Covid 19

St Augustine’s Federated Schools – Primary

Outbreak Management Plan: Outbreak of COVID–19 in local area

If a local area sees a spike in coronavirus (COVID-19) infection rates that is resulting in localised community spread, appropriate authorities will decide which measures to implement to help contain the spread. These measures could include the full or partial closure of schools in the area and/or the reimplementation of a system of ‘bubbles’.

The school’s Outbreak Management Plan outlines how the school will operate if a local lockdown is implemented. If a local lockdown is implemented in our area, the school will work closely with the local health protection team (HPT) and implement provisions as advised by the team.

This is a live document that will be reviewed by the headteacher in conjunction with other key stakeholders as and when the situation develops. stakeholders as and when the situation develops.

COVID Outbreak Management Plan

Focus	Details of Provision
Attendance
Nursery	If attendance restrictions are imposed, vulnerable children (including children with an EHCP or social worker) and the children of critical workers will be allowed to attend school.
Partial school closure	Where measures include attendance restrictions, the Department for Education (DfE) may advise on any groups that should be prioritised. If partial attendance restrictions are imposed, all vulnerable children, children of critical workers, along with children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 will still be allowed to attend
Full school closure	If, in exceptional circumstances, attendance is restricted further, vulnerable children and children of critical workers will still be allowed to attend.
On-site Provision
Pupils	In the event of a local lockdown, the school will continue to offer on-site provision for eligible pupils – eligible pupils are likely to be vulnerable children and the children of critical workers. The number of pupils who will be attending school from these groups will be identified by contacting parents via email and text – this number will be used to agree what staffing resources are required. Vulnerable pupils and children of critical workers are permitted to travel into and out of the area for education – this includes parents taking their children to school. In circumstances where a parent or carer of a child with a social worker does not want their child to attend the school, the school and the child’s social worker will explore the reasons for this directly with the parent or carer, and work together with them to support the child to attend. The Headteacher and SLT will work with all relevant staff to organise appropriate pupil bubbles. We will work on the basic principle that there will be no more than 15 pupils per bubble and that one teacher will be allocated to each bubble every day on a rota basis. Where there are teacher shortages, support staff may be asked to lead groups under the direction of a teacher. We will also ensure that support is in place for those pupils with SEND who are attending school. Pupils will be kept in the same bubbles at all times each day, and different groups will not mix during the day, or on subsequent days. The same staff will be assigned to each bubble and, as far as possible, staff will stay assigned to the same bubble during the day and on subsequent days.
Staff	Critical workers, which includes school staff, are permitted to travel into and out of the lockdown areas to get to work, in order to maintain provision for pupils who will be attending on-site provision. If shielding measures are reintroduced due to the local lockdown, affected members of staff will be supported to work from home or the appropriate leave or pay measures will be discussed. Staff with roles that must be undertaken on site (e.g. staff teaching a bubble) will be asked to come into school to deliver provision, unless they are shielding or self-isolating. Staff members who are able to carry out their role from home will be supported to do so. An audit of all staff will be conducted to assess who is able to work on site and who will need to work from home due to their underlying health issues or those of the people they live with. The audit will be reviewed on a continuous basis to establish whether the circumstances of any staff member have changed. If any staff member has concerns regarding working on the school site, they will discuss these concerns with their line manager. A risk assessment will be completed.
Parents	Parents will not be permitted to enter the premises unless invited. The only access for parents will be via the door that leads to the office reception area. Face coverings will be mandatory when parents are on site.

Infection Control The school’s operational risk assessment will continue to be adhered to – this meets the requirements set out in the DfE’s system of controls. Any member of the school community who displays symptoms of coronavirus will be encouraged to take a PCR test. Essential workers, including school staff, have priority access to testing.
Use of personal protective equipment (PPE)	Most staff will not require PPE beyond what they would normally need for their work. PPE is only needed in a very small number of cases: children, young people and learners whose care routinely already involves the use of PPE due to their intimate care needs should continue to receive their care in the same way PPE should be worn if a distance of 2 metres cannot be maintained from any child, young person or other learner displaying coronavirus symptoms During a ‘breakout’, face coverings will be worn in communal areas by staff and visitors.
Hand hygiene	We will continue to ensure that children clean their hands regularly with soap and water or hand sanitiser. Every classroom has a set of hygiene supplies which are replenished regularly.
Respiratory hygiene	The ‘catch it, bin it, kill it’ approach continues to be very important. Discrete lessons will be delivered to highlight the importance of good hygiene for keeping everyone safe. Class hygiene rules will be revisited regularly throughout the term.
Ventilation	All occupied spaces are kept well ventilated. Where it is safe to do so, windows and doors are kept open to improve natural ventilation. Mechanical ventilation systems are adjusted to increase the ventilation rate.
Cleaning	An enhanced cleaning regime is in place. This includes regular enhanced cleaning of shared areas and equipment with a particular focus on frequently touched surfaces such as bannisters, door handles, photocopiers, key boards and phone handsets.
Asymptomatic testing – staff	Staff have been advised to continue to undertake twice weekly Lateral Flow Tests (LFD test). Staff and children with a positive LFD result are told to self-isolate in line with the guidance for households with possible coronavirus infection. They must then take a free PCR test to check if they have COVID-19 within 2 days of the positive LFT result. Whilst awaiting the PCR result, the individual should continue to self-isolate. If the PCR test is taken within 2 days of the positive rapid lateral flow test, and is negative, it overrides the rapid lateral flow test and they can return to the setting, as long as the individual doesn’t have COVID-19 symptoms. If the PCR result is positive, they must self-isolate for a period of 10 full days.
Pupils who develop symptoms	If a pupil develops symptoms of coronavirus while on site, they will be taken to a designated isolation area (outside the Meeting Room with a closed door and windows open to ensure that the area is well-ventilated) while they wait to be collected. If required, the pupil will be supervised while they await collection. If the supervising member of staff is unable to maintain social distancing e.g., due to the pupil’s age or needs, they will wear PPE. After the pupil has left the premises, any areas they were in will be cleaned. The supervising staff member must wash their hands thoroughly as per NHS guidance. The pupil’s parents will be advised to book a test for their child tested. The pupil will be required to self-isolate for 10 full days and remote education will be arranged for them immediately. Pupils’ siblings and other family members who live in the same household should also self-isolate and take a PCR test. Any pupils who have been in close contact with a symptomatic individual do not need to self-isolate unless they develop symptoms themselves or the individual subsequently tests positive.
Staff who develop symptoms	If a staff member develops symptoms while on site, they will be directed to go home to self-isolate and to take a PCR test. Cover arrangements will be put in place. Any staff members or children who have been in close contact with a symptomatic individual do not need to self-isolate unless they develop symptoms themselves or the individual subsequently tests positive.
Parent or family member tests positive	If a parent of, or someone who lives in the same household as, a pupil tests positive and is told to isolate for 10 days, then everyone in the household should self-isolate and take a PCR test. If the PCR comes back positive, then they must complete the full 10 days of isolation from the date of their test. If this PCR test comes back negative, then the household member must complete the original 10 days of isolation. If they develop symptoms after they have started the 10 days self-isolation, they should take another PCR test. Should they test positive, the 10 days isolation period will start again.
After a positive result	If an individual tests positive, the school will contact the local HPT. The individual’s close contacts at school will be sent home to self isolate for 10 days and advised to get a test. If more individuals test positive, the school will follow advice from the local HPT, which may include the requirement for more people to self-isolate.
Admitting children back to school	In most cases, parents and carers will agree that a child with symptoms should not attend the setting, given the potential risk to others. If a parent or carer insists on a child attending, the school can decide to refuse the child if it is judged necessary to protect other children and staff from possible infection with COVID-19. The decision would be made after careful consideration of all the circumstances and current public health advice.

Remote Education In the event of a total or partial lockdown, the school will offer immediate access to remote education for all pupils who are required to remain at home. If there is not a local lockdown, but a single class or bubble needs to self-isolate, the school will immediately implement remote education for that group. All remote education will be delivered in line with the school’s Remote Education Policy.
Teaching and Learning	All pupils will have access to high-quality education when learning remotely. The school will use a range of teaching methods to cater for different learning styles. When teaching pupils who are working remotely, teachers will: Set assignments so that pupils have meaningful and ambitious work each day. Deliver a planned, coherent and well-sequenced curriculum which allows skills to be built incrementally. • Provide frequent, clear explanations of new content through high-quality curriculum resources, including through the use of educational videos and on-line resources. Assess progress by using questions and other suitable tasks and be clear on how regularly work will be checked. • Adjust the pace or difficulty of what is being taught in response to questions or assessments, including, where necessary, revising material or simplifying explanations to ensure pupils’ understanding. Plan a programme that is of equivalent length to the core teaching pupils would receive in school, ideally including daily contact with teachers. Provide feedback in line with the policy. All provisions for remote education will be subject to the class group’s age, ability and/or any SEND. In exceptional circumstances, the school may reduce its curriculum offering to enable pupils to cope with the workload – the Headteacher will assess this need, keeping pupils’ best interests in mind, and will not take the decision lightly. Teachers will continue to make use of formative assessments throughout the academic year, e.g. quizzes. Devices (such as laptops or i-pads) will be provided for disadvantaged pupils who do not have access to suitable devices at home. Free Wi-Fi can also be made available for those families without internet access. Arrangements will be made for parents, who request paper versions of learning packs, to collect packs and return completed packs to school.
SEND provision	Teachers will ensure lessons are inclusive for all pupils and can be adapted to account for the needs of disadvantaged pupils and pupils with SEND. Home learning packs containing concrete resources, developed in school, will be sent home with the pupils with EHCP’s. These pupils will also have an additional daily live learning with their LSA. The SENCO will make weekly check-ins with the parents of pupils with a high level of need.
Safeguarding
Child Protection Policy Child Protection Policy: COVID19 addendum	Ensuring safeguarding arrangements remain effective while the school is partially closed is a key priority. Our Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy was updated during the national lockdown to include provisions for keeping pupils safe during the coronavirus pandemic – we will continue to follow these procedures for pupils who remain at home, where appropriate, until all pupils are able to return to school.
Procedures	We will continue to ensure that: The best interests of pupils always come first. If anyone in the school has a safeguarding concern about a pupil, they act immediately. A DSL or deputy DSL is always available. Unsuitable individuals are not permitted to work with pupils or come into contact with pupils whilst on site or via our learning platform. Pupils who remain at home are protected when they are online. Children are aware online safety and what to do if they encounter a potential risk. This helps us to identify potential risks and act at the earliest possible point.
Well-being
Support for families	At St Augustine’s, we are committed to supporting the emotional health and well-being of our whole community. We know that everyone can experience life challenges that can make us vulnerable and, at times, anyone may need additional emotional support. We have a dedicated area on the website to provide support for parents. Weekly ‘well-being calls’ will resume for all vulnerable children. External support from a range of providers, including Anna Freud Centre and the Early Help Inclusion Pilot will continue either in person or through Teams. Support from the SENCO for children with special educational needs: The school SENCO/ class teacher/ LSA will make contact with parents to support in establishing routines, explaining the use of equipment and other online activities/ providing resources that will help their children with their learning The SENCO or LSA will explain the use of the resource packs for SEND pupils The SENCO will make additional well-being calls to the families of children with an EHCP (this includes those families whose children’s statements are pending). We will also signpost other professionals to families who require additional support: Cate Summers (Consultant Educational Psychologist) Educational psychologist CAMHS
Pupils	Bespoke online safety lessons will be delivered during periods of remote learning. Weekly ‘well-being’ calls will be made to all families by the class teacher and other members of the class team Regular class well-being sessions / class meetings will be delivered through Teams
Staff	Plans have been, and will continue to be, developed alongside staff. Opportunities to review systems and ways of working are regularly reviewed with staff. Teaching and support staff will be organized into teams. All teams are led by a member of the SLT who checks in weekly with team members either via phone, a group text, or Teams/Zoom. The SLT will meet weekly via Zoom Staff will be reminded of well-being resources available to support for all staff.
Food Provision
Benefit related FSM & Universal FSM	We will ensure measures are in place so that meals can be prepared and served safely for FSM and UIFSM pupils who remain on site.
Benefit related FSM	Those pupils who are unable to attend will be given vouchers as an alternative to an in-school FSM.
Communication
Parents	The school will communicate its plan for a local lockdown with parents, including whether it will remain open to vulnerable pupils and children of critical workers, or if remote working will be applicable for all. All relevant stakeholders will be kept up-to-date with the circumstances of the local lockdown and how it affects the school as they develop. We will do this via: Text The website Parentmail Messages on Teams Phone
Making contact	If any member of the school community wishes to discuss any concerns relating to the school’s provision during this period, they should contact the following people as appropriate: Staff – their line manager, an Assistant Headteacher or Headteacher Pupils – their class teacher or other member of their teaching team Parents – the class teacher, Phase leader or an Assistant Headteacher in the first instance
SLT
Site manager
Wraparound Childcare
Breakfast club	To avoid pupils from a variety of bubbles mixing, pupils who attend breakfast club will be socially distanced. Thorough hand washing and cleaning routines will be in place.
Afterschool provision	The school will continue to operate paid after school club. The risk of infection will continue to be decreased by organising children into Year groups. Handwashing routines will continue as they do during the school day. Children will be outside as much as possible.
Educational visits
Trips	Any educational day visits must be conducted in line with relevant coronavirus (COVID-19) secure guidelines and regulations in place at that time. This includes system of controls, such as keeping children within their consistent groups and the COVID-secure measures in place at the destination. We will undertake full and thorough risk assessments in relation to all educational visits to ensure they can be undertaken safely. As part of this risk assessment, we will need to consider what control measures need to be used and follow wider advice on visiting indoor and outdoor venues. We will consult the health and safety guidance on educational visits when considering visits. Visits will be considered on a case-by-case basis.