Dear Parents,

As you are well aware, all schools in England are currently closed for the majority of children until 22nd February 2021, with remote education being provided because the government is taking every possible measure to reduce cases in the community and protect the NHS.

Woodlands Primary school and Nursery offer school places for vulnerable children and children of critical workers in the front line of the country’s fight against Covid-19, who have no other available childcare options. It is important to stress that the government’s key message is: families should keep children at home if at all possible.

In line with revised government advice and to protect the safety of the children and school staff, parents, should only consider sending their child to school if they absolutely need to attend a workplace and should only apply to send their child to the critical worker places if their work is critical to the Covid-19 response and they have no other childcare option. The longer people refrain from social distancing the longer this crisis will continue.

As a school, we have taken every precaution to ensure children’s safety and welfare whilst attending school. However, by the very nature of being in school with young children, it is not always possible to enforce social distancing – children are safer at home with their families.
As school leaders we will do everything we can to support critical workers, but we also need to take into account, the health and safety measures outlined in the school’s risk assessment to protect staff and pupils and reduce further transmission.

To ensure fairness, we may ask parents to demonstrate that they are critical workers by producing documentation such as a staff identity badge, a salary slip and/or a letter from their employer stating that their role is critical to the COVID response.

We realise that keeping children at home is not an easy option and very much appreciate the challenges associated with remote learning. We are doing our utmost to ensure every child has access to good quality learning whether they are at home or here in school and are available to offer support to parents that may be struggling with internet access, lack of devices or understanding work sent out, to ensure that children continue to make progress.

If you are unclear about whether your child can access a school place, or whether you are a Critical Worker, please contact me and I will be happy to discuss this with you.
Many thanks.
Yvonne Crilly