Good day to you all, I hope you are enjoying the end of the school holiday and are ready for the next academic year, I and my staff are ready and excited to welcome you all back into full time education.
As I am sure most of you are aware new guidance was released on Friday evening and I expect through the year much more guidance will be released periodically, I think the key to success for the up and coming year will be flexibility.
The first, of what I think through the year will be many adjustments to working arrangements, is regarding the use of face masks.
If you wish your child to use a face mask in school this is now permitted, however conditions apply to ensure safe use.
They can be used only at movement and social time, when in lessons they need to be removed and stored.
It is also vital that they are worn correctly and that clear instructions are provided on how to put on, remove, store and dispose of face coverings to avoid inadvertently increasing the risks of transmission. Parents need to ensure this training is done with students prior to attending school.
Safe wearing of face coverings requires:
- the cleaning of hands before and after touching – including to remove or put them on
- the safe storage of them in individual, sealable plastic bags between use, this is to be kept in school bags.
- when in use they cover both mouth and nose
- where a face covering becomes damp, it should not be worn and the face covering should be disposed of and replaced carefully.
Students and parents need to be aware that face mask use is a further addition to our working practice and not an optional replacement for other factors, such as social distancing and bubble operations.
It is important that parents who permit the use for face masks for students explain to children the requirements for use, storage and that they don’t lead to complacency in other control measures.
For students wishing to wear face coverings, reason for doing so must be recorded; the academy will NOT be providing face coverings for normal operating conditions.
Kind regards
S Mallett
Head of Academy
