Update 16th June

Hi

 

I hope you have had a good day. I just want to keep you updated. The government issued new guidance this week for schools. If we have staff and space we can have more groups in as long as we can keep to all the safety guidelines. Before this can happen I have emailed parents in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 to see if they will be sending their child in before we break up on 17th July as these are the year groups the government have said should be in school. I have also emailed Year 5 parents as if we have space these are the year group who will be moving on to Secondary school in just over a year and so they will have less time to catch up on missed learning. I will look at the survey for year 5 tomorrow at 5pm and based on the numbers then will look to see if we have space.

The new guidance also says if we can follow social distancing and all other measures then we can invite children in to see their teacher before the end of term; I am currently also looking at how we can do this safely so that all children can if parents want them to, come into school for a special achievement assembly with their current teacher. Once I have everything organised I will share this with you.

 

On the government update tonight the Prime minister said the government would continue the free lunches for children eligible for FSM over the summer. This was the first I heard of this and haven’t had any guidance on this yet. Once I know more I will let those parents whose children are eligible how this will work over the summer.

 

Please do contact me if you need anything.

 

Take Care

 

Mrs Morley

Update Monday 1st June

Hi

 

I hope you are all safe and well. It has been lovely to see more children in school today and all have settled really well. If your child is in Years 2,3,4,5 or you have chosen to keep your child at home if they are Nursery, Reception, Year 1 or Year 6 they will continue to receive daily emails and their next home learning pack will be delivered this week. As a whole school we are having a museum themed topic so that there will be activities the children can do at home linked to this so that we hope everyone still feels very much part of Oxhey Wood.

If your child is coming into school please make sure we have 2 contact numbers for you that someone is available to answer if needed.

As we can only have 15 children in each group if you are a keyworker or your child is in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 or Year 6 and you do decide you would like your child to come to school you must email me the day before so that I can let you know if we have space for them. As I have said in previous emails this is your individual choice and I don’t want anyone feeling pressure to send their child to school.

 

My email address is head@oxheywood.herts.sch.uk.

 

Please do contact me if you need to

 

Take Care

 

Mrs Morley

 

 

Update Sunday 31st May

Hi

 

I hope you and your family are well and you are enjoying the beautiful weather.

This is to confirm that school is open tomorrow for keyworkers and vulnerable children that have been coming into school throughout lockdown and any other key worker children whose parents have contacted me. We are also open for children in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 but only if you have told me they will be returning. Please do not bring your child to school tomorrow unless you answered yes on the survey monkey or you have emailed me to say they are returning. This is really important for health and safety as groups have been organised and we cannot have anymore than 15 children in each group.

Children can arrive between 8.30-9am(no later than 9am) and Nursery morning only to be collected between 11.50-12, all other children to be collected between 2.45-3.15pm.

If your child or anyone living in your house has a temperature, new persistent cough, or loses their sense of taste or smell please DO NOT bring them into school but book a test and let me know.

Nursery children-normal outside doors

Reception-normal reception door

Year 1- RLG normal doors RCL-outside classroom doors under the canopy

Year 2 keyworker children-normal doors

Years 3,4,5 Keyworker and vulnerable children -Year 3 and 4 playground doors

Year 6- normal doors.

 

Please remember the office is open but for phone calls and emails-no parents should come into the building.

 

If your child is not returning they will receive a new home learning pack during this week as well as an email from their teacher and a phone call, If you have lunches delivered and your child is not in school these will continue too.

 

Thank you for your understanding with this.

 

Take Care

 

Mrs Morley

 

Update Friday 29th May

Hi

I hope you are all well and have had a lovely day. As you will know from previous emails we will be open for more children next week-as well as keyworker and vulnerable children, children in Nursery, Reception, year 1 and Year 6 are able to return to school.

I have now organised the groups as we can only have 15 in each group. If you have not told me your child is returning please do not arrive with them on Monday morning unless I have confirmed which group your child is in and whether there is a space for them.

Please make sure your child if they are coming in has a named water bottle, named sun hat and you have put sun cream on them in the morning. Children should not bring any other bags to school other than a lunch box or for younger children a change of clothes in a named carrier bag.

The gates will be open at 8am-if you child needs to be in school from 8am there is a charge of £1. All other children can arrive between 8.30-9am-it is really important your child is no later than 9am as they must use the entrance for their group. Children can be picked up between 2.45-3.15pm. If you need to collect your child after this up to 4pm there is a charge of £2. Children will use the same entrance and pick up point every day at any of these times.

If your child is returning to school please make sure we have 2 contact numbers that you or a member of your family will be available to take a call from school if needed.

If your child has been coming into school since lockdown and they are in Nursery, Reception or Year 1 they will join their class and I will email you separately. If your child has been coming in since lockdown as either keyworker or vulnerable and they are in Year 2 they will be with Miss Hall in Year 2-please use the normal doors they come in and go home from.

If your child is in Years 3, 4, and 5 and you are a keyworker or in the vulnerable group please drop them at the Year 3/ 4 doors on the KS2 playground and collect them from there too.

I have attached the new lunch menu. If your child is in Years 3,4,5,6 and they are not eligible for free school meals then the cost is £2.40.

Please remember if your child is coming to school if they or anyone in your household has a new cough, temperature or loses their sense of taste or smell you must self isolate, book a test and let me know.

For children not returning we will deliver lunches if you normally receive them and home learning packs will be delivered over next week. Teachers will email daily challenges and will ring children not in school weekly.

I will email parents of children in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 separately as well.

Please let me know if you decide to send your child to school on head@oxheywood.herts.sch.uk or contact me if you have a question or need some support.

Thank you for your continued support

Take Care

Mrs Morley

 

Update 29th May

Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope you and your families are well. Our fantastic Oxhey Wood
community spirit continues and I would like to thank you for the kind messages of support to our brilliant team.

As you will know school has continued to be open for children of
keyworkers and vulnerable children and from Monday children in Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 are
able to return to school.

All of the staff have planned and prepared for this, I have a very
detailed risk assessment that has been shared with all staff.

I have ensured all advice in the government guidance is included as well
as additional measures we have thought of as a staff team because the safety of your children, your family and Oxhey Wood staff is my top priority.

Children will be organised in small groups of no more than 15 with the same adults with them all day and every day.

I will be finalising groups tomorrow afternoon-there is no pressure on
you to send your child back if you currently do not feel comfortable but if
your child will be returning on Monday 1st I need to know by 12 O’clock
today lunchtime to ensure they are included. Please complete the survey
monkey or email me: head@oxheywood.herts.sch.uk

Once I have finalised the groups I will email each year group tomorrow
to let you know where to bring and collect your child from.

These are some of the details of
how we will run from Monday 1st June:

· Nobody should come to school if they, or a member their household, have
a temperature or new persistent cough, lose their sense of taste and smell – seek
medical advice, book a test and please keep in touch with school

· All children should arrive between 8.30-9am– it is really important children arrive no later than 9am so we can follow our plans effectively and to ensure the safety of everyone

·Collection time will be between 2.45-3.15pm

·Different drop off and collection points: this will be confirmed by email 

· Only 1 adult to bring and collect a child to school and keep 2m from
other parents

· Parents to drop children at the door-no parents inside the school
building

· If you need to drop your child earlier due to work commitments then they
can attend breakfast club in their class from 8am-there will be a cost of £1.50

· If your child needs to stay past 3.15pm they can attend afterschool club
(again in their class) until 4pm – there will be a cost of £2 for this.

· If you are a keyworker your child can continue just to come in for the
days that you work but they must arrive no later than 9am and be collected between 2.45-4pm

· If your child has been coming into school since we closed if their year
group is now in school, they will join their class.

· As far as possible there will be staff the children know in each group

·Children can wear school uniform or their own clothes but they MUST wear clean clothes every day

· Each group will have their own first aid bag and staff will look after children and help them if they hurt themselves

· Regular handwashing throughout the day (you can send your child in with
their own named soap and hand cream as needed)

· Tables will be cleaned regularly throughout the day, we have purchased pedal bins for every class.

· Windows and internal doors to remain open

·Break time fruit will be handed to children to reduce touching of fruit

· Lunchtime cutlery will be already in flight style plates to reduce
touching of cutlery

· Children will have their own named stationery packs and their own work
station

·Any shared resources will be cleaned after use e.g. laptops

·Outdoor learning will be planned as much as possible

·Children to bring in named water bottles that go home very night to be
cleaned (these will be kept on their individual work station)

· Children to bring in a named sun hat, sun cream applied before school

· No book bags/ other bags to be brought to school- packed lunch in a
packed lunch box which will be kept on their work space

· Resources that can’t be cleaned easily have been taken out of classrooms

· If you need to speak to the office, please ring or email or pass a
message to the adult on your child’s door in the morning or at pick up.

· No assemblies

· Staggered breaks and lunches

· Children can have a school dinner or bring a home packed lunch. If your
child is eligible for FSM or in in Reception or Years 1 and 2 there is no cost.
If your child is in Years 3-6 ( and not FSM) the cost each day is £2.40.

If your child is not returning to school:

We will continue to deliver home learning packs.( likely from Tuesday 2nd
June)

· There will be a daily challenge

· Your child’s class teacher will ring you each week.

· Please continue to send in photos of what they have been doing at home-
this can be the work set or something they have made or something they have enjoyed doing.

· If you are currently receiving school lunches we will continue to
deliver these to you. If you are not currently receiving school lunches but are struggling please let me know.

Please do contact me if you would like to discuss any of this with me or
if you feel there is something I have not covered. I hope you are reassured that we have thought very carefully about supporting your child’s potential return to school on 1st June

Thank you again for your ongoing support.

Take Care

Mrs Morley

 

 

Update 18th May 2020

 

Hi

 

I hope you have had a lovely weekend and you and your families are well. Although some measures have been lifted I know how hard it is for families and friends as we still can’t meet up- hopefully as we all keep to the updated rules the rates will continue to fall and we will be able to see them in the not so distant future.

 

I meant to say on Friday how brilliant the messages from so many children were that are on our Facebook and website pages- they had thought so hard about their message and it was great to see their happy faces.

 

I’m looking forward to seeing the work and photos of activities that Mrs Caplan has emailed you about-it will be a great way to share and to celebrate what the children have been doing at home. Please remember to add a short sentence about each picture/photo.

 

I hope many of the children will be able to take part in Rob Biddulph’s world record art attempt this Thursday at 4pm.

 

https://www.artworldrecords.com/

As I said on Friday, I am meeting with staff today and Tuesday, I will then share the current plans for if the data says we are ready to open for more children on 1st June.

Please remember to contact me if there is anything you need – I will try my best to help and would much rather you contact me than not have enough food or any other worry.

Take Care

Mrs Morley

 

 

 

 

Thursday 14th May

 

Hello

 

I want to keep you updated. Today I have received some guidance from HCC along with updated guidance from the Government and DfE that I am working through at the moment with other leaders in school and the Trust. Thank you for completing the survey monkey last night; as I said it was just to give me an idea of your thoughts at the moment and I totally understand that this may change and that’s absolutely fine. The results were even across yes, no and unsure but once I have full details of how we plan to open school if on June 1st the Government asks us to, and all the measures we will be putting in place.

I am meeting with all staff on Monday and Tuesday next week and will share all the details with you after this. As I have explained before, the data and science may mean that the Government’s plans change and again I find out at the same time as everyone else when it is shared on the news. The speculation in the press and social media I’m sure isn’t helping you or anyone’s anxieties- please do email me if you need any support..

 

I totally understand that this will not be an easy decision for you and everyone will have their own view. What I can promise is that I will share all of the details on how we plan to organise classes with you and will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have for your child and your family to support you in making the decision that is right for your child/ children and your family.

 

Please Take Care and Stay Safe

 

Mrs Morley

 

 

 

Update 13th May

Hi

I hope you and your families are well.

As I am sure you are aware much of the news at the moment is talking
about whether schools should or shouldn’t open potentially from 1st June. I
continue to receive lots of advice and guidance and this I’m sure will
continue. As you know school is currently open for a number of children at the
moment. We are working hard to look at how we will organise classes
safely if we begin to open for more year groups based on the data and science.

I know this is a worrying time for everyone and I do not want any parents
to feel any pressure but I would be very grateful if you could complete the
short survey monkey (link below) so that I can see approximately how many
children may return-it is anonymous and is just a guide for me- based on the
information at the time of opening you of course may change your mind and this
is fine.

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/8BPS2TVIf you have any questions or need anything please let me know.

Take Care

Mrs Morley

 

Update 12th May

 

Hi

 

I hope you and your families are well.

 

As you will know we have remained open for children of keyworkers and vulnerable children and will continue to do so. As in the past school has not known in advance of any potential changes, we learn at the same time as you.

We are currently putting into place the organisation for the potential opening of school from 1st June for Nursery, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 children.

Guidance continues to come through and I am working my way through this to ensure that everything is in place if the Government confirms, based on the current data and science that school will be open for these year groups from 1st June.

Once I have finalised staffing and the organisation of the guidance I will update you with a more detailed plan.

Take Care

Mrs Morley

 

 

Update 8th May

 

Hi

 

Just a short email to say I hope you and your families are well. On my way into school this morning it was lovely to see not only posters in windows with rainbows and messages to the NHS and key workers but also the flags and posters for VE day. I hope you all have a lovely day, I know it is hard but please remember to keep to social distancing measures as the more people that keep to this the sooner lockdown will start to be eased.

You should have received a home learning pack for your child this week-as I’ve said before it is there if your child is in the right place to access it, I do not want to cause any extra stress at home in this difficult time.

I like you am waiting for the Governments speech on Sunday to see what lockdown measures might be lifted. If schools are included once I have met with leaders I will share any information with you by Tuesday at the latest.

If you have any concerns or need anything please do contact me, I will do my best to help.

 

Take Care

 

Mrs Morley

 

 

 

Update 4th May

 

Hi

 

I hope you have had a good day and you and your family are well. It was lovely to see the sun again. We will be delivering home learning packs later this week- please remember they are there if your child is in the right place to access them and I don’t want it to be a battle for you as I totally understand how difficult this can be. We have included some paper so that if your child wants to they can make bunting or a poster for VE day on Friday. Perhaps they could have a VE celebration picnic in or outdoors making sure social distancing is followed. It would be great to send in photos and we can share these on our website and Facebook..

Please take care and let me know if you need anything.

 

Mrs Morley

I hope you had a safe and healthy weekend.

 

Teachers will be emailing your children through your email every week day while we are closed.

 

Please remember if your child is unable to come to school due to all schools being closed, please avoid taking them out anywhere including to other family members and friends.

 

If you need any support or have a question or concern

 

Please contact me on either head@oxheywood.herts.sch.uk , 0208 428 4828 or 07922422462

 

Take Care

 

 

We have now had guidance of keyworkers:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers

This includes staff in schools, people working in health and social care, key public services, anyone involved in food production, delivery and sales, transport, public safety and national security, utilities, communication and financial services. If you are a key worker, the decision to send your child to school is yours to make and attendance will not be affected either way. If you think you may be a key worker and you will need to send your child to school to continue to work please telephone the school office or email me at head@warrendell.herts.sch.uk by lunchtime today so I can ensure we have adequate staffing in school. We are planning to open school for your children from 8am-4pm including the Easter Holidays: if this will cause you a problem please let me know.

If you are in any of the other vulnerable groups we will be contacting you today. For these children they can come to school for a normal school day, term time only.

We will be providing meals for those children eligible for FSM and again we will be contacting you today.

For all parents, teachers will be emailing children daily through your email account; please can you make sure we have this by the end of school today. Please also check our website for information and additional learning ideas for children.

Please email or ring school if you have any concerns or questions

 

Coronavirus

UPDATE THURSDAY 19th MARCH

 I am still waiting to find out what jobs will be classed as key workers. I am sure it will include police, health workers, firefighters, staff in schools, social workers, delivery drivers and those that work in supermarkets. When you can please could you email me on head@oxheywood.herts.sch.uk or ring the school office 02084284828 to let me know if you are likely to be a key worker and whether you will be sending your child to school so that I can plan for this.   

 

Thank you

 

Mrs Morley

**Please see attachment for Coronavirus updates for parents**

Wednesday 18th March update;

 

As you will have seen the government is closing schools on Friday for most children. We do plan to continue to open for some children including children of key workers ( I do not yet know who this includes), children with EHCP’s, children who are supported by a social worker. If your children are eligible for free school meals I am waiting for further advice from the DfE to ensure you are supported too. We have made learning packs for all children which they will bring home with pens and pencils. A further letter will be sent out tomorrow with more information.

I know this is an anxious time for everyone but there is a real sense of community from the children, staff and parents and I would like to thank you again for your understanding and support.

 

Following the Government update Tuesday 17th March

 

If any member of your family that lives with you has a symptom of high temperature of 37.8 and above or a new persistent cough you all must self-isolate for 14 days- this means you must not leave the house to go to the shops, the advice is if you can to take some exercise-go for a walk but away from other people.

 

We will continue to provide work for your children and this is for them when they are well enough to keep their learning in line with others

 

I want to reassure you that we do have soap, bleach etc and tables, taps, door handles are being cleaned throughout the day not just at the end of the day-teachers and TA’s are helping with this to ensure all areas of school are done.

 

If you do self-isolate we will check in with you regularly to make sure you are ok and to see if there is anything we can support you with.

 

We do have access to foodbanks but these are likely to also have less stock. A parent has suggested starting our own- I know shops are quite empty but if you can spare a tin/ tea bags etc please could you bring these into school, staff will be doing the same

 

Please ring or email me on head@warrendell.herts.sch.uk or head@oxheywood.herts.sch.uk if you have any concerns.

 

If your child is off the class teacher will respond to your emails but this will be between 8.30-4pm.

 

Thank you for your continued support and understanding.