Guidance in short
We have put in place control measures to reduce the risk of COVID transmission and whilst we perceive the risk to be small it cannot be eliminated.
- If your child exhibits the symptoms set out here by the NHS keep your child at home and immediately arrange for a test;
- Contact the school to report your child’s absence and to confirm when a test has been booked;
- Inform us of the result of this test as soon as you recieve it;
If the school receives notification of a positive test we will:
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- Notify Public Health England and follow guidance given;
- Contact parents of individuals that may need to quarantine as a precautionary measure;
- Inform all parents that a positive case has been confirmed with clear guidance on steps that have been taken.
In the event of your child being asked to self-isolate a full timetable will continue to be delivered through Google Classroom.
My child has COVID symptoms, what should I do?
Symptoms that are considered indicators of COVID-19:
- a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
- a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
- a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal
If your child is showing any one of these symptoms you should book a test immediately. You child must self-isolate for 10 days and your household must isolate for 14 days.
Once you have a confirmed date and time for this COVID test you must inform the school that your child is absent as a result of COVID and inform us of the test date.
As soon as you receive the results you must inform the school.
If the result is negative your child may return to school and the household no longer needs to self-isolate.
If the result is positive you must self-isolate for at least 10 days from when your child’s symptoms started. Your household must self-isolate for at least 14 days from when your child’s symptoms started.
Somebody in my house has COVID symptoms, what should I do?
If somebody in your house is showing COVID symptoms they should book a test immediately and your entire household must self-isolate for 14 days.
You must inform the school that your child is self-isolating as a result of a member of the household displaying COVID symptoms.
If the result is negative your child may return to school and the household no longer needs to self-isolate.
If the result is positive you must self-isolate for at least 10 days from when your symptoms started. Your household must self-isolate for at least 14 days from when your symptoms started.
What happens if a somebody in my child's class tests positive for COVID-19?
In the event of the school receiving confirmation of a positive test result we will immediately contact Public Health England, in line with government guidelines, and follow steps that they will set out.
We anticipate that in the first instance we will ask all pupils that have been in close contact with the confirmed case to self-isolate for a period of 14 days. Close contact means:
- direct close contacts – face to face contact with an infected individual for any length of time, within 1 metre, including being coughed on, a face to face conversation, or unprotected physical contact (skin-to-skin)
- proximity contacts – extended close contact (within 1 to 2 metres for more than 15 minutes) with an infected individual
- travelling in a small vehicle, like a car, with an infected person
Note that this would not immediately result in the school asking an entire class to self-isolate.
To aid in the process of identification of these pupils we require all students to sit in accordance with our seating plans.
Will my child be asked to stay at home if somebody in their class has COVID symptoms?
No. We will only act as a result of a confirmed case.
Should I keep my child off school if they are unwell?
To this point your child’s education has been severely disrupted by COVID-19. It is vital your child attends school regularly to limit any further impact.
If you feel your child is too ill to attend school you must make clear the symptoms your child is displaying when reporting this absence. Do not simply state ‘ill’ or ‘unwell’.
We would remind all parents that it is their duty to ensure their child attends school regularly.
Many doctor’s surgeries are now operating video appointments at times to suit you, including weekends. We recommend that parent make use of this service.