Friday 28th May

Dear Parents & Carers,

We're at the end of the first half of the summer term already! We've all worked well within class bubbles and continue to provide the children with rich and exciting learning experiences.

I'd like to wish you all a happy (and hopefully sunny) half term and as always, I will continue to keep you informed of any changes / government guidance as soon as we hear. 

Best Wishes 

Miss Sleep 

 

Monday 8th March 

Lateral Flow Testing

As part of our safety measures staff are taking a lateral flow test twice a week. The lateral flow tests are for the identification of asymptomatic cases of covid-19.

The government have now opened this up to households, childcare and support bubbles of primary. They are not for primary aged children.

The test can be completed at a local test site; by collecting a home test or by ordering a home test kit on line.

If this is something that your home bubbles would like to do, please follow the link to find your nearest collection point or to order test kits to be delivered to your home.

Test Site - https://maps.test-and-trace.nhs.uk/

Collect a home test kit - https://find-covid-19-rapid-test-sites.maps.test-and-trace.nhs.uk/

Order a test - Schools testing: Order coronavirus (COVID-19) rapid lateral flow home test kits - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

More information can be found at: 

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/rapid-lateral-flow-testing-for-households-and-bubbles-of-school-pupils-and-staff?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=govuk-notifications&utm_source=ca1c659b-95d6-490e-87c6-d6c09e85ecfb&utm_content=immediately

 

School Lunches 

The hot meal option will be available for all children. 

Children wiil remain in their class groups to eat; some classes will eat in their classrooms and the younger children in the canteen and main hall. 

Please click here for drop off and pick up times.

We are looking forward to welcoming everyone back to school next week. 

In order to remain safe and stay COVID free, our risk measures will remain as they did in September.

Children will continue to be taught in class groups and stay in these during the day, including lunch and play.

We will review our measures as time passes and alert you to any changes.

Our aim is to remain COVID free and to avoid closing any class due to an infection. Following these measures will help. 

As before please:

- wear a face covering

- only one parent to accompany children to school

- do not gather at the gates and socially distance yourselves at all times

If you need to speak to a member of staff call the school office

01453 764400

We are working to reduce the number of adults on site and reduce face to face contact.

 

Risk Assessment March 2021

Please help us keep everyone as safe as possible and do not send your child to school if they are showing any symptoms of Coronavirus

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hours, or more coughing episodes in 24 hours
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

 

If you think anyone in your household has symptoms

- arrange to get a test as soon as possible

- stay at home and do not have visitors until you have the results

- the school will require evidence of a negative test before your child can return

Breakfast Club / After School Club

Both of these provisions will commence from Monday 8th March.

Please use the booking form on the website or contact the school office to book your child/ren in.

After School Club

At the end of last term we had to reduce the length of time we opened after school club until due to the lack of use between 5 and 6pm.

If you need the extra hour, even if only on some regular week days please let us know. We are working on financially viable options.

School Uniform

We understand your children will have grown during the time we have been locked down.

Please don’t worry.

We have a good stock of second hand jumpers in school. These have been washed and are good quality. We sell these at a cost of £3, which all goes towards school funds.

If their shoes are too small please send them in wearing sensible footwear until shops re-open.

 

Letter from the Governing Body

The GB would like to wish all the staff, parents and children a well-earned restful holiday next week. We thought parents might be interested to know the amount of work that has been involved in getting Teams up and running. On-going issues meant our IT partner needed staff to alter the email configuration for every one of the 260 children at school. This had to be done on Saturday and required at least 12 clicks per child! It took 3 members of staff many hours of their precious weekend to sort out. So huge thanks to all the staff and good luck with Teams!

 

Main Symptoms of Coronavirus are

• high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

 

The medical advice is clear you must self-isolate if you have coronavirus symptoms or live in the same household as somebody who does.

 

School Update Friday 13th November 2020

Dear Parents and Carers,

Please be rest assured that we are following all current government guidelines in relation to Covid – 19.  We remain vigilant, cautious and seek guidance in response to all possible cases and are responding in line with the strict guidance. 

We understand that these are worrying times for all.  We will inform you if a positive test requires self - isolation for individuals or classes.

Social Distancing

For the Health and Safety of all our children and families, please ensure that Social Distancing measures are followed at all times on Castle Street at drop of and collection times.

Please remain at a distance of 2m from other pupils, staff and children. Thank you for continuing to wear your facemasks during these times.

Household Isolation

If one member of your household is displaying any symptoms of COVID19, all members of the household must self-isolate until a negative test result has been received. Please continue follow the Government Stay at Home Guidance for all children and members of the family.

This also includes all siblings. Your children must not attend School while a member of the household awaits a test result. If you are unsure of Isolation guidance or Testing Guidance, please click here for an easy to follow poster.

 

Arrival and Collection

 

If arriving by the main gate, please follow the one-way system and use the colour bubbles for distancing.

Only one parent to accompany children to school.

Please practice social distancing and clear the site quickly and refrain from group gatherings on Castle Street.

Click here for the Stroud Valley Covid-19 Risk Assessment 

 

Home Readers

The difference that regular reading with your children at home makes is immeasurable. We will be sending reading books home as normal and have a system in place where books that are returned to school will be put aside for 72 hours before being touched again. 

Uniform

Please send children to school in uniform as usual. There is no requirement from us that a clean uniform is worn every day. Please check that all items of uniform are clearly named, access to lost property will be more difficult than usual due to restricting the number of adults on site. 

Ventilation

In line with the guidance we have increased ventilation, check they have jumpers with them. They may not feel cold in the morning but sitting in a ventilated classroom for a length of time may require a jumper.

PE / Forest School Clothes

Please send PE clothes as normal and children will change in school. As will all uniform please check that it is clearly named.

Face Coverings

Children are not required to wear face covering to school. Government guidance is 'face coverings would have a negative impact on teaching and their use in the classroom should be avoided.'

The measures we have in place follow all guidance and are aimed to keep everyone as safe as possible.

 

Items from Home

Please do not allow children to bring anything from home except:

Water Bottles

If you are able to send a water bottle in with your child that would help and they will be kept with the individual child.

What we will do if we suspect COVID -19 symptoms

We will isolate, supported by a socially distanced adult, the individual while we wait for a parent to collect.

The individual will have to be tested before returning to school and evidence of the result provided to the school.

If negative and the child feels well enough they no longer need to self-isolate and can return to school.

If anyone in the household tests positive, please follow government guidance and self-isolate for at least 10 days from the onset of 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. Other members of their household should continue self-isolating for the full 14 days.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance

The school will immediately contact the local health protection team and follow their advice from that time.

How to Book a Test

Please follow this link

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/testing-and-tracing/

Please help us keep everyone as safe as possible and do not send your child to school if they are showing any symptoms of Coronavirus

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back

• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)

• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

If you think anyone in your house hold has symptoms

• arrange to get a test as soon as possible

• stay at home and do not have visitors until you have the results

• the school will require evidence of a negative test before your child can return

Communication

If you need to speak to a member of staff call the school office - 01453 764400

We are working to reduce the number of adults on site and reduce face to face contact.

Or use the e-mail - admin@stroudvalley.gloucs.sch.uk, this is checked on a regular basis as we will get back to you as soon as we can.

We are all looking forward to seeing you soon

Debbie Sleep

Follow this link to join a virtual tour of Stroud Valley Community School:

Virtual School Tour

 

CLICK HERE FOR SUMMER CLUB INFORMATION

 

Letter from the Governing Body

Dear Parents, Carers and Children,

With so many recent changes and September arriving shortly, the Governing Body thought it would be helpful to give everyone an overview of what has been and what might be happening.

As far as September is concerned you know as much as we do - we don’t get any advance warning on Government information and the newspaper headlines are often the first we hear of things too! We will keep you updated on any developments as and when they happen.  We will notify you by a text when updates are published on the school website.

The school would dearly love to have everyone back, full-time but as always we will prioritise the safety and wellbeing of all our staff and children. Fingers crossed that things are back to ’normal’ by the start of the new school year.

Firstly, we’d like to thank Ms Sleep and everyone at school, the teaching staff, teaching assistants, cleaners, catering staff and office staff for all their hard work and personal sacrifice since March.

The school has been open, even during Easter and half term, to look after our vulnerable children, and the children of key workers so our staff have not been able to rest or protect themselves as many of us have.

Many parents may not be aware that Ms Sleep had concerns about the Free School Meal voucher scheme and to ensure all our children were well fed she has personally organised 5 meals a week for 42 children by purchasing from local supermarkets, packing them into bags and arranging for socially distanced pick-ups. She is still doing this as the voucher scheme has had some well publicised problems.

From the outset the school was determined to maintain verbal contact with all the children, which few other primaries have been able to achieve. The telephone calls and visits have been very well received even though organising and making over 200 calls per week takes many hours and much effort alongside preparing home learning resources and teaching in school.

Ms Sleep and her team considered using video calling to provide some online lessons but we are very aware that not every family has the hardware, high-speed broadband and technical knowledge required. In addition, the well-known security issues for children, especially our vulnerable children, and staff meant delivering online lessons safely for all our children was not possible - the school wanted no child to be left behind. With that in mind it was decided that using the website was the best method to deliver home-learning whilst keeping our children safe.

The school has followed Government guidelines at all times and these are clear in stating that we should not rota children if possible so we have run a full school timetable from 8-50am -3-15pm everyday for all eligible children. This explains why we have not yet been able to have other years in school as there is simply no room after we have around 100 socially distanced Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 children in school.

 To rota children with either half-days or only a couple of days per week increases exposure for our staff, and in turn our children and the decision was taken that this was a risk both Ms Sleep and the Governing Body weren’t comfortable taking unless we were given an instruction to do so. You will all have seen the letter on 26th June outlining the school’s cunning plan to get absolutely everyone back together in the next few weeks, for a few hours at least. We understand how much the children are missing their classmates and teachers - the staff are really missing the children too!

School reports for all children will be with you by the end of next week. These will, as usual, be sent home with the children that are in school during the week. Others will be e-mailed or posted to you.

September 2020

In the envelope will be the transition information for next year including name of teacher and our plans for meeting them and the classroom through a video format.

 

We are very grateful to you and the children for all the hard work with the home learning and we always value feedback so please make a suggestion, add a comment or express any opinions on the admin@stroudvalley.gloucs.sch.uk address.

Looking forward to seeing you soon!

Best Wishes

The Governing Body

 

For support, advice and recommendations about 'surviving' at home during lockdown please follow the link below to a really helpful local publication 'Families'   https://issuu.com/familiesonline/docs/gloucester  we hope you find it helpful.

With families using more apps to communicate during lock down we would like to draw your attention to the following information about the apps Zoom and House Party. Your child may be using these (either with, or without you) so we would encourage you to read these informative posters and discuss them with your child.  Zoom  House Party

Due to the on-going nature of the current situation we know many families are struggling to cope with the additional pressures of social distancing and spending long periods of time in their homes with children and young people. The Family Information Service advice line  provide some practical parenting support to parents click here to find out how to contact them and what suport they can offer you.