COVID-19 Update 18 March 2020: Updated at 6.30pm

18th March 2020Ms E Roberts

To all our Parents, Carers and Students,

In light of the announcements this evening regarding school closures from Monday I will ask you all to be patient and await a full communication from me and the governors tomorrow. I know you are all anxious but at the moment all we know is:

  • School will close to most students on Monday 23rd March 2020 for the an indefinite period
  • School will be open for all those with EHC plans and those with parents who are key workers
  • GCSE Exams in May and June are cancelled but we don’t know what they will be replaced with/how this will work
  • We will be issuing food vouchers to families in need

I am devastated at the prospect of shutting the doors of the school to most of our students.  However we have a good plan to offer a broad, well planned curriculum to students at home and have spent the last week looking at how we can support you all in making sure you the children continue to learn and are safe.  We know these are scary times. We are all doing our best to try and respond to an unprecedented situation.

Tomorrow we are staying open for years 7,10 and 11. We have had more staff isolate or fall ill today, to remain open we are collapsing classes and senior leaders are covering lessons where we can.  We will update you regarding the plan for Friday and if we are able to continue this level of service.

By tomorrow evening we will be ready to send out to parents and careers a letter and guidance outlining how and when we will set work for students during the full school closure which begins on Monday.

For all those students in self isolation or in years 8 or 9 they should be following the task grid we sent out earlier today and the advice on how to work at home.

Task grid self isolation and part closure COVID-19 2020

How to study at home absence advice

We will also begin to plan for what the offer will look like for those who will be offered schooling onsite from Monday.

Finally a huge thank you to the wonderful staff of Heartlands High School who are doing so much to reassure students, teach in increasingly difficult circumstances and plan for the impending closures. We are lucky to have such a wonderful staff.

I will be in touch tomorrow.

Thank you for all your support and well wishes. We are thinking of all our families at this difficult time.

Mrs Roberts

 

Advice and Guidance for Students Not at School – 18 March 2020

18th March 2020Ms E Roberts

As outlined in communication yesterday we have produced a guidance sheet for students working at home here:

How to study at home_absence advice (1)

We have also created a Task Grid for all learners to enable them to follow their normal timetable at home.

Task grid self isolation and part closure COVID-19 2020

Please read with care to be able to support your child.  If you have internet connectivity or access issues at home please contact the school office; we can help!

Please note: to access this work you MUST be logged onto your school google account.  If it prompts you to ‘request access’ and this is from your home email we can not share it with you.

Thank you

Mrs Roberts

Covid-19 School Part Closures 18/3/2020

17th March 2020Ms E Roberts
It is with great sadness that I am writing to inform you that we will not be open to year 8 and 9 Tomorrow; Wednesday March 18th 2020. We will update you on the plans for the rest of the week as soon as we know them.
We will be open from 11–11.50am for students in these year groups to collect free school meals for those eligible.
Year 7, 10 and 11 will be expected to attend school on March 18th 2020 as normal; we will start the day with tutor time for 30 minutes.  At the moment we will be teaching the normal school timetable, normal lunches etc. A reminder we will not be running after school clubs or activities and all trips are cancelled and all the restrictions we put in place yesterday remain.
We are working on a help sheet for students to outline the work they should be completing at home and where to find the resources.  We will email this to parents and students first thing tomorrow.
Thank you all for your ongoing support; we appreciate all the well wishes we have received! These are challenging times.  We remain committed to offering the best education to our students that we can.
Thank you
Mrs Roberts

COVID-19 Update 17 March 2020: Updated at 11am

17th March 2020Ms E Roberts

Heartlands High School is currently open for all students however we have had to make some decisions to enable this to happen.  Please note:

  • All trips are cancelled until further notice
  • All sports events, music events and fixtures are cancelled until further notice
  • Year 11 interventions after school, on Saturdays and during the holidays are cancelled
  • All after school and before school interventions and clubs are cancelled for all year groups
  • The premises is closed to all visitors; please do not come into school
  • We are sending home students who have a cough or a temperature (if they have a sibling they are being sent home with them), OR students who are informing us someone at home has a cough or temperature they must self isolate for 7 or 14 days. Please follow the guidance on the Government’s website and inform us of your decision
  • All vulnerable staff, including those who are pregnant have been advised to stay at home until further notice

We are preparing for a part closure tomorrow. We will prioritise years 7,10 and 11 and those with SEND or vulnerable home situations. If we part close we will make lunch available for collection from school for those not in school but entitled to a Free School Meal.

I will send you communication later today with all the details for the rest of the week. Please rest assured we will remain open for as long as we can for as many as we can!

We are finalising advice regarding what children should do when self isolating and how we set work in this instance, or in the instance of school closure. This will be sent directly to students and posted on this dedicated page of the website.

These are challenging times. We remind students there is online support and counseling available through www.kooth.com and a program to help with stress through www.headspace.com. Students will need to register if they have not already, however, this is free and easy to do.

Best wishes to you all. I will keep you updated

Mrs Roberts