St Thomas More Catholic Primary School
Inspiration, Celebration and Education
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Dear Parents and Carers,
I hope that you all managed to have a wonderful Christmas, even if it was different from the one that you originally had planned. It was certainly not the way that we had wanted to end the term, but unfortunately there was a Covid outbreak amongst staff and our first priority was to keep our whole school community as safe as possible.
As I'm sure that many of you are now aware, we have moved to Tier 4 in Gloucestershire. This brings with it, new restrictions, which can be viewed online on the Gov.uk website and I have been awaiting the announcement from the Government regarding the opening of schools after Christmas. As schools, we rarely have prior knowledge of the content of these announcements, so we often plan for two possible scenarios.
The announcement from Gavin Williamson has made it clear that the majority of Primary Schools are to open, as normal, from next week, even if the school is in a Tier 4 area. For us this is Monday 4th January for staff inset and Tuesday 5th January for the children. There are a small number of primary schools that will be told not to re-open at this time, but Cheltenham is not currently one of these areas.
I hope that you manage to enjoy the remaining part of the holiday with your family and that, most importantly, you are keeping safe and well.
I wish you all a very Happy New Year and I look forward to seeing you all on Tuesday next week.
With very best wishes,
Mrs Tippen
Head Teacher
Dear Parents and Carers,
As you are aware there are several members of our school community who have tested positive for COVID 19 and the decision has been taken to close the school this week to prevent further infections.
We know that you may find this concerning, but we are continuing to monitor the situation and are working closely with Public Health England. This letter is to inform you of the current situation and provide advice on how to support your child. Please be reassured that for most people, Coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.
A small number of children who have been in close contact with the individuals who have tested positive for Coronavirus (COVID-19) have been contacted by telephone informing them that their child must stay at home for 10 days.
What to do if your child develops symptoms of COVID 19
If your child develops symptoms of COVID-19, they must not come to school and should remain at home for at least 10 days from the date when their symptoms appeared. Anyone with symptoms will be eligible for testing and this can be arranged via https://www.nhs.uk/ask-for-a-coronavirus-test or by calling 119.
All other household members who remain well, must stay at home and not leave the house for 10 days. This includes anyone in your ‘Support Bubble’.
Further information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection
The 10-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill.
Household members should not go to work, school or public areas and exercise should be taken within the home.
If you require help with buying groceries, other shopping or picking up medication, or walking a dog, you should ask friends or family. Alternatively, you can order your shopping online and medication by phone or online.
Household members staying at home for 10 days will greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the household could pass on to others in the community
If you are able, move any vulnerable individuals (such as the elderly and those with underlying health conditions) out of your home, to stay with friends or family for the duration of the home isolation period.
Symptoms
The most common symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are recent onset of:
For most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.
If your child does develop symptoms, you can seek advice from the nhs.uk website at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/check-if-you-have-coronavirus-symptoms/. If you are concerned about your child’s symptoms, or they are worsening you can seek advice from NHS 111 at https://111.nhs.uk/ or by phoning 111.
How to stop COVID-19 spreading
There are things you can do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19
Do
Further Information
Further information is available at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
Yours sincerely,
Mrs Nicola Tippen
Head Teacher