Challenges - Helping at Home/Obstacle Courses

Our current challenges are to build an obstacle course (which could be for you, a younger sibling, or even a pet or teddy bear) or to see what you can do to help at home.

Learning at Home

During the school closure, we are really keen to keep in touch with our school community. 

We will be sharing regular updates and challenges via Facebook and on here.

Mr Huntington and his Year 6 superstars have been working hard to put together some workouts for families to try at home - see the link below.

we are also setting our first 'Challenge of the Week' which is to build a den! It could be in your front room, under your dining table, in your garden...the more creative the better!

We would love to see some photos of your activities - we miss your children! Please email them into Mrs Price at deputyhead@torrisholme.lancs.sch.uk and check back to see your child's friends!

Dear Parent
Re School Closure due to Coronavirus COVID – 19
I apologise in advance for the tone of this letter but it is really important that we remember the reasoning behind why Torrisholme School is closing at 3.00pm today until further notice.
We are preparing for a lockdown situation as is happening in other parts of the world. 
The purpose is to minimise social contact to halt the spread of Coronavirus. 

"Every child who can be cared for safely at home, should be" 

Our child care is to enable key workers and ‘vulnerable children’ who have no alternative and would not be able to do their part in helping keep essential services going unless they had child care.
Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those with education, health and care (EHC) plans.

Children who have a social worker include children in need, children who have a child protection plan and those who are looked after by the local authority. We will work with schools, early years, FE providers and local authorities to help identify the children who most need support at this time.

This may change and key workers will be able to change arrangements over time.
We are preparing for a national emergency situation, we expect parents only to use this facility when there is no alternative child care. It is not so that parents can continue normal life but so that essential services can operate. I expect some challenging conversations. 
DO NOT bring children to school on Monday without booking them via email (details below).
Schools have been asked to "provide childcare for key workers and vulnerable children"
School is closed - but Torrisholme Key Worker Child Care will operate from Monday
Places will be available to eligible pupils. Please see Government Guidance below.
Initially we are planning for the two weeks up to the Easter holidays.  Further plans will be communicated as and when they are made.
From Monday 23rd March 2020, essential child care will
• be offered from 8.30 to 3.00pm
• be offered on a half or full day basis (8.30 – 12noon, 12noon – 3.00pm)
• be staffed by available teachers and support staff
• be booked in via email by Sunday 5.00pm each week (childcare@torrisholme.lancs.sch.uk)
• include a free school meal if requested otherwise children should bring a packed lunch
• not take the form of teaching
Please remember that this is essential child care only
Gill at Footsteps is available to provide ‘Wrap Around Care’ for key workers’ children
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Please, therefore, follow these key principles:
1. If it is at all possible for children to be at home, then they should be.
2. If a child needs specialist support, is vulnerable or has a parent who is a critical worker, then educational provision will be available for them.
3. Parents should not rely for childcare upon those who are advised to be in the stringent social distancing category such as grandparents, friends, or family members with underlying conditions.
4. Parents should also do everything they can to ensure children are not mixing socially in a way which can continue to spread the virus. They should observe the same social distancing principles as adults.
5. Residential special schools, boarding schools and special settings continue to care for children wherever possible.
 
If your work is critical to the COVID-19 response, or you work in one of the critical sectors listed below, and you cannot keep your child safe at home then your children will be prioritised for education provision:
 
Health and social care
This includes but is not limited to 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
This includes nursery and teaching staff, social workers and those specialist education professionals who must remain active during the COVID-19 response to deliver this approach.
 
Key public services
This includes 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
This only includes 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
This 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
This includes police and support staff, Ministry of Defence civilians, contractor and armed forces personnel (those critical to the delivery of key defence and national security outputs and essential to the response to the COVID-19 pandemic), 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
This includes those who will keep the air, water, road and rail passenger and freight transport modes operating during the COVID-19 response, including those working on transport systems through which supply chains pass.
 
Utilities, communication and financial services
This includes staff needed for essential financial services provision (including but not limited to 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 to continue during the COVID-19 response, as well as key staff working in the civil nuclear, chemicals, telecommunications (including but not limited to 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.
 
If workers think they fall within the critical categories above they should confirm with their employer that, based on their business continuity arrangements, their specific role is necessary for the continuation of this essential public service.
 
If your school is closed then please contact your local authority, who will seek to redirect you to a local school in your area that your child, or children, can attend.
 
We are grateful for the work of teachers and workers in educational settings for continuing to provide for the children of the other critical workers of our country. It is an essential part of our national effort to combat this disease.”
 
 
 
 
And in addition
3. Vulnerable children
3.1 Is my child counted as vulnerable?
Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those with education, health and care (EHC) plans.

Children who have a social worker include children in need, children who have a child protection plan and those who are looked after by the local authority. We will work with schools, early years, FE providers and local authorities to help identify the children who most need support at this time.

We know that schools will also want to look to support other children who are vulnerable where they are able to do so.

Dear Parent
Re School Closure due to Coronavirus COVID – 19
I apologise in advance for the tone of this letter but it is really important that we remember the reasoning behind why Torrisholme School is closing at 3.00pm today until further notice.
We are preparing for a lockdown situation as is happening in other parts of the world. 
The purpose is to minimise social contact to halt the spread of Coronavirus. 

"Every child who can be cared for safely at home, should be" 

Our child care is to enable key workers and ‘vulnerable children’ who have no alternative and would not be able to do their part in helping keep essential services going unless they had child care.
Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those with education, health and care (EHC) plans.

Children who have a social worker include children in need, children who have a child protection plan and those who are looked after by the local authority. We will work with schools, early years, FE providers and local authorities to help identify the children who most need support at this time.

This may change and key workers will be able to change arrangements over time.
We are preparing for a national emergency situation, we expect parents only to use this facility when there is no alternative child care. It is not so that parents can continue normal life but so that essential services can operate. I expect some challenging conversations. 
DO NOT bring children to school on Monday without booking them via email (details below).
Schools have been asked to "provide childcare for key workers and vulnerable children"
School is closed - but Torrisholme Key Worker Child Care will operate from Monday
Places will be available to eligible pupils. Please see Government Guidance below.
Initially we are planning for the two weeks up to the Easter holidays.  Further plans will be communicated as and when they are made.
From Monday 23rd March 2020, essential child care will
• be offered from 8.30 to 3.00pm
• be offered on a half or full day basis (8.30 – 12noon, 12noon – 3.00pm)
• be staffed by available teachers and support staff
• be booked in via email by Sunday 5.00pm each week (childcare@torrisholme.lancs.sch.uk)
• include a free school meal if requested otherwise children should bring a packed lunch
• not take the form of teaching
Please remember that this is essential child care only
Gill at Footsteps is available to provide ‘Wrap Around Care’ for key workers’ children
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Please, therefore, follow these key principles:
1. If it is at all possible for children to be at home, then they should be.
2. If a child needs specialist support, is vulnerable or has a parent who is a critical worker, then educational provision will be available for them.
3. Parents should not rely for childcare upon those who are advised to be in the stringent social distancing category such as grandparents, friends, or family members with underlying conditions.
4. Parents should also do everything they can to ensure children are not mixing socially in a way which can continue to spread the virus. They should observe the same social distancing principles as adults.
5. Residential special schools, boarding schools and special settings continue to care for children wherever possible.
 
If your work is critical to the COVID-19 response, or you work in one of the critical sectors listed below, and you cannot keep your child safe at home then your children will be prioritised for education provision:
 
Health and social care
This includes but is not limited to 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
This includes nursery and teaching staff, social workers and those specialist education professionals who must remain active during the COVID-19 response to deliver this approach.
 
Key public services
This includes 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
This only includes 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
This 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
This includes police and support staff, Ministry of Defence civilians, contractor and armed forces personnel (those critical to the delivery of key defence and national security outputs and essential to the response to the COVID-19 pandemic), 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
This includes those who will keep the air, water, road and rail passenger and freight transport modes operating during the COVID-19 response, including those working on transport systems through which supply chains pass.
 
Utilities, communication and financial services
This includes staff needed for essential financial services provision (including but not limited to 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 to continue during the COVID-19 response, as well as key staff working in the civil nuclear, chemicals, telecommunications (including but not limited to 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.
 
If workers think they fall within the critical categories above they should confirm with their employer that, based on their business continuity arrangements, their specific role is necessary for the continuation of this essential public service.
 
If your school is closed then please contact your local authority, who will seek to redirect you to a local school in your area that your child, or children, can attend.
 
We are grateful for the work of teachers and workers in educational settings for continuing to provide for the children of the other critical workers of our country. It is an essential part of our national effort to combat this disease.”
 
 
 
 
And in addition
3. Vulnerable children
3.1 Is my child counted as vulnerable?
Vulnerable children include those who have a social worker and those with education, health and care (EHC) plans.

Children who have a social worker include children in need, children who have a child protection plan and those who are looked after by the local authority. We will work with schools, early years, FE providers and local authorities to help identify the children who most need support at this time.

We know that schools will also want to look to support other children who are vulnerable where they are able to do so.

17^th March 2020

Dear Parents,

COVID 19 Update 2

At the moment staff in school are fit and well. However, under the new guidance, several may be advised to    self-isolate either because of themselves or a family member falling into the ‘vulnerable group’.

Rest assured that we will do our utmost to cover classes either by some internal reorganisation or by employing supply staff.

However, this position may well not be sustainable for more than a few days and then we would have to consider a partial or total closure.

I will obviously inform parents as soon as possible if the position changes.

Thank you in anticipation of your support and understanding.

Yours sincerely

Mrs SM Penney

Headteacher.

Dear Parents/Carers

In light of the change in government advice, I thought it best to send out a letter regarding the Coronavirus outbreak.  We are keeping abreast of latest advice and trying to interpret what it means for our school community.

Yesterday, the government released new ‘Stay at Home’ guidance, which you can find using the link below.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-people-with-confirmed-or-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection

The key message of this guidance states that if you, or your child, displays the symptoms of COVID-19 (new, continuous cough and/or high temperature) then they should stay at home for 7 days from when the symptoms started. There will be no testing as such and people are being advised to contact NHS 111 if symptoms become unmanageable.

In terms of school, we are to remain open and this is what we will try to do.  If we are concerned that your child is developing a new, persistent cough, we will contact you to ask you to collect your child.  We then ask you to follow the 7-day guidance on staying at home.  If your child is not showing the symptoms set out in government advice, then they should continue to come to school.  We continue to encourage our children to wash their hands regularly and thoroughly with soap and water. 

A challenge we may face is the level of staffing we have in school.  I am pleased to let you know that at the moment, we are all fit and well, however, I would like to stress that should our level of staffing reduce, this may lead to partial school closure.  This is not the case at present, and I will inform you if this changes.  I would ask you work with us and be prepared should this have to happen.

We may also have to make the decision to postpone school events.  Again, we have no plans to do so at this time, but should this happen I will let you know.  Please be vigilant and check your emails, the news page on the school website and children’s bags for school letters, as this is where this information will get to you.

If you have any queries, please ring the school. Many thanks for your continued support,

Yours sincerely

Mrs SM Penney

Headteacher