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COVID-19

The government continues to manage the risk of serious illness from the spread of the virus. 

Covid-19 continues to be a virus that we learn to live with and the imperative to reduce the disruption to children and young people’s education remains.  The priority continues to support schools and academies to deliver face-to-face, high-quality education to all pupils. The evidence is clear that being out of education causes significant harm to educational attainment, life chances and mental and physical health.

Thanks to the success of the vaccination programme and access to antivirals, alongside natural immunity and increased scientific and public understanding about how to manage risk, the population now has much stronger protection against Covid-19 than at any other point in the pandemic.

From 1 April testing and self-isolation guidance has been updated as part of the “Living with COVID” plan which sets out the government’s strategy to live with and manage the virus.  The key points have been summarised below and will be adopted for staff and students at The Pingle Academy.

  • Twice weekly tests are no longer required for staff and students in all educational settings including SEND and alternative provision.
  • Free testing for the general public has now ended, therefore, test kits will no longer be distributed to staff or students.
  • Adults with the symptoms of a respiratory infection, and who have a high temperature or feel unwell, should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people until they feel well enough to resume normal activities and they no longer have a high temperature
  • Students who are unwell and have a high temperature should stay at home and avoid contact with other people, where they can. They can return to the academy when they no longer have a high temperature, and are well enough to attend.
  • Adults with a positive Covid-19 test result are advised to try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for 5 days, which is when they are most infectious.  There is no requirement to wait for a negative test result before returning to the academy if staff are well enough to return.
  • For children and young people 18 and under with a positive Covid-19 test result, the advice is to try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for 3 days. There is no requirement to wait for a negative test result before returning to the academy and if students are well enough return.
  • All Covid-19 related illness will continue to be recorded as any other illness.
  • The government have also withdrawn their specific Covid-19 guidance for Educational and Childcare settings from 1 April.

 

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact your child’s Progress Leader:

Year 7 Miss Sowter:

Year 8 Miss Benfield:

Year 9 Miss Bilson: 

Year 10 Mr Williams:

Year 11 Mr Elks:

Sixth Form Ms Wilson:

Mr Hurst, Designated Safeguarding Lead & Head of Family Services:

and Mr Done, Acting Vice Principal, will also be happy to help.

 

Updates

Our behaviour policy is below. This is our tool to ensure that everyone respects each other’s right to stay safe.   More detailed guidance can be accessed using the links below.

Contingency Framework: Education & Childcare SettingsGuidance for Schools: COVID-19Control of Infections Policy

Children attending out of school settings during COVID-19COVID-19 Risk Assessment

Rapid COVID-19 Testing Information

Rapid Testing Privacy Notice

Please find contact information for any safeguarding questions below

  • The Pingle Academy DSL - Mr M Hurst (mhurst.pingle@deferrerstrust.com)

Management and control through personal hygiene 

Personal hygiene will be emphasised to all staff and students.

Handwashing advice

It is essential that everyone washes their hands more often, using soap and water for at least 20 seconds.  Hand washing with soap employs mechanical action that loosens bacteria and viruses from the skin, rinsing them into the drain.  Drying hands afterwards makes the skin less hospitable to the virus. Hand sanitiser can be effective if soap is not available or the situation makes using soap less feasible (eg, when outside) but using hand sanitiser provides none of the virus-destroying friction that rubbing your hands together and rinsing with water provides.

The latest guidance and video on hand washing can be found here.

Hands should be cleaned on arrival, before and after eating and after sneezing or coughing.

Ensuring good respiratory hygiene  

We promote the ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ approach.

Students and staff are asked to use a tissue or elbow to cough or sneeze and use bins for tissue waste. Lidded bins are in place in the academy.

Enhanced cleaning regimes 

We have cleaners onsite during the day, toilets & touchpoints are cleaned every hour. Each classroom has hand sanitiser & routines involving regular cleaning & sanitising of equipment. 

For more information follow this link.

ATTENDANCE 

The government has confirmed that all students should now be in the academy from the start of term in September and normal attendance procedures will be followed.

If your child is absent from the academy for whatever reason, please ring reception by 9.30 and let us know the details.

If your child has Covid-19 symptoms and subsequently tests positive on a Lateral Flow Test please do not send them to the academy, book in a PCR test and let us know the outcome as soon as possible

If your child has come into contact with someone (including a family member) who has tested positive for COVID 19, they do not need to self-isolate and they do not need to take daily tests for 7 days.

Please be aware that holidays during term time have a considerable impact on your child’s education and cannot be authorised by the principal, this may incur a fine for each parent/carer.

SUPPORTING STUDENTS & STAFF WITH COMPLEX NEEDS  

Details can be found here.
 

FIRST AID & SAFEGUARDING SUPPORT 

Any student who becomes unwell with a new, continuous cough or a high temperature, or has a loss of, or change in, their normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia), should remain at home and arrange test at the earliest possible opportunity. 

Testing for coronavirus (COVID-19)

If a student becomes unwell during the school day, they will be isolated within the academy and parents/carers will be contacted in order to collect their child. You should arrange a test at the earliest opportunity. 

Please contact firstaid.pingle@deferrerstrust.com to advise us of the result of the test. 

If the test result is negative, the student can return to the academy as normal. If the test result is positive then you should follow NHS guidelines regarding periods of self-isolation:

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

For the Academy’s safeguarding policy, including recent addendums, please follow this link

FURTHER USEFUL GOVERNMENT GUIDANCE CAN BE FOUND HERE