Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
Dear Parents and Carers,
Due to the unprecedented current circumstances all schools and early years providers in England will close from today for the foreseeable future.
We will miss each and every one of our families but understand the first priority of our country is to keep the most vulnerable within our population safe from COVID-19.
We will endeavour to stay in touch with you through email, telephone and social media until we can resume service as usual. We are hopeful that we will see you all again during in the summer term and we will have a party to say goodbye to all our leavers of 2020.
The second priority is to keep our country running including all health and emergency services and all logistics including food and utility services. Ripley Nursery School and the Childcare provision will provide a reduced facility to support as long as it is safe for staff and children to do so.
The Government have released a list of those classed as Key Workers. However if your role within the sectors listed is NOT directly related to the COVID-19 response it does not apply. If you are unsure you will need to check with your employer. Please also be aware that the government has stated that wherever possible children should be kept at home and that,
“Schools are being asked to continue to provide care for a limited number of children - children who are vulnerable and children whose parents are critical to the Covid-19 response and cannot be safely cared for at home.”
Schools are also being asked to limit their emergency places to 20% of the school population.
Key workers:
Health and social care - to include doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social workers, care workers, and other frontline health and social care staff including volunteers; the support and specialist staff required to maintain the UK’s health and social care sector; those working as part of the health and social care supply chain, including producers and distributers of medicines and medical and personal protective equipment.
Education and childcare - to include nursery and teaching staff, social workers and specialist education professionals.
Key public services - to include those essential to the running of the justice system, religious staff, charities and workers delivering key frontline services, those responsible for the management of the deceased, and journalists and broadcasters who are providing public service broadcasting.
Local and national government - to only includee those administrative occupations essential to the effective delivery of the COVID-19 response or delivering essential public services such as the payment of benefits, including in government agencies and arms length bodies.
Food and other necessary goods - includes those involved in food production, processing, distribution, sale and delivery as well as those essential to the provision of other key goods (for example hygienic and veterinary medicines).
Public safety and national security - includes police and support staff, Ministry of Defence civilians, contractor and armed forces personnel, fire and rescue service employees (including support staff), National Crime Agency staff, those maintaining border security, prison and probation staff and other national security roles, including those overseas.
Transport - includes those who will keep the air, water, road and rail passenger and freight transport modes operating, including those working on transport systems through which supply chains pass.
Utilities, communication and financial services - includes staff needed for essential financial services provision ie workers in banks, building societies and financial market infrastructure, the oil, gas, electricity and water sectors (including sewerage), information technology and data infrastructure sector and primary industry supplies, as well as key staff working in the civil nuclear, chemicals, telecommunications (including network operations, field engineering, call centre staff, IT and data infrastructure, 999 and 111 critical services), postal services and delivery, payments providers and waste disposal sectors.
Even if you have one of these roles but can safely care for your child at home please do so. I am operating a skeleton staff from Monday due to staff unable to come to work for their own health needs. Please, also only send your child to school on your working days.
Next steps:
If you require an emergency place at school:
• Email kerry.hartwell@derbyshire.sch.uk with proof of your role (ID badge)
• Include in your email the days that you require
Please do this immediately. School will then collate a final list and parents will be notified by close of play today. We will priotise places in accordance with Government guidelines.
To ensure we are able to support you please continue to adhere to the safety guidance to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Do not bring your child to school with a persistent cough and/or a high temperature for 7 days. Do not bring your child to school if you or a member of your immediate family are self isolating due to symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days.
I understand that this is an anxious time for you and your family; we have never before been subjected to a health scare on this scale in our life times and with this comes real fear of loss and of financial insecurity.
We all need to continue to support each other, to stay connected, to be kind and courteous and to carry on being part of our friendly and caring school community.
Kind regards,
Cathy Bednal,
Headteacher of Ripley Nursery School and Ripley School Childcare.
Dear Parents / Carers,
As you are aware we have worked closely with you over the past few weeks to keep our school and childcare facility a safe space for children, parents and staff.
Following the latest government update from the Secretary of State for Education, Gavin Williamson, schools, colleges and early years settings will be closed to everyone except children of keyworkers and vulnerable children from Monday 23rd March, as part of the country’s ongoing response to coronavirus.
Schools and setting are now being asked to play a very different but vital role in the national effort in tackling the coronavirus.
We are waiting for further clarity of the title keyworker and examples given so far include NHS staff, police and delivery drivers who need to be able to go to work. Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those with Education, Health and Care Plans. A full list of keyworker categories will be published today and we will send this out promptly.
Children who do not fall into these groups should remain at home with appropriate care.
Ripley Nursery School and Ripley Nursery School Childcare will be working together to provide a service to support children and families which fall into the identified categories, this will include some level of provision over the forthcoming Easter holidays. However whatever service we are able to provide will always be based on the safety and the welfare of our pupils and staff.
Please discuss your childcare needs with myself or your base staff by end of day on Thursday 19th March 2020.
We are in the process of preparing learning packs for every child and putting together a series of online learning materials for you to access and enable you and your children to keep in touch with your keyworkers during the difficult time ahead. We will always be available via the telephone, email or face book if we are unable to meet and talk face to face.
We understand that this is a difficult and scary time for all of us and the best way for us to help each other is to stay positive and keep connected to each other.
Kind regards,
Cathy Bednal
Headteacher
You can help to slow the spread of Coronavirus!
We are currently open and operating as normal during this period. The usual rules apply; if your child is unwell and unfit to be in school then please keep them at home to recuperate. If you have a new cough and / or a temperature of over 37.8* you should stay at home for 7 days.
Department for Education Coronavirus helpline - this helpline has been set up to answer questions about the virus related to education. Staff, parents and young people can contact the helpline.
Dear Parents / Carers
We are writing to you to tell you about what we know and what our plans are regarding updated guidance given by both The Department for Health and The Department for Education about the increasing number of confirmed Coronavirus virus cases nationally.
Since our return to school, after the half term break, we have continued to teach our children about the importance of personal hygiene and hand washing. We have also implemented, with our Caretaker and cleaning team, a new cleaning regime that further concentrates on cleaning and treating touchable surfaces in classrooms, on doors and in the toilets.
In light of the new guidance sent by The Department of Health, please DO NOT send a child to school who has a NEW cough and / or a temperature of over 37.8*C.
We will be asking parents to collect children from school immediately if a child presents in this way.
Parents and carers who believe that their child is particularly vulnerable in the context of the Covid-19 virus should contact school to speak to a member of staff so that additions to individual medical record can be made.
Further information about educational settings can be found at:
Please also feel assured, that whilst we are still not unduly concerned in our setting, that we continuously are looking at guidance for any updates, following it rigorously and will seek the correct support should we need it.
We will all work together to make sure that we keep our school community as safe and as well as possible. Please do not hesitate to ask questions or keep in touch about worries or concerns on the email or phone number at the top of the letter.
Keep in touch with developments and advice issued by Public Health England at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/topical-events/coronavirus-covid-19-uk-government-response
Many thanks in advance for your support,
Cathy Bednal
Cathy Bednal
Headteacher
Yesterday, the Coronavirus action plan was launched. This document sets out what the UK as a whole has done to tackle the Coronavirus (COVID-19), and what it plans to do next.
The action plan can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-action-plan
The document includes:
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Current advice remains in place: No school should close in response to a suspected (or confirmed) COVID-19 case unless advised to do so by Public Health England.
Personal hygiene is the most important way we can tackle COVID-19, especially washing hands more; and the catch it, bin it, kill it strategy for those with coughs and sneezes.
Please help us in sharing simple and effective hand hygiene messages.
https://twitter.com/NHSuk/status/1235112744917049346
Public Health England has a dedicated webpage with a range of posters and digital materials at:
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/101-coronavirus-/resources
Sign up is quick, free and means you will be alerted as more resources are made available.
On Monday we launched a new helpline to answer questions about COVID-19 related to education. Staff, parents and young people can contact the helpline as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Email: DfE.coronavirushelpline@education.gov.uk
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)
Updates on COVID-19:
Guidance for educational settings:
Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas: