Letter to Parents/Carers (31/12/2020)

Dear parent/carer

As you may have heard from the Prime Minister yesterday, the Government have delayed the start of face to face teaching in schools to try and reduce the transmission of COVID-19.

Of course, our school remains open as it has been throughout, we will be open to registered keyworker children from 5th January and we have also been given the opportunity to invite children who we think will benefit from being in school and have been in touch with these families directly. Any further enquiries regarding booking in of keyworker children should be sent to enquiries@havelockacademy.co.uk before 4th January to allow us to make suitable arrangements. 

Our staff have planned to deliver high quality remote (including online) teaching for all year groups from 5th January. We would encourage strong participation from all of our students to ensure that we are able to support their education as much as possible.

Students should access their education as follows:

5th January - All students should attend remote (including online) learning.

Vulnerable and keyworker children will be in school, being supported with their remote learning (usual school times, full uniform & expectations and full attendance expected for all students with places booked to attend). 

All families with children at home will receive a well-being call to offer our support and to ensure that students are able to access remote learning without issue. 

Students in Years 11 (music) and 13 (sport, applied psychology) with exams this week should attend for their actual exams.

11th January - Year 11, 12, 13 should be in school in person.

All families will receive a well-being call to offer our support and to talk through their learning experience for the week. 

18th January - All year groups should attend in person.

As explained in the guidance to schools, the delayed start is also useful to give schools time to arrange testing for students and staff.  I will be in touch again next week to give you details of our testing plans - we are aware that for some this will be very reassuring but for others there may be some trepidation around testing.  Please rest assured that your child will not receive a test without your knowledge and consent if under 16, and for those older it is strictly voluntary. We would encourage everyone to test but it is entirely optional and to reassure you, detailed plans and risk assessments will be shared with you and we will provide a recorded ‘run-through’ to help you make an informed decision. 

We will be in touch soon with details of the tests and with a consent form for you to complete if you wish for your child to be tested, but please be assured that our focus is on delivering the highest quality education and support for your child, that is our core purpose and we will never let that be forgotten, even in COVID times.

Thank you for your continued support, we hope that you are well and safe and have had a wonderful time with family over the Christmas break, we look forward to seeing your children back with us very soon. 

Emma Marshall

Principal