Dear Parents and Carers,

We are almost at the end of this half term and I wanted to thank you so much for the many positive messages that we have received from you about our remote learning provision. We know that this is an extremely challenging time for all of us and our staff very much appreciate hearing from you. Similarly, we are delighted with the very high levels of engagement from children which we know must mean there has been a significant effort on your part; for this we are equally appreciative. As a mother of two, I know how challenging it is balancing working full time, supporting children with home learning, looking after vulnerable family members and managing all the usual everyday life tasks but we must keep going for a little bit longer to ensure our children don’t have huge gaps in their learning when they return to School. Please remember staff are here to support you with any issues you may have or if you just need support to motivate your child to complete home learning. We break up on Friday for February half term and we will not be setting any work for next week; it is important that the children, and you, have a well-deserved break.

In his recent announcement to Parliament, the Prime Minister confirmed that schools would not re-open before Monday 8th March 2021 and that this will be dependent upon a number of different factors, including infection rates and how successfully the Government has delivered its vaccination programme. We will receive two weeks’ notice of reopening and it is possible that children will return on a phased basis. In the meantime, we ask that everyone continues to do as they are doing and remain fully engaged with home learning to support your children.

We apologise if you feel we are pressuring you into completing home learning but there is a national expectation from the Government that children will complete the work and send it to Teachers so that they can offer vital feedback to move their learning forward. Home learning will undoubtedly support your child and ensure they do not fall behind and teaching in school will continue from the point home learning stops when all children do return to School.

We do appreciate all feedback on remote learning and we recognise that now more than ever, it is only through working in partnership that we can make this provision work as well as possible.

For those children who are with us in School during this lockdown period I would like to thank the Parents and Carers for adhering to the measures in place to ensure staff and children are as safe as they possibly can be.

We have now switched to the supermarket voucher scheme for free school meals and vouchers should have been issued to all eligible families via email last Monday. If you have any queries or questions, please contact the School Office and they will be able to offer further assistance. Originally the Government issued guidance to say that vouchers could not be issued covering the half term period however now they have said that we should issue a voucher but unfortunately we are not able to use the Edenred provider. We have purchased all eligible families a £15 Aldi voucher which you will be able to collect from the School Office from today; you will have received a text message if there is a voucher for you to collect. If you think you are eligible but have not yet applied then please contact 0191 561 1417.

School closes on Friday 12^th February for half term and we start back on Monday 22^nd February for those children attending during lockdown; this is also when home learning will begin again.

I hope that you all enjoy a restful half term, and thank you, as always, for your positivity and support.

Kind Regards

Mrs A Charlton

NHS Test and Trace: COVID-19 testing for staff .

Dear Parents/Carers,

We are working to keep our school as safe as possible. You may have heard that testing for those without coronavirus symptoms is beginning across the country using new, quicker COVID-19 tests known as ‘lateral flow tests’.

Along with the other protective measures we are taking, these tests will help staff and pupils to remain in school/college safely. Up to one third of people who have coronavirus experience no symptoms. By testing we will help to stop the virus spread and help to keep our school open as safely as possible. The test is voluntary, but I am encouraging everyone to take it.

We will be testing all staff who want to participate from this week, they will take a test Sunday and Wednesday evenings. Obviously if a member of staff tests positive then we will have to close that bubble in School at short notice; you will be advised of this by text message so please ensure we have the correct contact details for you.

We know these tests work – in validation studies conducted by Oxford University and Public Health England, they were shown to be as accurate in identifying a case as a PCR test (99.68% specificity). The tests have lower sensitivity but they are better at picking up cases when a person has higher viral load, hence the need to test frequently.

Thank you for your continued support and understanding during these unprecedented times.

Mrs Charlton

Free School Meal Vouchers.

I hope you are all safe and well.

Originally the Government were not going to provide Free School Meal vouchers and Schools were instructed to provide food parcels for families which we did. However the Government have now launched the voucher system again and we can now issue these as we did during the last lockdown. The Cook has ordered enough food to provide our families with food parcels for this week and next so we will continue to provide you with them as planned so that the food is not wasted.

From the week beginning 1^st February you will receive a food voucher direct to your email address which I know is much more convenient for you all. You will receive £15 per child, per week.  I plan to order vouchers for two weeks meaning you will receive a £30 voucher per child covering the weeks beginning 1^st February and 8^th February. The Government have said that we are not to issue vouchers for the half term holiday and all children are expected to return to School on 22.02.21 so this will be the only voucher you receive. Rest assured if this changes then I will be in touch.

I urgently need you to provide me with your email address to ensure your vouchers are received on 1^st February; last time there was a huge delay so I want to order these as early as I can. Please send an email to: grindon.infant@schools.sunderland.gov.uk from the email address that you would like us to use. In the email please state your full name and your child’s full name, this ensures we have your accurate email address, even one letter wrong would mean you would not receive your voucher. Please do this no later than Friday 22^nd January as that is when I will be placing the order for you to receive on 1^st February.

Edenred, the company working on behalf of the Government to issue the voucher codes to you, have provided guidance here:

https://www.edenred.co.uk/reward-recipients/Free-School-Meal-Vouchers

If you have not received any correspondence from us at all regarding these vouchers then that is because you are not on our free school meal list. When your child started school you were asked to complete a form to check your eligibility. Some of you may not be eligible however some of you may not have completed the form. If you think you may be eligible then you need to complete the online form on the Together for Children website. School cannot complete this form on your behalf, you must complete it and then they send us notification to say that you are eligible. Once I receive that then I will be able to process your £15 weekly vouchers.

All infant age children receive a free school meal (universal free school meals) however this voucher scheme is only for parents who are in receipt of benefits. If you are unsure if you are eligible then more information can be found at

https://www.togetherforchildren.org.uk/families/free-school-meals or alternatively you can ring one of the team on 0191 561 1417.

Take care, stay safe and keep positive.

Mrs Charlton.