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St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School

Great Hadham Road, Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire CM23 2NL

September 2020 COVID-19 Info

We continue to follow the guidance from the DfE, LA and Diocese of Westminster to ensure that we can provide as safe as possible learning environment for your child and all adults in school.  We are looking forward to welcoming our pupils back from Wednesday 2nd September.

Our key messages are:

  • All pupils are expected back to school from September 2nd.  (EYFS- Nursery and Reception have their own induction dates and times which parents will be aware of from last term.)
  • Any child or adult who shows Covid-19 symptoms, or has tested positive for Covid-19 must not attend school.  They can attend once they have followed the appropriate NHS/Government procedures.
  • The school will liaise with the local health trust and Public Health England following a confirmed case of Covid-19 and will follow their instructions in terms of communication and any need for individuals or groups to self-isolate.
  • Start times/break times/lunchtimes and end times will be staggered to minimise contact between individuals.
  • Pupils will be placed in ‘bubbles’ and stay within that bubble during the school day. 
  • Social distancing will be promoted wherever possible within the classrooms and around the school.  However, this will not be possible for younger children.
  • Parents will not ordinarily be allowed entry into the school buildings.
  • We will continue to put in protective measures such as increased cleaning during the day and reinforce the ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ message.
  • There will be changes to the curriculum during this term in light of both health and safety and catching up on phonics, reading, writing and maths.
  • We will continue to review our procedures and adapt to updated government guidance.

Face masks

Common sense needs to be applied.  If any adult or child entering the school site wishes to wear a face mask, they can do so. Any reusable face mask will need to be washed daily.  If your child wants to wear a face mask in school, please ensure your child is able to put it on and remove it at all times, ie not touching the front of the mask at any time and they have a named re-sealable plastic bag to store it during class time or when eating their lunch.  Please ensure that any face mask graphic is not likely to cause offence.