Return to School September 2021

Dear Parent,

I hope you are all had an enjoyable summer break.  It is with great pleasure that I, on behalf of Governors and staff welcome all pupils back to school on Wednesday 1^st September 2021.

By and large, the safety measures remain the same as before. I am issuing you with the measures that I outlined previously.

However, I do wish to add that I really want you to be vigilant about your child’s health. If your child is sick, has a cold, a tummy sickness etc. please ‘err on the side of caution’ and keep him/her off school. Please also book your child to have a COVID 19 test and relay the results to us before your child’s return to school.

Drop Off in Mornings: In terms of the drop off in the morning, classroom assistants will be placed outside the school to greet and direct the children. All children will walk to their designated door. P.1. children‘s parents will place their little one into the care of the class teacher outside the P.1. ‘exterior’ class door. The entry points for the children are:

P.1. – P.1. exterior class door

P.2/3. - Children’s Parents drop their children off at P.1. gate (not P.2/3/ door)

P.4.- P.4. back fire door

P.5. door at back where P.5. and P.6. enter playground

P.6. same door as P.5. (different entry and exit times)

P.7. side door at large playground.

*As I stated, classroom assistants will direct the children to their entry points.

Parents: I said to you in the previous letter that you, as parents, are not permitted into the building. I am compromised in saying this as in normal times you are so welcome. However, I hope you understand that under no circumstance can you enter the school building. If you need to speak to a teacher or myself, please contact the school by telephone and we will be happy to speak to you.

Entry Times:

P.1. & P.5. 8:45am

P.2. , P.4 & P.6.. 9am

P.3.& P.7. 9:15am

More information will follow re staggered finishing times for our new Primary 1 class.

** (If you have more than one child in your family to drop off, the classroom assistant will direct the child to his/her entry door where he/she will be met by their class teacher. I would advise that you arrive at the earlier time slot for your children. For example, if you have a P.1. and a P.6. child, the P.1. child arrives at 8:45am and the slot for P.6. is 9:00am. With this arrangement, send both children in at 8:45am. Your older child will be directed by the classroom assistant to his/her entry door).

On entry to the school all children’s hands will be initially sanitised. When all children are safely inside the class, they must then wash their hands as directed by the class teacher.

Home Times:

P.1. leaves at 1:45pm via P.1. exterior door

P.2. leaves at 2pm from P.2. exterior door

P.3. leave at 2:45pm from P.3. exterior door

P.4. collected from P.4. back fire door at 3pm

P.5. collected from P.5./6 back door at 2:45pm

P.6. collected from P.5/6 back door at 3pm

P.7. collected at 3:10pm from the side door at the large playground  

*Before leaving school all children will again wash their hands.

Buses: Both yellow school buses and blue public buses will be operational. Children will be greeted by a classroom assistant on disembarking and directed to their relevant outside entry door. The children will also be guided onto the buses in the evening as is the normal practice. If your child travels on a blue bus he/she must wear a face mask and adhere to the 2M distancing as far as possible. With regard to yellow buses, children are advised to wear a mask and there is no social distancing. However, we will attempt to ensure that siblings sit beside each other and where this is not possible, children from the same class bubble will be seated beside each other. As is always the case, but critical now, children are not permitted to change from the seats to which they have been allocated.

Money: Dinner money will only be collected on a Monday. It needs to be placed into an envelope with the amount and child’s name clearly written. (The child can keep this in his/her pocket coat before passing it to the class teacher).

Snack: You may send a snack with the children as usual. There will be no shared snack as was the normal practice for P.1. and P.2. in the past.   However, just send your own snack instead.

Milk: Milk will be available as normal.

Uniform: It is preferable that the children have a change of clothing each day. If you have not got enough uniforms, the child can wear his/her plain clothes instead. On P.E. days, the children can wear their P.E. uniform to school. You will be informed about the details later.

Pencil cases:  Children from P2-P7 are asked to bring in a pencil case with labelled Twistables.  This pencil case will remain in school. 

Wallets: For school year ‘21/’22, the school would like all children to have a school wallet instead of a schoolbag.  School Days shop in Enniskillen is stocking the required wallet (navy with a school crest). 

Coats: All children must wear a coat to school each day. This year, we will attempt to have the children outside as much as possible, so please ensure that they all have a coat.

Car Parks: The staff will now park in the parents’ car park, and you, the parents, can drop the children off in the former staff car park directly in front of the school. We understand that for some families, you may have to collect more than one child in the afternoons and that they are all exiting at different times. Please park and wait until the other child is ready for collection, as we cannot release families due to minimising adult contact at the exit doors.

Sickness:

• If your child is unwell please do not send him/her to school.
• If your child has symptoms of COVID 19 he /she must not come to school.

Symptoms:

• a temperature i.e. over 37.4 degrees/ a continuous cough/ anosmia loss of smell & sometimes taste
• If your child displays any of these symptoms you must seek medical advice/attention. In the event of your child or someone in your household having a positive test for COVID 19, you must communicate the result to the school. Your child must not come to school and must follow the guidance on self-isolation. Please also be aware of the new symptoms linked to the Delta Variant. 
• I must stress again that a sick or symptomatic child should not come to school.
• In the event of your child becoming sick at school, there is a designated isolation room identified for your child to wait until you can collect your child.
• Please ensure that the telephone numbers that you provide to us are accurate and that you give an immediate response to us when we alert you of the sickness.
• I hope that you understand that these measures are all in place to keep your children as well as possible.
  I understand that for some parents/families these arrangements may be difficult: please understand that in order to comply with the regulations set out by that Department of Education that these plans are the best that we can determine. The plans that I have established will be reviewed accordingly in line with Departmental advice.

I urge you not to congregate in groups outside the school. 

We are all looking forward to another exciting school year, where your child is at the centre of everything we do.

My Very Best Wishes to You All,

Ms. O’Neill.