FAQs for Junior Parents - Updated 23.2.21

Senior School Parents, please see separate page 

When will School reopen? 

The Government have confirmed schools in England should reopen from Monday 8th March 2021, for all pupils to return to school, on a full-time basis. We will, therefore, be opening our doors for all our girls to return on this date.  

What time will School be open and what is the process for drop-off and collection? 

Drop-off for the Junior Department will be between 8:00am - 8.30am and collection will be between 2.55pm -3:30pm, with the times split for the bubbles as follows: 

	Drop off	Collection
EYFS	8:00am – 8:10am	2.55pm  – 3:10pm
Y1 and Y2	8:10am – 8:20am	3:10pm – 3:20pm
Y3, Y4 and Y5	8:20am – 8:30am	3:20pm – 3:30pm

We respectfully ask you to try to arrive at your allocated time, to avoid mixing with girls from other year group ‘bubbles’.  If you have more than one daughter, please arrive at the time for your eldest daughter. 

All Junior Department parents are permitted to drive on-site at their allocated times however, you are welcome to walk or cycle too.  Parents are asked not to gather at School gates and School entrances. 

When you drop off, please ensure that your daughter has her bags with her and is ready to get out of the car. When dropping off or collecting, I, or another member of staff, will open the car door to enable your daughter to get in/out safely. The staff will sanitise their hands between touching each car. If your daughter needs any help with undoing or fastening her seatbelt/harness, you will have to do this. 

On arrival, the girls can hang up their coats and then go straight to their classroom, where they will complete supervised handwashing.    

The Government have produced guidance around travel at this time 

Will Before School Care and After School Care be running?  

Junior Department girls can arrive in School between 7:30am and 8:00am if you need Before School Care at an additional charge.  

After School Care will be running until 6.00pm for all Junior Department families at an additional charge. You can also take advantage of our After School Teas, which can be ordered as usual.  You can provide your daughter with a packed tea (nut free) in an insulated lunch bag, with an ice pack. 

Whilst in After School Care, ‘bubbles’ will be kept separate.  

How will you keep my daughter safe at School? 

Parents are asked to adhere to the Government’s guidance on self-isolation if anyone in the household has symptoms and to ensure their daughter does not enter the School site during any period of self-isolation. Detailed Government guidance can be found here. Absences for any reason should be reported to School in the usual way. Everyone now has access to a test if they display symptoms of coronavirus and are encouraged to get tested in this scenario.  

In the Junior Department, girls will be in bubbles: EYFS will be one bubble, which will allow a normal Early Years education to take place.  Y1 and Y2 will be regarded as one bubble, so that they can play or have PE sessions together. Y3, Y4 and Y5 will be three separate year group bubbles. 

Girls will be supervised handwashing before and after each activity, before and after eating, as well as on arrival in School. 

We have planned the timetable to ensure a normal full curriculum. We have planned to limit the number of teachers that your daughter will have contact with and she will be taught in her classroom wherever possible. 

In the Y1-5 classrooms, the girls will be seated facing the front, rather than facing each other. In the playground, each bubble will have a designated space to use. Teachers will constantly supervise to maintain distance between the bubbles. 

Lunchtimes will be staggered into two sittings. Bubbles will eat at separate tables and have been assigned separate outdoor spaces for playtimes.  

Girls in all year groups will need to provide their own stationery, as they will not be able to share school resources. EYFS-Y2 will need a writing pencil, coloured pencils, a ruler, rubber and sharpener. In addition, Y3-Y5 will need a few gel pens, highlighters and, once she has gained her licence, her ink pen, cartridges and ink eraser. 

Assemblies will not take place for the rest of the term. Year groups will enjoy class assemblies during the term, as part of the School’s pastoral care and support programme for all students. 

External visitors on site are restricted and by appointment only. 

Our cleaning routines have been further revised and adjusted to ensure the areas the girls will be using are cleaned regularly and thoroughly, throughout the day.  

Will my daughter need to wear a face mask?  

The Government have advised that face masks are currently not recommended for use by pupils in primary educational settings.   

Will my daughter have PE lessons, swimming and music?  

PE lessons will only take place on site for the rest of the term, when this will be reviewed. There will be no travel to other sports facilities, including to swimming lessons. PE activities which help to maintain social distancing will be the focus and equipment will be sanitised and quarantined between bubbles. 

Music lessons will continue. Any singing or paying of woodwind instruments will be held in larger spaces and ensuring social distancing. 

What will my daughter need for School? 

Pupils will need their usual School uniform, PE kit, water bottle (water only), fruit/vegetable snack and her stationery. 

Girls should wear their PE kit to School on the days they have PE. 

Bags, stationery etc can be brought from home, but girls should aim to keep the equipment they bring in to School to a minimum and should not share any equipment or stationery with others.  

My daughter, or a member of our family, has health issues which means she will not be able to return to School. What provision will be put in place for her?  

The Government have advised it is vital for all children to return to school to minimise as far as possible the longer-term impact of the pandemic on children’s education, wellbeing and wider development.  

All girls are, therefore, expected to attend School from 8th March. The ONLY exceptions to this are: 

1. Those who are following public health advice to self-isolate due to a positive test result, or close contact with someone with a positive test result.  

2. Children who are required to shield or who remain under the care of a specialist health professional. In this case, we ask that parents arrange a conversation with Nurse Emma and their daughter’s class teacher in the first instance to discuss what measures the School needs to put in place.  

What if I need to speak to my daughter’s class teacher? 

All parents will be able to contact members of staff via e-mail. Please contact your daughter’s class teacher, or Mrs Singh, if you have any concerns. 

If you wish to make an appointment to see your daughter’s teacher, we ask that you do so at least 24 hours in advance. This will allow us to make sure the staff member is available, and to provide a socially-distanced meeting space for your discussion. We encourage all parents to arrange virtual meetings wherever possible. 

What pastoral support will you provide my daughter?  

We understand this has been a strange and potentially worrying time for your daughter. We understand that for some girls returning to School may feel strange at first and we will plan activities to make this as smooth as possible. Additional pastoral sessions have been put in place and staff are available to support with any issues. 

What should I do if my daughter feels unwell? 

Your daughter should only attend School if she is 100% well.  Usually, we encourage you to send your daughter into school with a cold and we would medicate her during the day however, in these circumstances, we cannot take that risk.  Please apply 24-hour high factor sun cream and administer any regular medication before School. 

If your daughter needs a plaster for a minor injury, we will encourage her to apply it herself. Please be reassured that, if your daughter were to require assistance or First Aid, we will care for her as safely as possible.  In this situation, staff may wear gloves or a face mask if such personal care puts either the pupil or staff member at risk. 

What happens if someone develops symptoms of Covid-19? 

If a pupil or member of staff were to develop symptoms during the School day, they would be taken immediately from the classroom. The pupil would isolate initially in the Junior Department medical room, the parents would be phoned to arrange collection and Nurse Emma would take her to isolate in the Senior School medical room.  The member of staff would leave the site immediately.  

Any pupil, their family and the members of staff would be eligible for coronavirus testing if they displayed symptoms. A negative result would allow the pupil to return. A positive result would mean that the group has to stay at home and then self-isolate for 10 days.