SCHOOL CLOSURE
The current government advice is to keep schools open. However, we do not have enough staff to run efficiently and safely in all of our classes. Therefore, we have taken the difficult decision to close Nursery, Reception and Year One at Selsdon Primary from today Wednesday 18th March 2020. These year groups will be closed until further notice. The rest of the school remains open.
Breakfast Club and After School Club remain open as usual. All other after school activities and clubs have been cancelled.
WHAT TO DO IF YOU, OR YOUR CHILD, HAVE SYMPTOMS
COVID-19 is a new illness that can affect your lungs and airways. It’s caused by a virus called coronavirus. There have been no confirmed cases of coronavirus at our schools.
The current NHS advice is to stay at home if you have coronavirus symptoms.
The most recent NHS advice is as follows:
Stay at home if you, or any of your family/household members, have either:
- a high temperature – they feel hot to touch on their chest or back
- a new, continuous cough – this means they have started coughing repeatedly
How long to stay at home:
- if you have symptoms, stay at home for 7 days
- if you live with other people, they should stay at home for 14 days from the day the first person got symptoms
If you live with someone who is 70 or over, has a long-term condition, is pregnant or has a weakened immune system, try to find somewhere else for them to stay for 14 days.
If you have to stay at home together, try to keep away from each other as much as possible.
Read NHS advice about staying at home.
Read government advice for households with possible coronavirus infection
Please do not bring your child into school during this period. This will help to protect others in the community while they are infectious. Telephone the school office on 020 8653 5434 (Heavers Farm), 020 8657 4038 (Selsdon) to let us know that you are isolating your child so that we can authorise their absence.
If staff, young people or children become unwell on site with a new, continuous cough or a high temperature we are sending them home.
More information from the NHS can be found here.
HOW TO AVOID CATCHING AND SPREADING CORONAVIRUS (SOCIAL DISTANCING)
The NHS says that everyone should do what they can to stop coronavirus spreading.
It is particularly important for people who:
- are 70 or over
- have a long-term condition
- are pregnant
- have a weakened immune system
The NHS will contact you from Monday 23 March 2020 if you are at particularly high risk of getting seriously ill with coronavirus. You’ll be given specific advice about what to do.
Do not contact your GP or healthcare team at this stage – wait to be contacted.
More information from the NHS here.
SCHOOL ACTIONS
Whilst the school remains open we will be doing all that we can to protect our whole school community. Staff continue to ensure that children are frequently washing their hands during the day, especially after using the toilet; at the start of the school day; before meals; after sessions outside or where there is increased contact (e.g. break times, PE lessons). We have provided anti-bacterial wipes to all staff and changed our cleaning regime to ensure that door handles, computer keyboards, telephones and handrails are all disinfected more regularly. We check the bathrooms at least twice a day to ensure that they are well stocked with soap.
We have introduced the following measures.
- No hand shaking or physical contact between adults and between children
- Cancelling school trips
- Cancelling staff meetings and briefings
- Cancelling school assemblies
- Postponing in-school parent events
- Teaching PE lessons outside whenever possible
- Limiting face-to-face meetings
- Cancelling after-school activity clubs from Wednesday 18th March. Games Club and Breakfast Club will remain in place until further notice.
- Cancelling swimming lessons
We also ask that parents and other family members do not come into the school building unless it is absolutely necessary.
Thank you for working with us to ensure the well-being of our school community in these challenging times.
