Covid 19 Top Tip Reminders for Parents/Carers

1. Every possible precaution will be taken to keep our little children and their staff safe in school.

2.Temperatures of children will be taken upon arrival to school and if a child’s temperature is 38 degrees centigrade or above, parents will be called to take child home from school until they feel better. See Quick Guidance on COVID 19 Absences below.

3.Children will be encouraged to handwash/ sanitise regularly as per DE/ PHA Guidance. (If a child develops a skin irritation due to increased levels of handwashing/ sanitising, please talk to the class teacher so that an appropriate course of action can be taken). It is to be noted that all soaps and sanitisers are provided in school and have been procured through the Education Authority.

4. Children are organised in Class Bubble groups which will not mix with other Bubble Groups so as to control any spread of infection.

5. There are no gatherings of pupils/ staff for morning prayers, assemblies or canteen lunchtimes. Meals are delivered to the class rooms. There are currently no after school clubs/ breakfast club/ family clubs for the foreseeable future. We will let you know if this changes.

6. Children will have their own exercise books, text books and stationery packs in school and will not be required to share resources with each other. Parents should prepare stationery packs at home for their children with little exercise books so that if they need to self isolate they can continue work at home.

7. If children do have to isolate due to a positive case or if their class bubble has been shut down, school staff will be in contact with you in order to access Blended Learning Opportunities at home via MICROSOFT TEAMS. If you have any queries on this at all please contact the class teacher via email or Miss J. Doherty (Vice Principal) jdoherty742@c2kni.net

8. Children should have wipeable lunch boxes with NO CLOTH ideally. Children may bring a bottle of water to school and should take it home to be sterilised at the end of each day.

9. Parents are asked to regularly wash uniforms for their children to control the spread of infection.

10. Communication between home and school has never been more important than it is now. If your child is sick or has COVID 19 Symptoms or if someone in the family has symptoms or has tested positive….PLEASE INFORM THE SCHOOL IMMEDIATELY and keep your child at home for the correct isolation period as guided by Medical Staff. In order to control the spread of COVID 19 it is crucial that the school know what is happening.

11. Every effort is being made to ensure safety in school. Parents/ carers have a responsibility for their own safety outside of the school gates. We ask you to wear face coverings if you can and adhere to Social Distancing measures to protect yourselves and your children. For parents of Nursery, Year 1 and Year 2 Pupils who are ACTUALLY ACCESSING OUR SCHOOL GROUNDS to leave children to the designated school door, we respectfully request that you wear a face covering in the interests of the safety of all unless of course you are exempt.

12. You can communicate with your child’s teacher, Vice Principal or Principal by email and we will endeavor to respond to these within the working day. You can also ring the school and seek to make a socially distanced appointment. Unfortunately all parent meetings can no longer be handled by just "popping in" to school. All meetings must be by appointment only.

13. All visitors to school will have a temperature check upon arrival and will be asked to wear a face covering while in school adhering to PHA / DE Guidance.

14.Various update documents are emailed to every parent on a regular basis. Texts are also sent very regularly. Please ensure that you keep the school informed of your most up to date mobile number and email address. Clear guidance is included in these updates. Please read them carefully. Contact details for staff are also included in the Welcome pack that you received at the start of the year and in previous school letters to you.

15. It is to be noted that we are following at all times, guidance issued by the Department of Education (DE), Education Authority (EA) and Public Health Agency (PHA) as are all schools in NI.

16. This is a time of great change and adjustment for us all! We understand and appreciate this but if we work together and communicate regularly, we will get there! We need your support, patience and understanding. If you are unsure of something or have important questions to ask about the New Arrangements or any other queries , please approach us by phoning or email in order to gain clear answers. (Queries will also be addressed by PRIVATE MESSAGE to the School Facebook Page).We will respond to you and will be only too happy to clarify.