Latest news
Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
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Information for Remote Learning
Wed 06 Jan 20216th January 2021
Dear Parents and Carers,
Letter for parents and carers of children who are Remote Learning
Thank you for your overwhelming patience and understanding this week as we organize the remote learning for your children.
Once again, many of our families will be expected to work full time from home as well as carry out Remote learning with their children. I know this will be a very worrying time for all parents and carers but we are working hard to ensure the education provided remotely is engaging, interactive and allows children to work independently. I would like to reiterate, the education your child is receiving remotely, is the same as the children who will be in school.
Our full remote learning will start on Monday 11th January. All teachers will be in touch with parents this week to give full details of the timetable and what their child’s learning will look like. For Thursday 7th January and Friday 8th January, work will be set based on the Caritas in Action topic the whole school are working on. This work will be sent to you tomorrow morning. Parents can upload pictures of the children’s work through Tapestry (Reception class) and Seesaw (Year 1 – 6). There will be limited communication between staff and children working remotely this week as they prepare for future remote learning from Monday.
Please do contact us if you are struggling with any aspect of remote learning. We do expect examples of your child’s learning uploaded onto Tapestry or Seesaw daily. We understand that this will be completed at different times in the day due to your own working commitments and the number of children in your family all trying to work at the same time. Teaching staff will be communicating through Tapestry and Seesaw during school day hours only. We will work closely in partnership with you over the next few weeks to ensure your child’s learning continues to grow. Thank you once again for your continued support,
Kind regards,
Mrs JE Davies
Executive Headteacher -
Critical Workers Registration Form
Wed 06 Jan 2021You should only send your child to school if you have to because your work is critical to the COVID-19 response or EU Transition response.
NAME OF CHILD
NAME OF PARENT/CARER 1
CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER
CHILD’S NAME
CRITICAL WORKER STATUS
JOB TITLE
PLACE OF WORK
CONTACT FOR EMPLOYER TO VERIFY CRITICAL ROLE
NAME
CONTACT NUMBER
NAME OF PARENT/CARER 2
CONTACT TELEPHONE NUMBER
CRITICAL WORKER STATUS
JOB TITLE
PLACE OF WORK
CONTACT FOR EMPLOYER TO VERIFY CRITICAL ROLE
NAME
CONTACT NUMBER
Please return this form to olol@bury.gov.uk by 1pm TODAY
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Critical Workers
Wed 06 Jan 20216 January 2021
Dear Parents and Carers,
Critical Workers
Happy New Year! I hope that all of our school community had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. Our celebrations were cut short by the announcement on Monday night by the Government for a National lockdown. This is needed because of the rapid rate of COVID cases and the concerns the new variant brings. With the national lockdown comes lots of anxiety for everyone in the school community. Staff have been working tirelessly since the announcement to prepare for the reopening of school on Thursday 7th January and for the start of the Remote Learning package for those children who are at home. School will continue to support all of our families with remote learning.
This lockdown is different in terms of the Education offer we have for children working at home and at school. The education the children will be receiving at home will be the same offer children have at school. There will be daily remote sessions for our children who are working from home with their class teacher. We want our children’s learning to continue to progress as it has done in the autumn term. We will work closely with parents and carers to ensure the children at home continue to be engaged and motivated. More details of remote learning will be sent to parents and carers later today.
Yesterday a text was sent out asking parents who were critical workers to inform usif they required a place in school. We have been inundated with requests from parents. If we were to accept all the requests as well as the vulnerable children we have asked to come into school, we would have more than 50% of the school population attending school. This goes against the National Lockdown of ‘Stay at Home’. We have to open school to ensure our frontline critical worker parents can work but we also need to keep those in school safe. For this reason, I am asking parents to reconsider their request for a school place. I am asking parents to complete the attached form if you feel you are a critical worker and return it to the school office by email at olol@bury.gov.uk. We will look at all the applications and confirm places this afternoon. We already have a list of our vulnerable children and we have offered places directly to those parents, they do not need to complete the form.
I would ask for your complete honesty when applying for a Critical Worker place. If you are working from home or have another adult in the household who is not a Critical Worker, I would expect your child to access remote learning from home. The Government has also introduced ‘Support Bubbles’ and ‘Childcare Bubbles’ since the first lockdown which again are options you may be able to use. Lockdown is to strictly limit interactions with others and so we would only expect to have a small number of children in school.
If your child is offered a place, the expectation is that they would attend full time. The children will be in full school uniform, the school catering service will continue to operate. Ollies Before and After School Club will not be open.
Please consider this information carefully and return any forms by 1pm TODAY. We will get back to you this afternoon with confirmation of a school place.
Thank you for your continuing support.
Kind regards,
Mrs JE Davies
Executive Headteacher
Updated Government guidance for your reference:
You will note the term ‘Critical Workers’ has replaced the term ‘Key Workers’ and the criteria has been tightened to limit the number of places to parents whose work is critical to the coronavirus (COVID-19) and EU transition response.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-maintaining-educational-provision/guidance-for-schools-colleges-and-local-authorities-on-maintaining-educational-provision
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE REGISTRATION FORM HAS BEEN EMAILED TO YOU THIS MORNING
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Positive Covid Cases - information for classes not isolating
Mon 14 Dec 2020Monday 14th December 2020
RE: Positive COVID Cases
Dear Parents and Carers,
We have been advised that there have been two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in school. One child in reception and one child in year six have tested positive. These cases are unrelated.
We have carried out a full risk assessment and identified all those who have been in close contact with the affected cases and have recommended that they stay at home and self-isolate until 10 days after their last contact. This means that the children in year reception and year 6 are currently self-isolating at home.
Your child has not been identified as a close contact and therefore does not need to make any change to their usual routine, including school attendance.
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are recent onset of a new continuous cough and/or a high temperature and/or a loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia). If your child, or anyone in your household, develops these symptoms, you whole household must remain at home and not go to work, school or public areas. You should arrange testing for the person who has developed symptoms. When the result is known further advice will be available.
Testing can be arranged by calling 119 or via the NHS website: nhs.uk/coronavirus
There are things we can all do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19:
- wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
- use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
- wash your hands as soon as you get home
- cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
- put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands afterwards
- maintain an appropriate social distance with non-household members of over 2 metres.
Further information is available at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus
Kind regards,
Mrs J.E. Davies
Executive Headteacher
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Covid Positive Case - Year 6 in isolation
Mon 14 Dec 2020Monday 14th December 2020
RE: FOR PARENTS OF DIRECT CLOSE CONTACTS OF A CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID 19 at OUR LADY OF LOURDES RCPS
Advice to Self-Isolate
Dear Parents of children in Year 6,
We have been advised by Public Health England that there has been one confirmed case of COVID-19 in the Year 6 class.
We have followed the national guidance and have identified that the children in Year 6 have been in close contact with the affected child. In line with the national guidance we recommend that your children now stay at home and self-isolate until Sunday 20th December 2020. They can return to their usual activities on Monday 21st December 2020. (This isolation period has been set by the PHE and takes into consideration the onset of symptoms and therefore the isolation is not a full 10 days.)
We are asking you to do this to reduce the further spread of COVID 19 to others in the community.
If your child is well at the end of the period of self-isolation, then they can return to usual activities. A negative test does not mean that your child can return to their usual activities earlier than 21st December 2020.
Other members of your household can continue normal activities provided your child does not develop symptoms within the 10 day self-isolation period.
Please see the link to the PHE Staying at Home Guidance
What to do if your child develops symptoms of COVID 19
If your child develops symptoms of COVID-19, they should remain at home for at least 10 days from the date when symptoms appeared as advised in https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance
You should arrange for testing for your child via https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested or 111.nhs.uk or primary care
All other household members who remain well must stay at home and not leave the house for 10 days.
The 10-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill.
Household members should not go to work, school or public areas and exercise should be taken within the home.
Household members staying at home for 10 days will greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the household could pass on to others in the community
If you are able to, move any vulnerable individuals (such as the elderly and those with underlying health conditions) out of your home, to stay with friends or family for the duration of the home isolation period
Symptoms of COVID 19
The most common symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are recent onset of:
- new continuous cough and/or
- high temperature and/or
- a loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia)
For most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.
If your child does develop symptoms, you can seek advice from NHS 111 at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/check-if-you-have-coronavirus-symptoms/or by phoning 111.
How to stop COVID-19 spreading
There are things you can do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19:
- wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
- use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
- wash your hands as soon as you get home
- cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
- put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands afterwards
Further Information
Further information is available at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
Will my child be expected to carry out home learning in the isolation period?
If your child is well, they will be expected to continue with their learning and engaging with their class teacher daily. The remote learning will start on Monday 14th December 2020. The remote learning will be shared on Seesaw and the Class page of the website.
If you are struggling with accessing the online remote learning, please contact the school office.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs J.E. Davies
Executive Headteacher
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Covid Positive Case - Reception in Isolation
Mon 14 Dec 2020Monday 14th December 2020
RE: FOR PARENTS OF DIRECT CLOSE CONTACTS OF A CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID 19 at OUR LADY OF LOURDES RCPS
Advice to Self-Isolate
Dear Parents of children in Reception,
We have been advised by Public Health England that there has been one confirmed case of COVID-19 in the reception class.
We have followed the national guidance and have identified that the children in reception have been in close contact with the affected child. In line with the national guidance we recommend that your children now stay at home and self-isolate until Sunday 20th December 2020. They can return to their usual activities on Monday 21st December 2020. (This isolation period has been set by the PHE and takes into consideration the onset of symptoms and therefore the isolation is not a full 10 days.)
We are asking you to do this to reduce the further spread of COVID 19 to others in the community.
If your child is well at the end of the period of self-isolation, then they can return to usual activities. A negative test does not mean that your child can return to their usual activities earlier than 21st December 2020.
Other members of your household can continue normal activities provided your child does not develop symptoms within the 10 day self-isolation period.
Please see the link to the PHE Staying at Home Guidance
What to do if your child develops symptoms of COVID 19If your child develops symptoms of COVID-19, they should remain at home for at least 10 days from the date when symptoms appeared as advised in https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance
You should arrange for testing for your child via https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested or 111.nhs.uk or primary care
All other household members who remain well must stay at home and not leave the house for 10 days.
The 10-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill.
Household members should not go to work, school or public areas and exercise should be taken within the home.
Household members staying at home for 10 days will greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the household could pass on to others in the community
If you are able to, move any vulnerable individuals (such as the elderly and those with underlying health conditions) out of your home, to stay with friends or family for the duration of the home isolation period
Symptoms of COVID 19
The most common symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are recent onset of:
- new continuous cough and/or
- high temperature and/or
- a loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia)
For most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.
If your child does develop symptoms, you can seek advice from NHS 111 at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/check-if-you-have-coronavirus-symptoms/or by phoning 111.
How to stop COVID-19 spreading
There are things you can do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19:
- wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
- use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
- wash your hands as soon as you get home
- cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
- put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands afterwards
Further Information
Further information is available at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
Will my child be expected to carry out home learning in the isolation period?
If your child is well, they will be expected to continue with their learning and engaging with their class teacher daily. The remote learning will start on Monday 14th December 2020. The remote learning will be shared on Tapestry and the Class page of the website.
If you are struggling with accessing the online remote learning, please contact the school office.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs J.E. Davies
Executive Headteacher -
Change of Isolation Period
Fri 11 Dec 202011 December 2020
Dear Parents and Carers,
CHANGES TO ISOLATION PERIODS
The Government has just announced changes to the isolation period with effect from Monday 14th December. From Monday, the change to the isolation period for contacts will apply to all those who are currently self-isolating. The self-isolation period will begin on the day after exposure, a test or the start of symptoms.
These changes will impact the children at Our Lady of Lourdes. For the children who were sent home to isolate in Year 1, their isolation period will now end on Sunday 13th December which means they will be able to return to school on Monday 14th December 2020.
I recognise this letter may cause panic and anxiety about the children returning to school. I would like to reassure all parents and carers who feel they need to continue the 14 day isolation period that we will fully support your decision. I would ask that in these cases, you continue to engage with the remote learning and continue to engage with school staff.
In this ever changing world of Government Guidelines, I would like to thank all parents and carers for their continued support.
Have a lovely weekend,
Kind regards,
Mrs JE Davies
Executive Headteacher
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Closing Thursday 17th for Christmas letter
Thu 10 Dec 2020Thursday 10th December 2020
RE: Early School Closure
Dear Parents and Carers,
We have made the decision to close school one day earlier next week. Our last day of term will be Thursday 17th December 2020 (normal finishing time). This decision has not been made lightly and careful consideration has been given to the impact this will have on families in our school community.
The reasons we have for closing school early by one day include:
- Currently we have 35 children isolating at home. Many parents have been in contact with school to say that they don’t want to send their child back for the last few days when they know they are safe at home
- Schools are expected to continue to play their role in track and trace when school closes. Schools have been told to contact parents up to six days after school is closed to inform them of any positive cases of COVID in school. This means that if there is a positive case of COVID, school could potentially be contacting parents on Christmas Eve to tell their children to isolate if we finish on the 18th.
- We want all our children, parents, carers and staff to have a wonderful and safe Christmas. By having an extra day when they are not in contact with other children in school, gives an extra day of safety.
I apologise for the short notice, unfortunately we have had no control over this as you will be aware, the decision to allow schools to close one day earlier was only announced on Wednesday this week by the Government.
Friday 18th December will now be used as a PA Day where teachers will carry out online training during this day. To ensure we are not loosing any teaching days during this academic year, we are now cancelling the PA day planned on June 7th 2021 which means children will now return to school after May half term on Monday 7th June instead of Tuesday 8th June 2021 as originally planned.
I hope parents and carers will support us in this very difficult decision. If you would like to discuss any aspect of this letter, please contact the school office.
Kind regards,
Mrs JE Davies, Executive Headteacher
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Covid Positive Case - Classes in school
Fri 04 Dec 2020Friday 4th December 2020
RE: Positive COVID Case
Dear Parents and Carers,
We have been advised that there has been one confirmed case of COVID-19 in school. One child in year 1 has been tested positive
We have carried out a full risk assessment and identified all those who have been in close contact with the affected case and have recommended that they stay at home and self-isolate until 14 days after their last contact. This means that the children in year 1 are to self-isolate at home and return to school on Wednesday 16th December 2020.
Your child has not been identified as a close contact and therefore does not need to make any change to their usual routine, including school attendance.
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are recent onset of a new continuous cough and/or a high temperature and/or a loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia). If your child, or anyone in your household, develops these symptoms, you whole household must remain at home and not go to work, school or public areas. You should arrange testing for the person who has developed symptoms. When the result is known further advice will be available.
Testing can be arranged by calling 119 or via the NHS website: nhs.uk/coronavirus
There are things we can all do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19:
- wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
- use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
- wash your hands as soon as you get home
- cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
- put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands afterwards
- maintain an appropriate social distance with non-household members of over 2 metres.
Further information is available at www.nhs.uk/coronavirus
Kind regards,
Mrs J.E. Davies
Executive Headteacher -
Covid Positive Case - Classes in Isolation
Fri 04 Dec 2020Friday 4th December 2020
RE: FOR PARENTS OF DIRECT CLOSE CONTACTS OF A CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID 19 at OUR LADY OF LOURDES RCPS
Advice to Self-Isolate
Dear Parents of children in Year 1,
We have been advised by Public Health England that there has been one confirmed case of COVID-19 in the year one class.
We have followed the national guidance and have identified that the children in year 1 have been in close contact with the affected child. In line with the national guidance we recommend that your children now stay at home and self-isolate until they can return to school on Wednesday 16th December 2020. (This isolation period has been set by the PHE and takes into consideration the onset of symptoms and therefore the isolation is not a full 14 days.)
We are asking you to do this to reduce the further spread of COVID 19 to others in the community.
If your child is well at the end of the period of self-isolation, then they can return to usual activities. A negative test does not mean that your child can return to school earlier than 16th December 2020.
Other members of your household can continue normal activities provided your child does not develop symptoms within the 14 day self-isolation period.
Please see the link to the PHE Staying at Home Guidance
What to do if your child develops symptoms of COVID 19
If your child develops symptoms of COVID-19, they should remain at home for at least 10 days from the date when symptoms appeared as advised in https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance
You should arrange for testing for your child via https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested or 111.nhs.uk or primary care
All other household members who remain well must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days.
The 14-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill.
Household members should not go to work, school or public areas and exercise should be taken within the home.
Household members staying at home for 14 days will greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the household could pass on to others in the community
If you are able to, move any vulnerable individuals (such as the elderly and those with underlying health conditions) out of your home, to stay with friends or family for the duration of the home isolation period
Symptoms of COVID 19
The most common symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are recent onset of:
- new continuous cough and/or
- high temperature and/or
- a loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell (anosmia)
For most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.
If your child does develop symptoms, you can seek advice from NHS 111 at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/check-if-you-have-coronavirus-symptoms/or by phoning 111.
How to stop COVID-19 spreading
There are things you can do to help reduce the risk of you and anyone you live with getting ill with COVID-19:
- wash your hands with soap and water often – do this for at least 20 seconds
- use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available
- wash your hands as soon as you get home
- cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze
- put used tissues in the bin immediately and wash your hands afterwards
Further Information
Further information is available at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
Will my child be expected to carry out home learning in the isolation period?
If your child is well, they will be expected to continue with their learning and engaging with their class teacher daily. Mrs Osmond will contact parents via Seesaw on Monday 7th December with the timetable for remote learning.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs J.E. Davies
Executive Headteacher
