St Francis Xavier

Doncaster Public Health and The Local Authority is to review the situation on June 8^th to look at a wider re-opening for mid-June. We will keep parents informed as soon as we hear more. Thank you for your understanding.

URGENT re. School Opening - Letter from Mayor of Doncaster

Letter to School Headteachers - SafeOpeningOfSchools220520.pdf

Partial School reopening letter to Parents

Update 12.05.20 from Mrs Nesbit SFX.pdf

Update letter from Mrs Nesbit

Update letter 11.5.20.pdf

Update as of 11.05.20

Dear parents/carers

We would like to give you advance notice that during the summer half term at the end of May, the school will be closed to staff and pupils. This is based on last night’s announcement and the need for our staff to potentially prepare classrooms for children to socially distance after this half term; and that the NHS are no longer at a critical stage in their efforts in fighting Covid-19.

Many thanks for your understanding

Regards

Mrs B Nesbit

Twitter Information during home working

TwitterPlease take a look at our twitter page where we are celebrating the outstanding work our children are doing during these unprecedented times.

COVID-19 School Policy

COVID-19 Policy.pdf

Parents Here to listen!

Ms Wells is running a 'here to talk' for the parents, children and staff, of St Francis Xavier where you can phone for a chat if you are worried, stressed or anxious about things and just need an ear to listen. Ms Wells phone number is 07847 576557 and she will be available Monday-Friday 10-1 and 5-6. Please see the flyer below for more information.

Add block

Here to listen flyer!.pdf

Update 09.04.20

Miss Hodby is the school’s point of contact for children whose parents are critical workers in the fight against Covid 19.

Should you require provision over the Bank Holiday Period, please email to the following address: Admin@francisxavier.co.uk.

Update 02/04/20

Dear Parent/ Carer

I hope this correspondence finds you all well.

I just want to thank you for all the hard work you are doing for your children. I know this is a difficult time for everyone and we as a school are especially concerned that both parents and carers are keeping themselves strong.

I have asked Ms Hodby and Ms Wells to put together a One Minute Guide on Mental Health strategies during this time for both staff and you the parents. As a staff, we conduct one minute guides every week on topics relevant to the school and pertinent especially to the safeguarding culture here at St. Francis Xavier. We are hoping to send this out via parent mail and social media by the end of tomorrow, if not earlier. Please take time to read it.

If you need any advice or help, please do not hesitate to contact us. No question is irrelevant and no problem too small.

God Bless

Mr O'Connor

Update 26.3.20

Dear Parents/Carers,

As you know, the staff have been working tirelessly to put together resources for your child's learning.

Please keep up the fantastic work being done by yourselves and continue to work with your child to engage them in learning. It would be great if more parents were able to like the Facebook pages and share work which their child has done. Just remember, you can also access the work provided on the following link; https://www.xavier.doncaster.sch.uk/fs1/ then scroll to your respective Year group.

We will get through this difficult time in the spirit of teamwork and please remember to take care of yourselves.

Kind regards,

Mr O'Connor

Update from 24.03.20

Dear Parents/Carers,

The school has now undergone a deep clean. Those parents who completed the required documentation as critical workers to the Covid 19 response will have been notified. In the case of St. Francis Xavier, all of our children are being cared for outside of the school and we are deeply grateful for your support in what has been a very difficult situation and how you have responded to the Government Guidelines.

As such there will be no staff on site, except myself and Mr Wynne who will oversee the collection of Free School Meals. That way, we can also protect our own staff and as well as those staff who are currently off due to self-isolation. We thank you for the lovely emails about how your child is doing on the Google Classroom. We will always endeavour to do the very best for your child. We will be conducting a courtesy phone call over the next month from Ms Hodby to ensure you are all well.

Take care and God Bless

Mr O'Connor

Important information as of 22.03.20

There is a lot of confusion about the provision for children at schools. It is NOT compulsory for 'key workers' children to attend next week. It is NOT an option for chidren to dip in and out of. It is an EMERGENCY childcare provision, and if children can be left at home safely because there is adequate care or they are old enough and responsible enough, this is what MUST happen. The whole point is to reduce the spread of the transmission.

Therefore schools are 'open', but literally only want the absolute minimum of students, so that they can deploy the minimum number of staff and therefore expose the minimum number of children, staff and their families to this extreme risk.

As you know St Francis Xavier is closed due to affected staff in isolation and we will keep you up to date in respect to this.

Sending your child to school because 'they will miss their friends', 'they will get bored', 'you cant manage them at home' etc is irresponsible and not valid reasons. Please only use this emergency service if it absolutely necessary.

Nurses, doctors medical teams etc are doing an amazing job, lets help them by not sending more infected people.

Update as of 12.55pm Parent Information

COVID 19 Updated 12.55pm 20.03.20.docx

Update as of 10.30am 20.03.20

Parent Letter St Francis 20.03.20

Update 20.03.20

20th March 2020 Letter.docx

List of Key Workers

A Full list of Key Workers.pdf

Covid-19 Latest Parent Information as of 19.03.20

School Closure Parent Letter 19.03.20

Updated guidance for education settings on coronavirus (COVID-19)

The Department for Education and Public Health England have issued updated guidance for education settings on COVID-19. This guidance will assist staff in addressing COVID-19 in educational settings. This includes childcare, schools, further and higher educational institutions.

What you need to know:

staff, young people and children should stay at home if they are unwell with a new, continuous cough or a high temperature to avoid spreading infection to others. Otherwise they should attend education or work as normal
if staff, young people or children become unwell on site with a new, continuous cough or a high temperature they should be sent home
clean and disinfect regularly touched objects and surfaces more often than usual using your standard cleaning products
supervise young children to ensure they wash their hands for 20 seconds more often than usual with soap and water or hand sanitiser and catch coughs and sneezes in tissues
posters and lesson plans on general hand hygiene can be found on the eBug website
unless you have been directly advised to close by the local Public Health England Health Protection Team, we recommend all education settings remain open

The updated guidance can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19#contents

Current advice remains in place: no education or children’s social care setting should close in response to a suspected or confirmed COVID-19 case unless advised to do so by Public Health England.

The Chief Medical Officer has advised that the impact of closing schools on both children’s education and on the workforce would be substantial, but the benefit to public health may not be. Decisions on future advice to education or children’s social care settings will be taken based on the latest and best scientific evidence, which at this stage suggests children are a lower risk group.

Recording school pupil absences

Where a pupil is in self-isolation, in accordance with latest information and advice from Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England, the pupil should be recorded as unable to attend due to exceptional circumstances in the attendance register. Code Y (Unable to attend due to exceptional circumstances) should be used in this instance.

If a pupil does not attend school, despite the school operating as usual and the pupil is not self-isolating, they should be marked as absent. It is for headteachers to determine whether or not the absence is authorised depending on the individual circumstances.

Where a pupil cannot attend school due to illness, as normally would happen, the pupil should be recorded as absent in the attendance register and the school will authorise the absence. Code I (Illness) should be used in this instance.

Symptoms

The most common symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are a new, continuous cough or a high temperature.

For most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild infection.

What to do if someone develops symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) on site

If anyone becomes unwell with a new, continuous cough or a high temperature in an education setting they should be sent home and advised to follow the staying at home guidance.

If a child is awaiting collection, they should be moved, if possible and if appropriate, to a room where they can be isolated behind a closed door. Settings should be mindful of individual children’s needs – for example it would not be appropriate for younger children to be alone without adult supervision. Ideally, a window should be opened for ventilation. If it is not possible to isolate them, move them to an area which is at least 2 metres away from other people.

If they need to go to the bathroom while waiting to be collected, they should use a separate bathroom if possible. The bathroom should be cleaned and disinfected using standard cleaning products before being used by anyone else.

If they need clinical advice, they (or their teacher, parent or guardian) should go online to NHS 111 (or call 111 if they don’t have internet access). In an emergency, call 999 if they are seriously ill or injured or their life is at risk. Do not visit the GP, pharmacy, urgent care centre or a hospital.

If a member of staff has helped someone who was taken unwell with a new, continuous cough or a high temperature, they do not need to go home unless they develop symptoms themselves. They should wash their hands thoroughly for 20 seconds after any contact with someone who is unwell.

In most cases, closure of the educational setting will not be needed but this will be a local decision based on various factors such as establishment size and risk of further spread.

If there is an urgent public health action to take, the educational setting will be contacted by the local Public Health England Health Protection Team who will undertake a risk assessment and advise on any actions or precautions that should be taken. PHE will rarely advise a school to close but this may be necessary if there are so many staff being isolated that the school has operational issues. Your local authority will support you to make this assessment. PHE will work with the headteacher, principal or management team, and the Local Authority Public Health team, to advise on the management of children, pupils, students or staff.

Limiting spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in educational settings

Education settings can help reduce the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) by reminding everyone of the public health advice.

Staff, children, pupils, students and families should be reminded to wash their hands for 20 seconds more frequently than normal.

Frequently clean and disinfect objects and surfaces that are touched regularly, using your standard cleaning products.

Handwashing advice

The most important thing individuals can do to protect themselves is to wash their hands more often, for at least 20 seconds, with soap and water. Public Health England recommends that in addition to handwashing before eating, and after coughing and sneezing, everyone should also wash hands after using toilets and travelling on public transport.

Watch this short NHS film for guidance:

https://youtu.be/bQCP7waTRWU

Department for Education coronavirus helpline

The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:

Phone: 0800 046 8687
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday), 10am to 4pm(Saturday to Sunday)

Please note, we are currently experiencing high volumes of calls. We appreciate your patience at this time and apologise for any wait that you may experience. To ensure that we answer your calls as quickly as possible we have now extended our opening hours to cover weekends.

If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UK PRN) available when calling the hotline.

Where to find the latest information

Updates on COVID-19:

https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Guidance for educational settings:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19

Guidance for social or community care and residential settings:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-for-social-or-community-care-and-residential-settings-on-covid-19

Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus

Educational resources:

https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/101-coronavirus-/resources