12th July 2021
Dear Parents/Carers,
Please find news on updates regarding Coronavirus,
From 19 July (step 4): no more bubbles
- We’re no longer required to keep pupils in bubbles. This applies to provision over summer (e.g. summer schools) and school in term-time from autumn 2021.
- We can resume assemblies and no longer need to make alternative arrangements to avoid mixing at lunch
From 19 July: NHS Test and Trace takes over contact tracing
- We’ll no longer be expected to carry out contact tracing – close contacts will now be identified via NHS Test and Trace
- From 16 August 2021, children under the age of 18 years old will no longer need to self-isolate if they’re contacted by NHS Test and Trace as a close contact of a positive COVID-19 case. Instead, they’ll be contacted by NHS Test and Trace and advised to take a PCR test
- There may still be instances where public health might advise you to temporarily reintroduce some control measures
From 19 July: face coverings no longer advised
- This applies:
- To pupils, staff and visitors either in classrooms or in communal areas
- On dedicated transport to school or college
- Face masks are also no longer legally required on public transport
We have an outbreak management plan on how we’d operate during an outbreak in our school or local area.
Coronavirus Outbreak Management Plan
- Our plan covers the possibility that we may need to temporarily reintroduce control measures like bubbles and face coverings
- We should only:
- Consider measures as a last resort
- Keep them to the minimum number of groups possible
- Keep them for the shortest amount of time possible
- If we have several confirmed cases within 14 days, we may have an outbreak. We will call the dedicated advice service who will escalate the issue to our local health protection team where necessary, and advise if we need to take any additional action, such as implementing elements of our outbreak management plan. We can reach them by calling the DfE helpline on 0800 046 8687 and selecting option 1 for advice on the action to take in response to a positive case.
Kind Regards
Donna Lee
Head Teacher
