Latest News
Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
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Delayed School Reopening
Fri 22 May 2020Dear Parents and Carers,
Further to my last school letter announcing our conditional plans for a potential phased return for Years 1 and 6; and a shift in thinking from Bradford City Council:
“Bradford Council has no intention of directing schools to open on 1 June or to force parents to send their children back and we are committed to working in partnership with school leaders, families and trade unions so that they can make sure their schools are safe environments for our children whenever they choose to open. Parents will not be fined if they choose not to send their children back to school at this time.”
BD5 headteachers and I met yesterday to share our concerns and anxieties regarding the huge dilemma which has been thrust upon us.
As a school, nothing is more important to us than our children and staff's safety and well-being. The same is true of all the schools in our community.
As such, Marshfield alongside six other primary schools in BD5, have made the decision to work together on our plan to re-open our community's schools.
The associated schools have collectively decided to not open to any additional children (aside from key worker and vulnerable families) on the 1st June.
For more information, please see the letter outlined below which is being published by all the schools involved this evening. The published letter has been posted on our Letters Home page.
Thanks again for the tremendous support you have provided for myself and Team Marshfield.
Wishing you all a healthy half term with your families and for those of you celebrating Eid Mubarak: may Allah bless you with happiness and grace your homes with warmth and peace.
Look after yourselves and stay safe,
Victoria Hartford
Dear Parents,
As you know, the 7 primary schools which make up the MyBD5 partnership: All Saints, Newby, St. Matthew’s, St. Stephen’s, St Joseph’s, Marshfield and Bowling Park work together to promote the life chances of the 3,800 children in our care.
Now, more than ever, we are working with you to ensure children, staff and families stay safe and healthy. Since March, our schools have provided work and resources for home learning, and we have seen so many inspiring examples of how you are working with your children to ensure they keep learning and stay safe. Our schools have stayed open to care and support vulnerable families and the children of key workers; and now we are being asked by the government to also begin to increase the number of children attending our schools.
We have spoken to many of you, and we share and understand your concerns about this, particularly given that in Yorkshire the spread of the virus is currently higher than anywhere else in England. We are awaiting an announcement on Thursday, 28th May which will tell us whether the government still believes that it is safe for schools to re-open. If, after that, the government still wishes children to return to school, the schools in BD5 will need further time to prepare staff, buildings and resources to do this.
We will not be inviting any additional children into any of our schools from 1st June. We will contact you individually when we are ready to invite your child. Each school is unique, and we are all planning slightly different approaches depending on what our risk assessments determine to be right for each setting. We will only do what we feel is safe for us all, which means we may not be able to invite as many children into school as the government might want us to. Similarly, no family should feel pressurized to send their children to school; the choice lies with you and we will respect your choice completely.
We have been overwhelmed by the support you have given our schools during this time of crisis, and we are extremely grateful for this. We feel confident that when this situation is resolved, we will emerge even stronger and more ready to work with you all together.
Yours faithfully,
Associated BD5 Headteachers
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Conditional Phased Return of Year 6 and Year 1 Children
Tue 19 May 2020Dear Parents and Carers,
I hope you and your families are well.
I need to begin this letter by thanking you for your understanding and patience in these incredibly difficult times, particularly since last Sunday evening’s announcement. As you will no doubt appreciate, I also learned about this in real-time, as you did. Therefore, I haven’t wanted to make any kneejerk, impulsive decisions. Rather, I have wanted to reflect and carefully evaluate our appropriate next steps.
Since Boris Johnson’s announcement last Sunday, I have been working closely with other BD5 Headteachers, the Local Authority and our Chair of Governors to conduct a detailed risk assessment and formulate an associated plan. It has always been our intention to prioritise the health and well-being of the children and adults within our school community in a concerted attempt to reduce the spread of coronavirus in a big and busy primary school.
I have met with all staff today at school, in small groups and adhering to social distancing (of course). One of the key areas that we have talked about in our planning for re-opening is the mental health of the children, teachers and support involved. I obviously want to take every precaution to ensure that children and staff are safe and are working in an environment which minimises the spread of any potential virus infection. That being said, I am keen that these measures do not impact on the emotional health of the children who return to us and the adults who work with them. At Marshfield, we have always prided ourselves on the relationships in our school and in these challenging times, those relationships will be more important than ever.
Staff and I have collaboratively agreed the following course of action. This has also been supported by Bradford Local Authority and is synchronised (to some degree) with neighbouring schools. Please be mindful that these plans are completely conditional on government guidance and could be subject to change.
School will open for Year 6 children on Tuesday 2nd June
School will start at 9:15 a.m. to allow a controlled and staggered arrival with key worker children and other groups already attending school. Following the same reasoning school will finish at 2:30 p.m. School will close at midday on Friday afternoon to enable teachers to have their PPA time.
School will open for Year 1 children on Monday 8th June
School will start at 10 a.m. to allow a controlled and staggered arrival with Year 6 children, key worker children and other groups already attending school. Following the same reasoning school will finish at 2 p.m. School will close at 12:30 p.m. on Friday afternoon to enable teachers to have their PPA time.
Arrangements for key worker children and other vulnerable groups will remain exactly the same.
For all children the following measures will be put in place:
- Making sure that children do not attend if they or a member of their household has symptoms of coronavirus.
- Promoting regular hand washing for 20 seconds with running water and soap or use of sanitiser and ensuring good respiratory hygiene by promoting the catch it, bin it, kill it approach.
- Cleaning more frequently to ensure that the virus doesn't settle on frequently touched surfaces, such as door handles, handrails, table tops, play equipment and toys.
- Minimising contact through smaller classes or group sizes (of no more than 10 children) and altering the environment as much as possible, such as changing the layout of classrooms. School will only be open for Year 6 and Year 1 classes (from the onset). Siblings in other year groups will not be permitted to attend school.
- Reducing mixing between groups through timetable changes, such as staggered break times and staggered drop-off and collection times.
- Reducing access to the school site. Children will remain in school for the whole day and will not be permitted to go home for lunch. Parents will also only be granted access to the school grounds via invitation only.
- Ensuring social distancing in the school canteen. Children can bring a packed lunch to school. The school canteen will be closed for hot food. However, grab bags will be prepared for children who would prefer a school meal or those children who are entitled to free school meals.
- Reducing the spread of contamination. Own clothes to be worn which are fresh on – we recommend putting clothes straight in the washing machine once returning home from school to minimise and control the spread of infection. Thorough hand washing to take place at home just before leaving the home and returning from school.
School will be Different
I have attached a few photographs of what classrooms will look like under the ‘New Normal.’ In all honesty it will break my heart to see children seated on their own and working independently. Such restricted learning goes against everything we believe in at Marshfield. However, you know we have marvellous teachers and they will quickly adapt their teaching styles and learning opportunities to ensure some fun and sparkle amidst these uncertain and worrying times.
I have attached a copy of our risk assessment for your information. Bringing children and staff back into school without exacerbating anxieties is of paramount important to us. Therefore, in my risk assessment attached, I have attempted to take every precaution possible to keep children safe, while trying to make their phased return to school a positive and joyful one. Please note that although we will be taking all steps possible to reduce the spread of coronavirus, a (medium to high) risk will still remain.
It is NOT COMPULSARY to send your child to school and you will have my full support on whatever you decide is best.
When we have learned from our suggested phase return plans for Year 6 and Year 1, I will write to you regarding the reintegration of other year groups. This situation is completely new to all of us and I am not prepared to make any false promises or reassurances at this stage.
If you have any further questions or enquiries please email or telephone the school office.
Thank you in advance for your support and understanding.
Look after yourselves and stay safe,
Victoria Hartford
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Suggested Reopening of Schools June 1st
Mon 11 May 2020Dear Parents and Carers,
Hope you are all well and have enjoyed a restricted bank holiday weekend in the sunshine.
Undoubtedly, you will have all watched Boris Johnson unveil his plans last night to consider the reopening of schools.
The prime minister said:
“A phased return to school would begin with pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6, if infection rates and the government's other tests at the time allow it.
At the earliest by June 1, after half term, we believe we may be in a position to begin the phased reopening of shops and to get primary pupils back into schools, in stages,
These were the (first careful steps) and the timetable for reopening would be delayed if necessary,
If we can't do it by those dates, and if the alert level won't allow it, we will simply wait and go on until we have got it right,
If there are problems we will not hesitate to put on the brakes."
I expect the announcement has only served to increase the anxieties of parents and carers throughout the country.
Despite every member of staff desperately wanting to get more pupils back into school as soon as possible, this will only happen when advice from the Department for Education and Trades’ Unions reassures school leaders that this is safe to do so. Staff at Marshfield have devoted their lives and careers to the care and education of young people – we do not want to see classrooms empty for a day longer than they need to be but our ultimate priority has to always remain the safety of everyone in our school community.
Like staff at Marshfield and myself, you will all have many questions which indeed will need answering before you even consider sending your children back to school. I am waiting to receive concrete information from government about what this means for our school. In the short-term, nothing has changed and I will provide further information in the coming days and weeks when I able to do so. SLT and I are currently compiling a detailed risk assessment and action plan to ensure the safest return possible for the whole school community.
As soon as any decision is set in stone, I will write to you with a clear plan.
To close, my continued thanks for the wonderful learning being facilitated at home, especially to those families who have been submitting work via Twitter. I honestly think some of our parents would be perfectly placed working in classrooms at Marshfield. Your creativity, skill and determination have been remarkable. The photographs of beautifully smiling children taking great pride in their work have literally kept me going during this bizarre period in our lives.
Please be assured that staff and I would love nothing more than to get school fully up and running, but this needs to be done with great caution and careful planning.
Look after yourselves and your families.
Best wishes,
Victoria Hartford
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Free e-learning “Covid-19: Helping Young People Manage Low Mood & Depression”
Mon 04 May 2020In partnership with the University of Reading, Future Learn is offering a free e-learning called “Covid-19: Helping Young People Manage Low Mood & Depression”
On this course, young people, parents, carers, teachers, and other professionals can learn helpful, practical techniques to cope with low mood and depression during the lockdown period and beyond. You’ll examine how to help young people structure their day and improve sleep and diet and you will cover the following topics:
• Practical advice on structuring the day and promoting healthy habits
• Helpful family communication to keep conflict to a minimum
• The importance of modelling and self-care
• Tips on managing your thoughts and your feelings
• Using this time as an opportunity for developing resilience
The course will be available online for two weeks from 4th May 2020 and takes just two hours to complete.
Let us know if you complete the course!