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Download full letter – Coronavirus – key updates 18.3.20

Coronavirus – key updates for parents and students

Working from home in the event of closure or self-isolation

As you are aware we are dealing with an unprecedented situation which is largely beyond our control. We have already had to act on a partial closure for year 10 and we will review the academy’s ability to run on a daily basis. Although we hope to remain open, we are putting measures in place to support students should we be forced to close. Staff have spent time preparing resources for all year groups to access online.

Today we have held sessions with students in year groups 7, 8, 9, and 11 to explain to them what resources are available and how to access them. We know that some students are absent through self-isolation and of course, year 10 are not in school. Therefore, we want to emphasise to all how to access the resources. Please note that these instructions have been updated since the letter yesterday. Some minor glitches have been fixed.

The quickest way is to go to the Cathedral Academy website https://cathedral.trinitymat.org and click on the red ‘School Closure Information’ bar at the top of the page. From there, you should see links to Office 365, SharePoint, training videos and other online resources.

We are fully aware that some students may not have access to ICT facilities at home. Therefore, we have asked students in this position to let a member of staff know so that we can send a printed pack with them. If your child is currently off and you are in this position please contact reception and we will post some resources to you.

The expectation of students in any period of closure would be to work on each subject for the same number of hours as they are timetabled. Therefore, students should be working for 5 timetabled hours per day. If any closure is extended, the resources will be added to week by week.

Additional measures for year 11 students

As year 11 are nearing their final exams, there are some additional things in place to support learning as follows:

• A revision pack will be provided, with revision supplies and an exercise book for any work done over the period of closure.
• A parental tracker to sign for each day of learning.
• Staff will e-mail students regularly to give them information, pointers, reminders and updates.
• Students will be able to e-mail questions to their teachers and will get a response wherever possible.
• Weekly phone-call from a member of staff to the household – we will ask to speak with the student, to discuss how learning is going and if any further support is needed.
• The possibility for year 11 students who do not have ICT access at home to loan a laptop.

Our aim is to ensure that in any period of closure or self-isolation, that students have some level of continuity of learning at this important time. Of course, there may be some breaks in service if staff are not well, but we hope to continue this for year 11 throughout a period of closure. Also, should there be any further information about examinations we will endeavour to keep you updated regarding this.

 Overseas school trips

It is understandable parents/carers will have questions regarding any upcoming overseas school trips.  Currently, the government advises against any overseas trips.

We continue to liaise with our insurance companies and the travel companies and will continue to follow future government advice as this is subject to review on an on-going basis.  As such our overseas trips in June and September are not cancelled but are looking unlikely. At this stage however, we are not able to access refunds although this may change over time and we will keep parents informed as any potential trip date draws closer.

Other school trips, enrichment and performances

In light of the current situation all school performances, enrichment sessions and domestic trips are postponed until further notice. This includes Monday and Friday Performing Arts enrichment sessions – please note that we have had to cancel these with immediate effect until further notice. Of course any monies paid by parents for these sessions will be able to be refunded or carried over in due course.

Updates for parents

In the event of a school closure we would endeavour to keep parents/carers informed of any key information and potential dates for re-opening.  Thanks to all parents/carers for their support at this difficult time, we will keep you informed of any updates or changes as they happen.

17th March 2020 – The below information has been texted to all parents today. Download the full letter here: Coronavirus update to parents 17.3.20

I am writing to you to update you on the academy’s position regarding the Coronavirus. The spread of the virus and government advice on self-isolation is having a significant impact on staffing levels, meaning that the academy is unable to operate at full capacity.  As a result, we have to consider how we can continue to deliver the very highest standards of both education and health and safety for students and staff.

Therefore, I have taken the decision to carry out a partial school closure just for year 10 students from tomorrow. This means that the academy will be open only to year groups 7, 8, 9 and 11 for the remainder of this week. We will be reviewing the situation daily and we will contact you if there are any changes to this position.

Staff used the time on Monday afternoon in order to make some key learning resources available for students in all year groups in the event of closure. These learning resources can be accessed online by following the instructions provided on the attached document Accessing Office 365 and Sharepoint. We expect that year 10 students will now access and follow these to give some continuity of learning.

I would like to stress to all parents that this is not a decision I have taken lightly and not a decision I want to make. However, in these unique and testing times we are having to make some very difficult decisions. We hope you can support us at this time.

Rob Marsh – Principal

The below update has been texted to all parents/carers this morning. Download full letter here – COVID-19 Trust update 16.3.20

Update from Michael Gosling – CEO Trinity MAT 

I realise that the Principal of your school may have recently sent a letter regarding the global Coronavirus outbreak and how it currently affects your child’s education.  I would like to follow that up with our latest position as a Trust.

We are committed to following guidance issued by the government and Public Health England.  I would emphasise that the latest guidance says that anyone showing symptoms of a fever or a new persistent cough should self-isolate for a minimum of seven days.  This is to help to slow the transmission of the illness.  Please can we ask that everyone is vigilant, looks out for these symptoms and follows the guidance, as inconvenient as this might be?  It is likely that over the next few weeks, members of staff and their dependents might also develop symptoms and need to self-isolate.

Whilst the government is relaxing rules on class sizes, there might come a point when we have insufficient staff available to keep the school safe.  It might then become necessary to shut the school to certain year groups.  We all hope to avoid this, but we also need to be realistic about potential scenarios.  In such a situation, we will prioritise opening for pupils preparing for imminent public examinations, as well as for younger pupils who would require more supervision at home.

I hope and expect that you will support this reasoning, especially given the extra-ordinary circumstances that we are currently experiencing.  We will use your school’s website to post Trust update messages, along with specific school information about how your child’s school intends to deliver continuous education and support their education in the event of school closure.

Useful information:

The Department for Education (DfE) have set up a helpline that is now available to answer questions about COVID-19, relating to education and children’s social care.  Staff, parents, carers and young people can contact this helpline as follows:

Phone: 0800 046 8687

Email: DfE.coronavirushelpline@education.gov.uk  Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)

Undoubtedly the best way to tackle the challenge posed by Coronavirus is by following Public Health England’s advice, for example on hand washing, and reducing the impact and spread of misinformation by relying on information from trusted sources, such as that on http://www.nhs.uk and https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

We appreciate this is an uncertain time for everyone but please be reassured that the Trust will do all it can to minimise any impact.  If you have any concerns please contact your school through the usual channels.

Finally, in summary:

• We remain open at present;
• Please keep pupils at home for at least 7 days if they have a fever or persistent new cough;
• Please understand that these are unprecedented circumstances and we will be doing our best at all times.

We are in daily contact with the DfE, as well as the Local Authority, and are liaising with other schools locally and I will continue to provide updates as and when appropriate.

In the meantime, can I thank you all for your patience and support and ask that you continue to impress on your children the need for excellent personal hygiene and considerate behaviour to minimise the risks to all of us and our family members?

Regards

Michael Gosling – CEO Trinity MAT

11th March 2020

Please click here: Letter to Parents – Early closure 16.3.20 to download the letter to parents/carers that has been sent out via text today. Paper copies will be distributed to students on 12.3.20.

Download the full letter here: Coronavirus update – 5.3.20

Update on Academy response to the Coronavirus (Covid-19)

We are issuing this update in line with government advice about the spread of the Coronavirus. At this stage we have no reason to believe that anyone at Cathedral Academy is directly affected by the virus. However, given the current media attention and following some enquiries we felt it appropriate to send some information to parents.

Public Health England are issuing daily advice and guidance for schools and we are working closely to follow this. The current advice for schools who are not directly affected is to be aware of the situation and actively promote the need to practice good hygiene habits of washing hands regularly and ‘Catch it, Bin it, Kill it’ when coughing or sneezing (see attached page). In our academy we have a number of hand sanitiser dispensers for staff and student use. We encourage students to use these and wash their hands regularly.

Currently there are no plans to change any of the arrangements for school attendance, upcoming school trips or summer exams.

We will however continue to monitor the advice from Public Health, the Health Secretary and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in order to maintain appropriate safeguarding arrangements and will keep you updated as appropriate.

All students attended an assembly last week regarding healthy eating. From Monday 3rd February 2020 the following items will be confiscated if brought into the
academy:

 All fizzy drinks.
 All energy drinks.
 Family or grab bag sized items including chocolate bars, crisps and biscuits.

The letter sent home to parents/carers can be downloaded here.

Please see below to download the first newsletter from the PE Department.

Download: PE Newsletter Issue 1