Dear Parent / Carer
I am writing to update you on the current situation the school is in with regards to positive COIVD tests.
There has been an increase in the amount of positive COVID tests in the wider community, which you will be able to see from the attached HCC COVID-19 data snapshot. Prior to half term we had two cases in school, however this half term has definitely seen a spike. As you are well aware we have rigorous risk-management strategies in place, but like with every educational setting we cannot guarantee that we will not be affected and cannot control
community transmission.
Last Friday we had one identified case in Year 9, which resulted in 74 other students having to self-isolate based on our track and trace protocols. Currently we have had three unrelated positive COVID cases within the last 24 hours; two in the 6th Form and one in Year 11 resulting in a further 33 students having to self-isolate. I am expecting more cases to arise in the forthcoming days before we see the impact of the lockdown coming into play.
As a school we are facing increasing challenges due to a number of colleagues who are also out of school self-isolating. Colleagues who are self-isolating will continue to work from home, prepare lessons and where possible deliver online learning. Currently we are able to cover student lessons internally, but if the number of colleagues having to self-isolate increases then I will need to look at introducing year group rotations for a short period of time and moving to remote learning. This is something that I did raise with parents as a possible scenario in my letter dated 11th September.
I would like to remind parents that we have a 48-hour turnaround for communication, and in light of the additional challenges we are working under please appreciate that at times things will slip. As you probably all know by now, I am not a great fan of the ‘gossip grapevine’ that seems to stalk educational settings and I have little patience with people who peddle misinformation based on hearsay. You send your child or children to my school and in that you are entrusting them into our care. We will keep you informed about what is going on just as we have done since the lockdown in March 2020.
I need your support to ensure that my students, your children, behave in a manner that ensures that we are all safe in school and in the wider community by following the rules relating to the lockdown we are currently in.
Thank you for your continued support and patience.
Kind regards
Geraint Edwards