Letter to Parents (20/04/2020)

Dear parents, carers and students, We hope that you are safe and well at home and coping in this very unusual situation. The staff at the academy are missing the students very much and looking forward to seeing them when the government decides to reopen our schools. When this time comes, we will be in touch to confirm the return to school plans. In the meantime, our teachers are continuing to set work online for all subjects. In addition to this work, there are many online resources being made available nationally. This includes the streaming of educational programmes through BBC iPlayer and a number of other online platforms. One good example of this is the streaming of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” – perfect for our Year 10 and 11 students, but would also be of interest to younger students: https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/watch/romeo-juliet-2009-youtube-premiere-2020/ 

Our website continues to include useful information for this closure period, as does the DRET website. Key links include:

Havelock Key Information: https://www.havelockacademy.co.uk/Key-Information-Spring-2020/

DRET Secondary Home Learning: https://www.dret.co.uk/home-learning-secondary/

DRET Cloud for students to access Home Learning: https://sites.google.com/dret.co.uk/dret-cloud-secondary 

DRET Parent Cloud: https://sites.google.com/dret.co.uk/dret-cloud-parent/

Colleagues at the David Ross Education Trust have been working hard to ensure that all families entitled to free school meals are receiving vouchers via email. Please continue to direct any queries regarding free school meals to the helpdesk email at: fsmenquiries@dret.co.uk. The British Heart Foundation provides lots of useful information on healthy eating which can be accessed at: https://www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/support/healthy-living/healthy-eating/healthyeating-toolkit

Staying safe online remains a key priority, in particular due to the increased amount of online learning taking place. There is a lot of advice on the Havelock and DRET websites (above). We have received the letter below from our local policing team, raising awareness of some scams. Please take some time to read this to ensure that you do not fall victim to these scammers. We are attempting to make weekly contact with all families to ensure that students are well and coping with home learning. With most staff working from home these calls are likely to come from a withheld number. Feedback from a number of parents and students shows that these calls are appreciated at this difficult time. We all appreciate that learning at home can be very challenging and want to support as much as we can do. Students and parents can report any wellbeing concerns to: safeguardingteam@havelockacademy.co.uk or listening@havelockacademy.co.uk 

Thank you for your ongoing support during this global crisis. The staff at the academy wish you and your families well and we are looking forward to seeing you when schools reopen. In the meantime, stay safe and do not hesitate in getting in touch with any queries (contact details on the website link above).

Very best wishes from the staff team at Havelock Academy