Latest News
Latest News
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Durham County Council Press Release: Reopening of schools
Wed 27 May 2020Durham County Council Press Release:
A North East council has provided further information to schools on plans for phased reopening.
Durham County Council has provided the information after new scientific advice was published on Friday 22 May and due to concerns that key issues outside of its control have not yet been resolved.
The advice from the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), states there is ‘a consensus that evidence on the role of children in transmission of COVID-19 is unclear with a number of gaps in understanding’. It also says there is some evidence to suggest that children are as susceptible to COVID-19 as adults but advised that is not conclusive. Scientists have also advised government that the messaging to parents and teachers had to be ‘robust’ in order to ‘enhance confidence and willingness to return.’
The council has also acted in response to data which shows the North East having the highest coronavirus infection rate in the country.
Its action is also in response to delays implementing the national Test and Trace system – seen as vital in managing children returning to school. The system will not be fully operational by 1 June, the date previously announced by ministers as when the phased reopening should begin.
The information the council has provided to schools advises that 15 June, the date the government has put forward for secondary pupils to return, is a more realistic date for the phased reopening to begin.
Cllr Olwyn Gunn, the council’s Cabinet member for children and young people’s services, said: “Our priority has always been the safety of staff, children and communities and we have issued extensive advice and guidance to headteachers and governing bodies with the emphasis on reopening only when risk assessments have been carried out and found to be of a high enough standard.
“We have at no point stated schools should return on 1 June. And in the light of the new scientific advice, high infection rates and the unacceptable delays in implementing Contact Tracing, we believe 15 June is a more realistic timeline for all schools to work towards, subject to government scientific advice and individual school risk assessments.
“Ultimately it remains a decision for schools to open when they feel it is safe to do so and I would like to place on record our sincere thanks to all headteachers and staff for the tremendous work they are doing to this end.”
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Following an announcement by Durham County Council today, wider reopening of the school will not begin until 15th June at the earliest. More information will follow
Tue 26 May 2020Following an announcement by Durham County Council today, wider reopening of the school will not begin until 15th June at the earliest. More information will follow -
Mental Health Awareness Week
Tue 19 May 2020What is kindness❓ kindness is a gesture motivated by genuine, warm feelings for others 🌞 Kindness, therefore, is not just an emotion, but is defined by our actions.
💚During Mental Health Awareness Week 18-24 May, we would like you to ✔️ carry out or 💭 reflect on an act of kindness. 📸 Take a photo or video (with permission!) and use the hashtags: #KindnessMatters and #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek 📱
🤝 You can also share your ideas on how you think we could build a kinder society that would support our mental health using the same hashtags above.
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School Photographs
Mon 18 May 2020PB parents and carers, we know how important your child’s school photos are and that you’ll be keen to receive them. They are safe at school and and we will get them to you as soon as it is safe to do so 📸
💚We hope you are all safe and well 💚
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Letter regarding reopening of school
Wed 13 May 202013th May 2020
Dear parents/carers,
We know you will have seen in the news that schools may partially reopen on 1st June to include nursery, reception, year 1 and year 6 pupils if the government thinks it is safe.
It is a very unsettling time for us all, but rest assured that we are going to be doing everything we can over the coming weeks so that we might be able to begin to welcome children from these year groups back, if it is safe. Some of the precautions we will be considering include:
- Social distancing
- Staff use of Personal Protection Equipment
- Limiting class and group sizes and reducing session length
- Staggering break/lunch times and pick-up and drop-off times
- Increased cleaning
- Keeping pupils and staff with coronavirus symptoms at home
If school does reopen and we need to introduce these safety measures, school may be a very different place to the one children left. To separate children into smaller groups, they may be in a different classroom with a different member of staff. As safety will need to be our first concern, they will not be able to play or interact as they did before. The priority will be their well-being rather than their usual curriculum and learning.
If your child is clinically extremely vulnerable, or living with someone who is in this group, they should not come back to school and should continue with remote home learning. If your child is clinically vulnerable (but not clinically extremely vulnerable), you should follow medical advice to decide if they should come back to school. Please refer to government guidance for further details of these groups. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-ineducation-and-childcare-settings/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-educationand-childcare-settings#shielded-and-clinically-vulnerable-children-and-young-people
I want to reassure you again that we will not be pressuring parents to send their children to school and you will not be fined for any non-attendance choices – you know what is best for your child’s health and wellbeing. We will provide you with more details on the arrangements in the coming weeks so you can make the appropriate decision.
If you have a child in the relevant year groups, we would be grateful if you could give us an idea of your feelings at the moment by completing this survey:
https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/V61ZP4/
Please be reminded that in the meantime, the school is still open only for vulnerable pupils and the children of critical workers. Until we are told it is safe to do so, we are unable to provide places for other children. We will keep you updated once we know more about when the school will be able to open for other year groups. For pupils at home, we will continue to support you and your child with home learning. If you have any questions, please contact school
Lynn George
Headteacher
Alison Johnson
Chair of Governors
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⭐️💚A message to Year 6💚⭐️
Mon 11 May 2020⭐️💚A message to Year 6💚⭐️
Today you should have been coming to breakfast club before starting SATs week - one part of your Year 6 journey. Even though this won’t be happening, you should all be immensely proud of yourselves because your teachers certainly are.
You arrived in September full of determination and have worked hard every day. Let’s remember that tests only measure a fraction of your achievements and you have learnt so much more than that. You have developed all manner of skills and we feel extremely lucky to have been part of this journey with you.
Remember learning is a journey not a destination.
Stay safe until we can see each other again. 😊 -
🌈 Rainbow Challenge 🌈
Mon 04 May 2020🌈 Rainbow Challenge 🌈
Please join our rainbow challenge by sending a photo of your child based on your given colour.
Try to fill the whole photo with colour just like the examples created by the teachers below.
Send your photos through private messenger or e-mail.
Let’s brighten up our day (and Facebook page)
❤️🖤💛💚💙💜🤍🤎🧡The colours are:
Nursery and Reception- red
Year 1- green
Year 2- blue
Year 3- yellow
Year 4-purple
Year 5-pink
Year 6-orangeWe can’t wait to see them!
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Times Table Rockstars Battle of the Bands! 🎸
Mon 04 May 2020Times Table Rockstars Battle of the Bands! 🎸
Flambard💛 Vs Hatfield 💙
Skirlaw 💚Vs Wolsey❤️Who will answer the most correct questions?
The battle runs until 3pm on Friday and starts.....NOW!
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🌞 💚 Good Morning PBers 💚🌞
Mon 04 May 2020🌞 💚 Good Morning PBers 💚🌞
Teachers have updated the class pages. You’ll now find the English and maths lessons on BBC Bitesize but we’d also like to recommend The Maths Factor website which is really useful for explaining concepts and consolidating learning.
Have a wonderful day. -
nessy.com
Fri 01 May 2020Hairy Phonics 1 and 2 are fun and engaging apps for younger children to practise their letter sounds, which are free to download today at nessy.com
