Friday 20th March 2020
Dear Parents/Carers,
Today is a very sad day for all of the staff team here at William Gladstone. We are all living through very unusual times that are difficult for us all to navigate. Thank you all for working with us, for being so considerate and supportive. Your kind words have really lifted the spirit of the team here!
We have asked the children to focus on the happy day ahead when we can open our school gates once more to everyone. What a great day that will be! We all met at 3pm in the key Stage 2 playground today and said goodbye for now. We joined elbows instead of hands and cheered the teachers for their hard work and kindness. This was very emotional of course but I wanted them all to know that we are all in this together.
Children who are eligible for a Free School Meal will have a lunch delivered to their door on Monday. The staff will knock on the door and then walk back to keep a safe distance away from you. Please let the children give us a wave from a window – we will be missing you!
Christ Church has a Facebook page – Christ Church Newark-on-Trent. Please keep an eye on this as Paul and Liz are thinking creatively about ways that they can support you all through these difficult times. They are a real hub in our community.
Parents of children that are able to come into school will have been notified before I finish work today. If you do not hear from me, it is because the eligibility form has not been completed in full or because you do not qualify as a key worker. Please ring school on Monday if you have any questions about this. I am very grateful to all parents that are making provision for their child to stay home as much as possible. Many parents who are keyworkers are still managing to do this in the interests of everyone else. Thank you!
Children who are coming into school may wear their own clothes each day. We are planning to keep a small section of school open to reduce the areas that we need to clean. We will create a routine every day for the children which will remain constant - regardless of which adults are working with them. We will only be opening the main reception door. Please collect children from here as well at the end of your shift. If your job requires you to change your working pattern, please let us know so that we can make sure we have a good ratio of adults. If anyone in your household starts to show symptoms of the Coronavirus (a persistent, dry cough or a temperature) please notify us straight away and arrange for someone to collect your child from school.
For those of you working from home the teaching team will keep the Teams folders well stocked with work for your child to work. We will make extra work packs, and deliver them, if the period of time becomes extended. You may find that creating a new kind of routine will help with children learning at home. Structure and consistency will help them to manage in these unusual circumstances.
I would like to thank all of my staff team for their amazing team spirit and sense of duty. I am so proud of their ability to rise to the occasion and go above and beyond. They do this because they love your children and are committed to our community. They would all like to join me in saying that we sincerely hope that this period is short-lived - we will all miss everyone so much.
I will, of course, keep you all updated as the days go by - please check our usual forums for newsletters and updates. I would love you all to stay in touch too – please let the teachers know how the children are doing and ask for help with the home learning should you need it.
You will all be in our thoughts and prayers.
With sincere best wishes for your health and well-being,
Sarah Clarke and the staff team at William Gladstone CofE Primary Academy