Dear Parents and Carers,

I hope you and your families are well and keeping safe during this very difficult time we are all experiencing right now.

We have yet to receive official confirmation from Welsh Government but it is looking likely that we will continue to be closed until half-term, with school open to the children of key workers. Once we have more guidance regarding this I will of course keep you updated as to any reopening dates, etc.

As I’ve outlined to you previously, we have switched to remote learning with the teachers uploading work on Seesaw and providing feedback and support to the pupils. Our blended learning menus will also be available on the school website in each class’s home learning page if you are unable to access Seesaw. They provide an outline of the work being covered and what activities can be done at home.

If you need any support with this you can contact the teachers directly on Seesaw and they will be in regular contact on the telephone or you can contact the school via text, phone or email and I’m happy to answer any queries you may have.

I wanted to thank you for participating in the survey we sent out which helps to inform us of how we can improve what we are offering and how effective Seesaw is at supporting home learning.

We understand the pressures of balancing this with your own jobs and family commitments and so please don’t feel that there is an expectation to do everything that is uploaded by teachers. They are providing work each day for English, Maths, RE and Topic subjects, but we are fully aware that different circumstances mean that some children are able to complete more work than others and that is to be expected, but our teachers also want to make sure there is enough for your children to be doing at home across the core subjects.

Given that schools are likely to be closed longer than we were anticipating we are going to start weekly ‘live’ catch-up sessions with teachers in Years 2 – 6. We don’t feel these sessions are appropriate for younger children at this stage, but will review and monitor this once the sessions start.

They will be 30-minute wellbeing sessions and will be an opportunity for the class to come together and see their friends, as well as allowing their teachers to chat through any issues with home learning, etc. We are planning to start these in the week beginning Monday 1st February and they will be on Microsoft Teams using your child’s Hwb email address.

You will receive an email with a link to a Google Forms (this will also be available via text) which you will need to complete and submit in order for your child to be able to attend. We will require an adult to be present in the room with your child at all times, but not to be on screen.

We are hopeful that both you and your child will take the opportunity to participate and will go some way to help them during this time away from their teacher and friends.

INSET Days 2020-21

Due to the current period of school closure the INSET days have been updated for the year and are –

Monday 22nd February 2021
Monday 12th April 2021 (newly added)
Monday 7th June 2021
Monday 19th July 2021
Tuesday 20th July 2021

I also wanted to take this opportunity to remind you that during this challenging time for everyone we are always here if you need anything or just want a chat and a chance to offload.

You are all doing an incredible job juggling everything at the moment and I wanted to say thank you for your continued patience and support.

Mr J. Llewellyn
Interim Headteacher