A Message to Parents/Carers

Dear all

Firstly please could we say thank you to each and every one of you for all you are doing at home with your children. We know this is not easy and we know that you are not teachers and so do not have all of the answers to the questions that your children may ask. However we know that you are doing an amazing job to help your children to stay focused with their learning at home. 

 Thank you to all of you who have sent such kind messages of support and thanks to the staff and those who have also already managed to send in your children's learning to be marked. 

I just need to make a very special request to you all - Please could I also ask for your patience in waiting for a response from your class teacher.  We are working with a skeleton staff at school as we have to remain open for key workers and vulnerable children as per the Government guidelines.  However I still have to safeguard staff and so we are working on a rota to ensure that all staff are given the relevant self-isolation time after spending anytime in school.

The remainder of the staff, I can assure you are working remotely during the time they have been asked to stay away from school and they are working exceedingly hard behind the scenes.  The staff all have to continue working whether they are in school or at home. However it can be very difficult to work remotely when you are relying on internet to work and to access emails and school systems as I am sure may of you know. 

The staff working remotely will respond to emails and queries and completed work from children as quickly as they can. All I ask is that you support them in doing this by being patient. I have to say from my heart that all parents have been very patient and supportive and we are very lucky to have such fabulous families. However I thought it was best to just explain how we are working as a school staff and therefore if we do take a little longer to reply, it could be due to unforseen circumstances or just that we are also trying to find the best ways forward to make this work for you and your children. 

The staff in school also have a difficult job as they are having to support some children whose parents are key workers or vulnerable children and also continue to plan and mark work.  The staff in school may theerfore take a little longer to respond to your emails. I will keep you updated with who the key workers are in school as the weeks go by. This may change according to staff's own situations at home. 

I would like to thank the staff themselves, as they also have families and they are also putting themselves at risk during this very difficult time and showing true dedication and commitment to your children and our school.  

We are very lucky in our school, as there are many schools who have had to close completely and also many school workers who are not able to provide this level of care due to self-isolation or illness. 

Once again thank you to each and every one of you. We know how difficult this is and we don't expect you to be teachers or to know and be able to do everything. That is why we are here at the end of the phone or email to help and support. 

Thank you also to all of our key workers who continue to put themselves and their families at risk by being on the front line to support their communities. 

Stay safe. Stay healthy. Stay strong. 

Mrs Jameson