Allenby Primary School

Returning to school in January 2022

Looking ahead to January and beyond, the government has told us to review our contingency arrangements. Face to face education in school remains the priority with a full offer (as above) to our pupils. There is uncertainty about the impact of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

We may be advised by public health experts to close part or all of the school. This could be a class, an age group or the whole school.

We face risks and challenges to remain open to all pupils because members of staff may be ill or show symptoms of COVID-19.  We appreciate parents’ understanding and flexibility of our staff as our arrangements change rapidly.

We will use all available staff and agency staff to keep classes open. 

We will switch to remote education using google classroom and class dojo for individual classes, age groups or the whole school, only as a result of government or public health instruction; or if we are unable to cover a teacher’s absence. This will be for as short amount of time as possible.

Parents might want to be prepared for any disruption to face to face education of pupils in school by:

• checking log on and access to google classroom and class dojo
• being ready to care for children during the school week, including at short notice.

Attendance

An important part of being a parent means that we must ensure our children attend regularly at school.  Following the announcement of 'Plan B', face to face education remains a priority. All pupils should continue to attend school unless they have symptoms of COVID-19 and/or a positive PCR test result.

The government now knows much more about coronavirus (COVID-19) and so in future there will be far fewer children and young people asked to isolate. Therefore, the majority of pupils will be able to attend school. You should note however that:

• a small number of pupils will still be unable to attend in line with public health advice because they are self-isolating because they have had a positive test result themselves; 
• pupils who have travelled abroad and are subject to quarantine restrictions on return to the UK should not attend school until any quarantine requirements have been met;

Reduce the risk of contact with someone who has coronavirus (COVID-19)

Parents must ensure that their child does not come into school if they are unwell or have tested positive for COVID-19.

Parents will be informed if their child develops symptoms during the school day and will be asked to collect their child from school and arrange a PCR test. The results of the test should be  reported to our admin team:  admin@allenby.ealing.sch.uk

When a child is waiting to be collected from school, they will be moved to our to a safe palce in the classroom and be asked to wear a mask. They may also be taken outside to get fresh air. 

• They will be looked after by an adult, who will maintain a distance of 2m or will wear personal, protective equipment. 

Use NHS Test and Trace process, as follows:

Parents should:

• book a test if their child is displaying symptoms. Staff and pupils must not come into the school if they have symptoms, and will be sent home to self-isolate if they develop symptoms in school all children can be tested, including children under 5, but children aged 11 and under will need to be helped by their parents/carers if using a home testing kit
• provide details of anyone they have been in close contact with if asked by NHS Test and Trace

Anyone who displays symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) can and should get a test. Tests can be booked online through the NHS testing and tracing for coronavirus website, or ordered by telephone via NHS 119 for those without access to the internet.

Parents should tell us immediately of the results of a test:

• if someone tests negative, if they feel well and no longer have symptoms similar to coronavirus (COVID-19), they can stop self-isolating. They could still have another virus, such as a cold or flu – in which case it is still best to avoid contact with other people until they are better. 
• if someone tests positive, they should follow the ‘stay at home guidance for confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) infection’ and must continue to self-isolate  from the onset of their symptoms and then return to school only if they do not have symptoms other than cough or loss of sense of smell/taste. This is because a cough or anosmia can last for several weeks once the infection has gone. The 10-day period starts from the day when they first became ill. If they still have a high temperature, they should keep self-isolating until their temperature returns to normal. 
• Isolation can end after day 7 following the guidance below.