Charlton School

Dear Parent/Carer,

End of Year Letter and September Re-opening Details

As we come to the end of a very different school year, it is our last day tomorrow, I want to pass on our appreciation from all of us at Charlton for your many messages of support during the most difficult of times.  I would like to thank you for your patience, your feedback has told us we have got most things right, more often than not!  I am grateful for your kind words about the level of communication you have received from school and the Learning Community Trust, and that this has kept you informed and reassured about the steps we have taken to keep our community safe.

I also need to thank you for your home schooling endeavours.  We have seen many examples of the outstanding work that has been achieved.  It has been a long time to stay motivated and enthused about learning, and we applaud both our students’ and home teachers’ resilience.  It is now time to stand easy and take a well-earned break from teaching and learning.  You have all earned a break!

Despite the very strange year we have had, it is still the time when we have to say goodbye to a few members of staff. From previous correspondence you will be aware that Mr Tristham, Mr Denfhy and Mrs Jones are leaving us after many years of service to Charlton School.

In addition, leaving us with our very best wishes for the future, are Mrs Upton, Head of MFL,

Mrs McKevitt, English, Mrs Coicheci, History, Mr Etherington, PE and Mr Gardner-Hart, Science.  We wish them all well and I am sure they will enjoy their new challenges and embrace the opportunities that present themselves. 

We are very glad to be welcoming Mrs Barker, Science, back from maternity leave and despite the challenges we have faced we have managed to appoint excellent colleagues to replace those leaving us, we will introduce these to you in September.

The year ahead will present a number of challenges for us.  It is an exciting time ahead for us to work through the legacy of the impact of the virus together, there will be necessary changes to how we all operate in school. We will be relentless in ensuring students and staff return to school happy, safe and well looked after.  

Plans from September – Provisional at this stage 

We have been working with our Governors, unions and the Learning Community Trust, to put a plan together that provides as much normality to the school day as possible, whilst meeting the expectations laid out in the Government guidance, found below:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-schools-during-the-coronavirus-outbreak/guidance-for-full-opening-schools

At present, the school year will start on Wednesday 2^nd September for Year 7 only, Thursday 3^rd September for Years 7, 10 and 11, and Friday 4^th September for all year groups.  This staggered start will allow us to incrementally build the number of students on the school site to test the plans and procedures in place.  Students are to return in full school uniform.

One of the many recommendations from the Government is that we have staggered start and finish times for different year groups, and where possible, different entry and exit points:

In addition to the measures above we will also implement the following:

• Year groups to remain together throughout the school day and operate as a “bubble”
• Staggered break and lunchtimes, built into lessons 2 and 4 (all students will be expected to spend some time at break and lunch outside so please do send them with a coat if the weather is looking unfavourable)
• A one-way system that all staff and students must follow
• Sanitiser stations on entry to school and in every lesson
• Students to wear PE kit on days they have core (not GCSE) PE lessons
• Additional measures on dedicated school buses – to be confirmed, including timetable
• No extra-curricular clubs to operate in the first two weeks, including breakfast clubs

Our canteen will be open but will be offering a limited menu in the first instance. Where possible, we would ask that you top up money for school meals via Parent Pay, rather than students bringing money into school.  

As with many aspects of the National response to the Corona Virus, things can change very quickly.  At this time the Learning Community Trust (LCT) have approved our opening plans for September, this along with the LCT generic risk assessment can be found on our website here: http://charlton.uk.com/parent-student-information/covid-19-information

We look forward to welcoming you back in September; however, if guidance changes between now and then we may have to alter our plans, either way I will write to you before the end of the holiday to confirm the arrangements.

Please do have a lovely summer holiday, keep safe and well and take time to relax and recharge for a busy year ahead.

Kind regards 

Mr A McNaughton 

Principal