Latest News
Latest News and celebrations can be found on our Twitter feed @SASFschool
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Contingency (Partial) Opening of Schools Jan 2021 (COVID-19)
Fri 01 Jan 2021Thursday 31st December, 2020
Partial School Closure
Dear Parents and Carers,
As I am sure you are aware, yesterday the government announced that primary schools on their Contingency Framework List would not be fully reopening in January, 2021. Regrettably, Brent is named on this list and therefore SASF will not be reopening on Tuesday 5th January, 2021 to the vast majority of our pupils.
That said, the school will be opened (9:00-3:30pm) for critical workers’ children, those deemed vulnerable and/or have an EHCP. If you believe your child/ren fall into one of these categories, it is vitally important that you inform the school as soon as possible (via the attached forms document), so we can prepare staff numbers and the kitchen.
As before, your child’s education will continue through our online learning platform Purple Mash and Microsoft 365. SASF staff will be working tirelessly to ensure there is as little disruption as possible to children’s learning journey, providing high quality work, feedback and weekly telephone contact. The government has stated that children are required to complete 3 hours learning every day and we will be sending out more information, later this week, about how you can support your child to complete this and the school’s expectations for remote learning. In addition to this, we will also be providing information on our Free School Meal (FSM) vouchers scheme for those eligible (those on benefits-based FSM) and how we can support families that do not have the digital technology required to complete online learning.
As yet, we do not know how long the school will be partially closed for, although it will certainly be until at least the 18th January. The government has stated it will review these closures on 13th January and therefore we hope to have more information for you then.
SASF staff are all very disappointed not to be seeing the children at the start of term and have asked that I send out their New Year’s best wishes to you all and pray that you are all keeping safe and well.
Yours sincerely,
Mr. Sharpe
Headteacher
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SASF ’12 Days of Christmas Production’
Fri 18 Dec 2020We are super excited to share with you our amazingly brilliant ’12 Days of Christmas Production’
This took a many weeks in the planning, and many days in production. We are super proud of all our classes and the brilliant job they have done.
We must recognise this would not have been possible without the generous support of our Deanery of Brent.
Please enjoy the Christmas Joy brought to us all by your children
https://www.standrewandstfrancis.org/12-days-of-christmas-extravaganza-supported-by-bre/
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Keep Safe
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Last Day Autumn Term 2020 - Happy Christmas
Tue 15 Dec 2020Last Day of Autumn term 18th December 2020 -
School Closing Early:
2.00pm - Reception
2.05pm - Year 1
2.10pm - Year 2
2.15pm - Year 3
2.20pm - Year 4
2.25pm - Year 5
2.30pm - Year 6
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VIP Day - congratulations to Andrew house
Tue 15 Dec 2020VIP Day - congratulations to Andrew house for winning this term's house point competition - you are allowed to wear your own clothes tomorrow!
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Covid: London to move into tier 3 as infections rise
Tue 15 Dec 2020London, most of Essex and parts of Hertfordshire will move into England’s highest tier of Covid restrictions, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said.
The areas join tier three at 00:01 GMT on Wednesday, meaning some 34 million people will face the toughest rules.
A new variant of coronavirus has been identified that "may be associated" with the faster spread in southern England, Mr Hancock added.
Pubs and restaurants in tier three must close except for takeaway and delivery.
Also under the rules, sports fans cannot attend events in stadiums, and indoor entertainment venues - such as theatres, bowling alleys and cinemas - must remain shut.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-55306928?at_custom4=D9A4F846-3E1C-11EB-A4F3-6A554D484DA4&at_custom3=%40BBCBreaking&at_custom2=twitter&at_custom1=%5Bpost+type%5D&at_medium=custom7&at_campaign=64
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Compulsory Face Coverings for Parents & Carers from 2nd Nov 2020
Sun 01 Nov 2020You will undoubtedly be aware of the country’s heightening concerns as cases of Covid-19 continue to rise. We, as a school, continuously monitor our daily operations, adjusting them where necessary, to ensure the best possible approach to keeping everyone as safe as possible. The school holds regular risk assessment update meetings and it was decided yesterday that face coverings will now be mandatory and worn by all adults visiting the school (excluding staff). Therefore, when dropping off, picking up and visiting the school office you will now be required to wear a face mask, unless exempt. The same expectations will still apply to social distancing, preferably 2m, and only one adult is to drop off and pick up per family. This decision will be implemented at SASF from Monday 2nd November, 2020.
In practice this means:
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Pupils entering school in the morning will not be required to have a face covering, but the one adult accompanying them will, unless exempt.
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You will need to continue to use the one-way system and keep socially distancing.
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Families should not be mixing in and out of school (indoors).
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Children will continue to be in class bubbles, with good hand hygiene and respiratory hygiene.
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If your child is unwell, please contact the school office immediately on 020 8459 1636
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We must all work together to keep everyone safe
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Parents of children in reception to year 4, must accompany their child through the one-way system.
Thank you for our ongoing support and patience.
Yours sincerely
Mr Troy Sharpe
Headteacher
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September Return 2020/21 - Information for parents/carers
Thu 03 Sep 2020Wednesday 3rd September, 2020
Dear Parents and Carers,
Please read this letter very carefully, it contains important information.
As we informed you in July, from Monday 7th September, 2020, we will be welcoming all SASF children back to school, having successfully seen the return of Nursery, Reception, Year 1, Year 5 and Year 6 during the summer term. The government has made it explicitly clear that children’s attendance is statutory from September and they will be fining parents if their child does not return (unless they are following medical advice to self-isolate)
Health and Safety Precautions
We have gone to great lengths to maximise the safety of all staff and children and have closely followed the latest government, Public Health England, NHS guidelines and medical advice. Thorough risk assessments have been carried out to ensure all aspects of staff and children’s health and wellbeing have been considered, and we are excited to welcome your child back to school.
It is vital that our families maintain a high level of respiratory and hand hygiene not only when they return to school, but whilst at home and if out in public. Therefore, we ask that you continue to constantly remind your child to: wash their hands, with soap for at least 20 seconds, whenever they enter or exit your home; cough into their elbow or a tissue (catch it, bin it, kill it).
Children will be in class bubbles of 30 and will eat lunch and spend break and lunch times in these bubbles, separate from others. Throughout lock down we have successfully implemented this and have tried and tested social distancing procedures in school, which will continue until we are informed otherwise by the government.
Reporting Symptoms
If we are to safeguard our staff and pupils, it is imperative that you contact the school office, by telephone, if someone in your household displays COVID-19 symptoms (a high temperature above 37.8°C, a new, continuous cough or a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste). You will need to get tested immediately and report back to the school with your results. The school is more than happy to provide you details of how to do this and/or support you to book your test.
Access to School Site.
All children and adults will enter the school site through the main entrance on Belton Road, and exit through the Key Stage 1 playground exit onto Villiers Road. It is absolutely vital that children/parents arrive on time at the beginning and end of the day (see table below) and that people do not gather outside the entrance or exit to socialise. Please keep moving away from the site to adhere to government social distancing guidelines and plan your travel carefully, in advance, for a prompt arrival. Where possible, we would advise avoiding public transport but if it is necessary please ensure you are wearing a face cover/mask.
School Times – Vital Information.
Class
Start
End
Reception
8.30-8.35am
3.00-3.05pm
Year 1
8.35-8.40am
3.05-3.10pm
Year 2
8.40-8.45am
3.10-3.15pm
Class
Start
End
Year 3
8.45-8.50am
3.15-3.20pm
Year 4
8.50-8.55am
3.20-3.25pm
Year 5
8.55-9.00am
3.25-3.30pm
Year 6
9.00-9.05am
3.30-3.35pm
Breakfast and Afterschool Club
Government guidance has permitted the reopening of breakfast and afterschool clubs in September. That said, they will operate differently from before lockdown. As this is a period when children will potentially mix with children from outside their bubble, we will be enforcing strict social distancing and hygiene measures. Children will be required to maintain a high level of hand and respiratory hygiene and they will now sit at individual tables with their own resources to use.
What Should Children Bring/Wear to School?
From September, children will be expected to wear their full school uniform (including black school shoes - trainers will no longer be permitted). Please ensure all items of clothing are clearly labelled with your child’s name (especially jumpers and coats) as if they are lost, they can be easily returned.
To avoid possible cross contamination from your home to school (and vice versa), we must insist that children only bring the essentials to school every day. We will be providing all pupils with a water bottle and stationery, so please ensure your child does not bring their own water bottle or pencil case. Equally, we ask that all pupils eat school dinners and do not bring in packed lunches (unless there are specific medical reasons that you have agreed with the school) as this greatly reduces the risk of cross contamination. Unfortunately, due to funding changes, the school will no longer be able to provide these free of charge to KS2 children (unless they qualify for Free School Meals) and therefore we ask that you set up a ParentPay account if you have not done so already. The school office will be more than willing to support you with this if needs be.
Our school lunches are provided by Chefs in School, who employ highly trained chefs, to run school kitchens with the efficiency, and passion for food, of a top restaurant. All food prepared and served on site meets the national School Food Standards, including a weekly variety of fruit, vegetable, salads and whole grains, and restricts the amount of salt and sugar added. There is also limited fried food options and no processed ingredients are used as all meals are cooked from scratch. Additionally, as we are a nut free school, our meals do not include any nut products and we also cater for other allergen-free options such as gluten-free, dairy -free etc. (Please ensure you have informed the school if your child has any food allergies and you have provided the appropriate medication if required). Chefs in School prides itself on only using top quality, fresh products to produce a varied menu and the meals always include a high quality protein – although twice a week this may be a meat-free meal. The children have been consulted on the menu and asked about their preferences and suggestions (this is an ongoing process). The menu is designed to offer our children new food experiences and healthy eating patterns. However, we appreciate that not all our pupils enjoy every meal option, therefore during this period we will be including more additional options such as jacket potatoes and some sandwiches if requested. For additional information, please visit Chefs in School’s website (https://www.chefsinschools.org.uk/)
As an additional method to reduce cross contamination and safeguard our staff and pupils, we also ask that you regularly wash your child’s school uniform. Children will be expected to bring in their PE kit, during the week they return, and it will remain in school until the half term holiday. Should individual kits require washing in between this time, your child’s teacher will communicate this with you (please see below for school office procedures).
As it is imperative that children continue with their daily reading and have access to a wide variety of books/genres, we will resume sending out school reading books in September. That said, they will only be permitted to return them to school on a Friday as they will need to remain separate from the rest of the book shelves over the weekend to reduce the risk of contamination.
Year 5 and 6 children, who walk home alone, will need to complete a new permission slip in September and only they may bring a mobile phone into school, if you deem it necessary. However, phones will no longer be able to be handed into the office (due to cross contamination risks) and will have to be stored in the children’s lockers. Please note, these lockers do not lock and the school accepts no responsibility if they are lost or damaged. Therefore, we ask that you carefully consider whether it is an absolute necessity for your child to have a mobile phone in school with them.
Office Hours
To reduce the risk to our staff and families, we ask where possible, you continue to communicate with the school via email or telephone. However, if it is imperative that you speak to a member of our admin team, the office will be open every day between 8:30-10:30am and 2:30-4:00pm on a Thursday. The office foyer will operate a strict one-way system (which will be clearly signposted) and only 2 families may enter at any one time. If you are returning forms, we request that you use either the post box on the main gate or in the school foyer.
Future Holidays Abroad and Travel Plans
As previously stated, school attendance is statutory from September, therefore if you are planning to travel abroad in the future to a country that does not have an air bridge agreement with the UK, you will be forced to quarantine for 14 days on arrival. This will not be an authorised reason for your child to miss school and therefore you may be subject to a fine.
Please also note, the list of countries is constantly reviewed and revised therefore if conditions worsen in an exempted country, the government has stated it ‘will not hesitate’ to (re)introduce quarantine for those travellers. Therefore, it is important you check before travelling.
Group/Social Events
Until government guidance deems it safe to do so, all group/social events will continue to be postponed. This will include activities such as: assemblies, parents’ evenings, coffee mornings, trips, Mass, School Clubs etc. We will provide you with more information on this as and when we receive it.
Medication
We would like to politely remind parents that it is your responsibility to ensure any medication provided to school (e.g. Asthma pumps and Epi-pens) is in date. All medication must be brought into school in its original box, with the pharmacy’s sticker on it detailing the dose/usage. Please contact Mrs Yerby in the office if you would like to discuss this further.
Finally, we would like to thank all our families for continuing to support their children’s education during this difficult time. I would also like to publicly acknowledge the hard work of all our staff, both teaching and non-teaching, during this period. Rest assured, our community’s safety is always at the forefront of our decision making and we are always here to support our families.
Kind regards,
Mr T. Sharpe
Headteacher
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SASF - Phased increase in pupil numbers
Tue 19 May 2020Dear Parent/Carers,
Following the governments’ announcement, I wanted to provide you with more detail on how SASF plans to increase the number of children in school come June 1st, 2020. Please note, it is not a phased reopening as the school has never closed – we have been educating and keeping both our staff and children safe throughout this lock down period.
SASF’s top priority is the safety of its staff, the pupils and their families. Therefore, following much discussion with key figures in the Local Authority, Public Health England and the LAT, we have devised a measured and systematic phased approach to minimise the risk to all concerned
Unquestionably, the school will operate significantly differently from pre-lock down as a result of all the additional safety measure put in place. For example, children will be in classes no bigger than 15 pupils, there will be staggered start/collection time, a one-way system throughout the school, regular handwashing measures in place etc. Full details of this will be communicated with you when your child Is invited back to school. We will also be asking you to sign a new COVID-19 Home-School Agreement, to ensure everyone’s safety and establish our expectations whilst children are in school.
Summer 1
Week 1 – 01.06.20
NO CHILDREN will be in school (other than key workers’ children) as it is essential time for staff training and preparing the school for an increased numbers of children.
Week 2 – 08.06.20
Year 6 will be invited back into school. They will be divided into 4 groups of 15 and asked in either on Monday-Tuesday or Thursday-Friday. The school will be closed on Wednesday for a deep clean.
Week 3 – 15.06.20
If it is deemed safe to do so after assessing week 2, year 1 will be invited into school – applying the same grouping model as above.
Week 4 – 22.06.20
We will re-assess the situation and if deemed safe, we will invite reception back to school, again using the same grouping model
Week 5 Onwards
We will continuously assess the situation and follow government advice, so it is high possibly that the above is subject to change and we will not be able to roll this out to other year groups.
Please know that we are doing everything in our power to ensure the children’s and staff’s safety, thus why we are taking this slow and measured approach. We will be in contact in due course (June) to inform you of the details surrounding your child’s return.
Please keep safe,
Mr Sharpe
Headteacher
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Boris Johnson - Sunday Announcement
Wed 13 May 2020Dear Parents,
Sunday Evening, Boris Johnson unveiled his ‘conditional plan’ to reopen society. Although he was clear that this was not an end to lock down, he announced some significant changes that will affect us all.
Firstly, he stressed that anyone who cannot work from home, for instant those in construction or manufacturing, should be actively encouraged back to work. That said, he also made it explicitly clear that they must still observe social distancing rules and avoid public transport where possible. Please note, the hospitality sector and most shops will not reopen until July at the very earliest.
From Wednesday 13th May, we will be allowed to exercise outside for as long as we please. As well as this, we will also be able to sunbathe/picnic in parks and drive to other locations to partake in outside activities. Again, it is imperative that whilst doing this we continue to observe social distancing rules and therefore only with members of our households.
Mr Johnson also revealed the government’s plan to reopen schools in stages after half term. As long as there is not an increase in infection rates, following this slight ease on lock down rules, Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 will be expected to be phased into a return to school from Monday 1st June. Obviously this will be subject to strict guidance and school will not function as it did before its closure. We are still awaiting further government guidance on this, detailing what it might look like, but rest assure the school will do everything in its power to ensure the safety of a pupils and staff.
Finally, it is important to stress that this is all conditional and subject to change – it will be driven by science, the data and public health. For those who were advise to shield for a 12 week period, due to underlying medical conditions, the advice has not changed.
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Covid 19 Update - Prime Ministers Briefing
Mon 11 May 2020Dear Parents/Carers,
Following the Prime Minister's briefing last night, I am sure that you have lots of questions. As a school, we have lots of questions that need clarification too.
At the moment, there is no change to the guidance. At St Andrew and St Francis School (as all other schools), we will continue to provide childcare for parents whose of critical worker of the COVID 19 response.
'The message is still to stay at home.'
We have not received any information to support us with this new plan to start a phased reopening of the school, so we do not know what this might look like. We are awaiting further clarification.
As always we will keep you informed, so please do not worry. Our plan for now is to continue to provide activities for learning at home, keep contact with you and continue to support each other in these very difficult and uncertain times.
