Dear Parents and Families

I hope that you are well. 

COVID Symptoms

Please do not send your children to school if they or anybody with whom they live has COVID symptoms or a positive test.

These include:-

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

If this is the case, please email stmonicas@st-monicas.co.uk at any time or phone 01908 606966  during school hours and we can refer you to NHS guidance on isolating e.g. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/self-isolation-and-treatment/when-to-self-isolate-and-what-to-do/

COVID Tests

If your child has a positive test, please let us have the following information as soon as possible:-

• Date symptoms started
• Last date in school
• Test date
• Result date

Communicating with teachers

Thanks to so many of your for communicating with teachers by email, including parents of children at home isolating in line with guidance above.

Where it is not an emergency, teachers will reply to your email within 48 hours of their receiving it.

Christmas Arrangements

Due to COVID, there will not be the usual Christmas arrangements this year.

Please can children not bring into school Christmas cards or presents for staff and/or other children? This is to lessen chances of COVID transmission.

Nativity plays and carol concerts will not be happening in the usual way.

On Wednesday, 16^th December, there will be class parties – class teachers will be in touch with arrangements for this e.g. there will not be food brought in for sharing this year.

That day will be a Festive Fancy Dress Day at our school to raise money for Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital in London. Children can wear what they wish including Christmas costumes, jumpers etc.

For more information on the work at the hospital at this time of the year, please see Christmas at GOSH here. 

Please can your child bring in a donation of no more than £1.00 on the day if you wish to donate to the work at Great Ormond Street.

We regret the changes to our usual Christmas preparation and celebrations and look forward to things returning towards normal as time progresses. In the meantime, we are looking to minimise transmission for many reasons, including the desire to keep the school open to as many children as possible.

During this time, thank you for your patience and your help in keeping our COVID plans in place.

Rainbow Wrap around Care School Club Christmas Dinner, Monday 14^th December

Rainbow Club Christmas dinner will take place after school on Monday, 14^th December. Please book your child in until 6.00pm that evening if you want them to attend.

For more information on Rainbow Club, please see https://st-monicas.co.uk/information/wrap-around-care-rainbow-club-school-sports-club/

As ever, if you have any queries regarding your child’s time in school, please contact their class teacher, Miss Shanahan or me.

Kind regards,

Yours sincerely,

Mr O’Malley