dedicated mobile number (07496 530251) or, even better, email our office so that we can follow up. These will be checked daily, between 9am and 3pm, up to and including 23^rd December.

I have included the full brief from the Government at the end of this message.

Thank you for the tremendous support you have shown this term. It has been a term like no other, but it has been a great success.

Yours sincerely,

Mr. Restall

Communication from the DfE – to schools (Tuesday 8^th December 2020)

End of term planning

We know that school and further education leaders, teachers and staff, as well as nurseries and childminders, have worked tirelessly over the last term. This has included their important role in contact tracing, to help in the national effort to limit the spread of the virus. We are aware that this has led to additional work over weekends and holidays and we are incredibly grateful for this.

We recognise the challenges of this responsibility at the end of term. Public Health England has agreed a 6 day window after the final day of teaching in which schools and further education providers are asked to remain contactable so they can assist with contact tracing where necessary. This will allow enough time for positive coronavirus (COVID-19) cases to be identified and confirmed by a test and for relevant contacts in the education setting to be traced. We are clear that beyond 6 days after the final day of teaching, school and further education staff are not asked to play a role in any contact tracing. It is also likely that the need to support the tracing process will reduce dramatically over the course of the 6 days as the majority of cases should be identified earlier in the week.

End of term – advice for schools

To ensure that staff get the time off they need and deserve, schools may wish to use an INSET day, making Friday 18 December a non-teaching day and using the day for staff training, which could be delivered online. Where term would normally finish in the week commencing 21 December, schools may wish to consider adjusting term dates to make Friday 18 December the last day of term (which could be an INSET day), and bringing forward the start of term in January by the same number of days.

In all circumstances, teaching time must be made up at another point in the academic year. You should not limit attendance at school before Friday 18 December. It remains vital for all children to be in school up to the last day of teaching.

We recognise this communication has arrived with schools late in the term but would ask schools to be as helpful to parents as they can by sharing any changes to end of term arrangements as soon as possible, particularly where schools choose to make Friday 18 December a non-teaching day.

Your support with this is appreciated.

We recommend all schools ensure staff, parents and carers are aware of the following information and relevant arrangements regarding positive cases in the holidays:

Where a pupil or staff member tests positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), having developed symptoms more than 48 hours since being in school, the school should not be contacted. Parents and carers should follow contact tracing instructions provided by NHS Test and Trace.

For the first 6 days after teaching ends, if a pupil or staff member tests positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), having developed symptoms within 48 hours of being in school, the school is asked to assist in identifying close contacts and advising self-isolation, as the individual may have been infectious whilst in school.

School staff are not asked to remain on-call or conduct any contact tracing more than 6 days after the final day of teaching. Where a schools last teaching day is on Thursday 17 December, there should be no pupil contact tracing asks beyond Wednesday 23 December.

For the first 6 days after the end of term, schools are not asked to be on-call at all times. Staff responsible for contact tracing may designate a limited period in the day to receive notification of positive cases and advise close contacts to self-isolate (this can be done by text or email). The Department for Education coronavirus (COVID-19) helpline and PHE advice service are available to support with any queries you have about positive cases in your school.

Where pupils are required to self-isolate due to contact with a positive case after the first 6 days following the end of term, schools do not need to be informed about their absence until the first day of the new term.

Is my child too ill to attend school?

Mon 16 Nov 2020

It is common for colds and other viral infections to circulate across communities at this time of year. In many cases, children will be well enough to attend school and continue their learning with little or no interruption to their education. While it is important to ensure that children are not unnecessarily kept away from school, for some illnesses children will need to stay at home.

There are government guidelines for schools and nurseries that say when children should be kept off school and when they shouldn’t.

Children with diarrhoea or vomiting should stay away from school for 2 days after their symptoms have gone.

COVID-19 symptoms

If your child or anyone in the household has any of the main coronavirus symptoms listed in the box below they need to stay at home self-isolate with the rest of the household and get a test by telephoning 119 or booking online at

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/get-a-test-to-check-if-you-have-coronavirus/

new continuous cough

Your child needs tested if they have a cough that has lasted for more than an hour, if they have had three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours, or if they are coughing more than usual. The cough is usually dry.

fever/high temperature

A high temperature is feeling hot to the touch on your chest or back. If a thermometer is available take the temperature – a high temperature is 37.8C or higher. Your child may feel warm, cold or shivery.

loss of, or change in, sense of smell or taste

This means your child has noticed they cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal.

Common cold symptoms

Children with simple cold symptoms such as a runny nose or sore throat without a fever who would normally have attended school in other times, can go to school and should not be tested for COVID-19.

https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/resources/covid-19-talking-children-families-about-returning-school-guiding-principles#common-cold-and-covid-19-symptoms

Please see the attached "Quick Guide" pages to show a table for you to easily check against.

Autumn Parent-Teacher Conversations

Thu 22 Oct 2020 R Restall

Dear Families,

As we cannot hold Parents' Evenings in the usual way this term, we are offering 5 minute telephone conversations with teachers during the first 2 weeks of November. Each family may sign up to the available half-hour slots using the Doodle Polls below.

The slots are on a first come, first served basis.

You will not receive a booking confirmation email this time, so please make a note of the half-hour you have been offered, and be ready to receive the call at some point during that time. Teachers will try calling twice before moving on to the next family.

Please type accurately, as we will use the preferred number you enter into the poll.

Please also use your child's name, not your own. Your email address will indicate who you are, and this must match our records, otherwise we will not call.

Make sure that you book for the right class(es) using the links below:

Nursery

Reception

Class 1

Class 2

Class 3

Class 4

Class 5

Class 6

The polls closed on 31st October to enable teachers to prepare.

If you use CallerID, the number displayed will not be the school number, and may appear as "withheld."

Thank you.

New Local Measures

Fri 18 Sep 2020 R Restall

As you will know, from Today (Friday 18th September), North Tyneside (and 6 other North East Local Authorities) have new, temporary measures in place to help prevent the spread of Covid-19 in our region. (https://my.northtyneside.gov.uk/category/1429/coronavirus-covid-19).

We strongly urge all families to adhere to the national and local measures, difficult as they are, to help minimise the spread of Covid-19. Please follow our one-way systems and keep 2m away from each other. We recognise the issues and difficulties involving informal childcare and, along with the Diocese and Local Authority, we are seeking further guidance and clarification from the Government. We will let you know when we receive this.

Members of Linked Households ("Support Bubbles") may continue to drop-off and pick-up the children at school whilst these measures are in place.

Plans in the event of a confirmed Covid case: What if?

Thu 17 Sep 2020 R Restall

Whilst we hope and pray that all will be well, we must also plan for what would happen if one of our school community became ill with Covid-19. We have such plans in place, so here is what you need to know and should expect.

School should be informed as soon as possible of any positive test result, either directly from the family or via Public Health. Please ring the school office straight away if you receive a positive test result. School will then carry out a risk assessment to ascertain who has been in close, recent contact with the ill person and, in consultation with Public Health, decide on next steps.

It is likely that groups of staff and children would be asked to self-isolate immediately. Parents and carers of those directly affected will be contacted and the children must be collected from school in our orderly, safe way. It is only those who have come into close contact who should self-isolate, not their family members unless Covid symptoms become evident.

We must have your current phone number, and you must be able to answer it during the school day. If necessary, your child may need to be collected from school straight away. We know that this will not always be possible, but we must be able to contact you.

When groups or classes of children are self-isolating, school will continue to provide for their education. We will not be asking you to take that responsibility in the way that you had to in the summer. We aim to continue our own curriculum, with some daily input from our own staff team using the "Home Learning" sections of our Class Pages.

Here is the overview of the current plan:

Each day, from Monday to Thursday, the teachers will set some English, Maths and other activities for the children to complete. This will have an element of differentiation - where the children will be able to access the learning that is appropriate for them.
There will be occasional video instruction from us, for anything that is new for the children.
Any completed work can be uploaded or emailed to a *new class address.
Twice each day, the teachers will check the email and uploads, offering clarification and further support.
We will make phone calls during the week, especially if we have not heard from the children.
There will be the opportunity to use Zoom as a class, at least once per week.
Fridays will be spent giving personal feedback to the children.

The expectation is that, whilst away from school, both children and teachers will have the closest thing to classroom activities as possible, continuing to meet the needs of our children as best we can with remote learning.

We understand that some families may struggle with technology. It may be possible to offer a limited paper alternative, guidance and risk assessment permitting.

This is the basic detail for everyone. If a group of children need to learn from home, more specific information will be shared with them.

*Please do not try and use the new class email addresses or contact forms, as these will only be monitored when a class needs to be away from school for an extended period.

Breakfast Club restarting and revision

Wed 09 Sep 2020 R Restall

On Monday 14th September, we plan to begin providing our Breakfast Club once again.

Due to the current restrictions and other developments, we have made some significant changes:

Times

The club will initially run between 8am and the start of school (although an earlier start is being considered.) Arrival time is strictly between 8am and 8:15am via our new side gate. The gate will be locked again just after 8:15. Handover will be at the Dining Room door where the children will be registered. There is a strict no entry rule for those dropping the children off. Adults must leave the site promptly.

Booking

All children must be booked into the club at least 24 hours in advance (via our website or School App link.) In order to cater for the various ages, the children cannot just turn up on the day.

Families may book places when each fortnightly calendar is opened. We aim to open each calendar giving plenty of notice. There is a limit of 20 places per day and each child must be booked separately. Please ensure that you book using you child's full name.

Cost

For the majority of children, the cost, including food and care, has been revised to £5 per child per day. This does not include those who receive benefits-related Free School Meals - school will continue to cover costs for those families. If you believe you are entitled to free provision, please contact school directly.

Payment should be in advance. You may pay either via our SIMS Pay system or in cash - sealed in a named envelope and handed to Breakfast Club or Office staff. Please contact our office if you need further details.

Remaining Open

We aim to maintain the integrity of our class bubbles so that the club can remain open, even if there are issues within a particular class. Sadly, we cannot guarantee that this provision will continue and it may need to close at short notice. The children will be seated and provided with their food and drink at their table. Activities will be within a limited area and, whilst interaction between children of different ages will be minimised, we aim to provide interesting and fun things to do.

All details, including booking options, are available from this page.

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