Latest News

Return to School Videos

Sat 27 Jun 2020

Staff have made some simple return to school videos so that the children can see where to come and what to expect when they return to school next week. we hope you find them useful. You can find them all here...

https://swansea-gwyrosydd-primary.primarysite.media/playlist/return-to-school-videos

8th Virtual Pupil of the Week Awards

Thu 25 Jun 2020

Please find attached our video showcasing our 8th Virtual Pupil of the Week Awards. It is hard to believe it is week 8 of the awards and even more surprising that another week has passed already! Here's the link ...

https://swansea-gwyrosydd-primary.primarysite.media/media/8th-virtual-pupil-of-the-week-awards

All schools in Swansea to Close 17th July

Mon 22 Jun 2020 Mr A

Dear Parents and Carers,

We have received confirmation from the Local Authority to say that schools will close to pupils on July 17th. The content of the letter has been pasted to this post and a full copy of the letter can be found in our newsletters page.

Dear Parents/Carers

It is now over two weeks since my last letter to you all and I wanted to provide you with a quick update on the current position here in Swansea. As you are all aware our schools are pulling out all the stops to plan for the safe return of learners for ‘Check in, Catch up and Prepare’ sessions.

There will be different approaches across our schools based on a lot of different factors. Each school has been carrying out risk assessments to help them identify the approach that is right in your child’s school.

However, we have agreed a number of key principles with our headteachers to ensure that wherever possible there is consistency.

We also want to stress the arrangements we are putting in place will not mean a return to school and classroom education as we know it. Due to the restrictions on the numbers that can attend at any one time, the days/sessions your child can attend will be limited.

All children, where possible, will be offered a few visits to school in the now three-week period between 29 June and 17 July. Each school risk assessment will determine how often this can take place.

We would like to highlight the following key points:

The last day of this school term for pupils in Swansea schools will now be Friday 17 July as originally planned. There has been no national agreement with the trade unions for the planned additional week and to ensure consistency across our schools and in line with a large number of other local authorities we will close for the summer on 17 July.
In line with Welsh Government expectations, childcare remains our top priority and the demand for emergency childcare in each school will influence their capacity to provide check in, catch up and prepare sessions.
Childcare for our key workers will be offered between 8:30am and 3:30pm at every school, 5 days a week. Opening hours can be extended (if needed) by short periods of time at the beginning and end of the day, to facilitate drop off and collection times. Please remember, only children of key workers and our most vulnerable pupils can access this childcare and then only as a last resort.
The local authority recognise that schools (following a detailed risk assessment) might not to be able to offer nursery and reception children the opportunity to check in and catch up before the summer holidays.
Where possible, parents and carers should travel with their children to and from school. Social distancing should be maintained on the journey to and from school.
The council’s Transport Team is working with schools and childcare settings to determine the demand for home to school transport for eligible pupils and will endeavour to meet these requirements.
All children will need to bring their own packed lunch to school, unless a school offers half day sessions where no lunch at school is required.
All children will be encouraged to wash their hands regularly with soap and water throughout the day/session. Hand sanitizer will also be available.
Wherever possible, all pupils should have contact with their current and next school year’s class teachers/form teachers when they attend their school. It is possible that this contact might be online. There will also be at least an online opportunity for transition between primary and secondary schools.
As well as a thorough daily clean, a “clean as you go” process will be deployed in all schools to minimise the risk of cross contamination and transmission of Covid-19.

We know you will still have a number of questions which may be specific to your child or your child’s school. Please be reassured your child’s school will be providing you with a lot more detail between now and 29 June and our frequently asked questions (FAQs) have been updated https://www.swansea.gov.uk/covid19schoolsandcolleges. Please take a look at these first. If they do not address your questions, please contact your child’s school or you can email us at coronavirusenquiries@swansea.gov.uk.

If you would like to speak to someone in a language other than English/Welsh, please email EMAU@swansea.gov.uk with your phone number and the name of the language.

The safety of our children and staff remains our top priority and this will not change. For those who feel the time is not right for their children to attend school then attendance is not compulsory and parents/carers will not risk fines. Thank you for your continued support.

Yours sincerely

Nick Williams Director of Education

Return to school information (Part 3) What do parents and pupils need to do?

Sun 21 Jun 2020 Mr A

What do Parents and Children need to do?

What is expected of me as a parent?

Be assured that we want to work together with you as parents to ensure your children are safe, feel secure and have the opportunity to ‘check in and check-up’ with their teachers. We need the support and trust you have always given us before to continue during this particularly challenging period. We will get through this by maintaining our positive and productive relationship and working together.

Please use the ‘return to school’ materials we have shared, or similar ones, to reduce your child’s anxiety before coming to school.

Please go through the photos we have provided and the ‘What learning looks like guidance’ we have shared, with your children so they have some idea as to what to expect when they come in.

Please assure them that we really are looking forward to see them, seeing how they are and how they have grown and to hear their lockdown stories.

Please provide your child with a water bottle each time they come to school as we are unable to do so under the present conditions. We can refill bottles at the sink but are unable to provide bottles or use the water fountains.

All parents will need to provide a snack for playtime and a packed lunch. The catering service will not be on site and no food is available.

If your child comes without a water bottle or food we will contact you to come to school to provide one. Please respond swiftly.

The weather forecast is reasonable and children will be outside as much as we can manage. Please apply sun cream to your children before they come to school. They can bring sun cream to school but will need to be able to apply it themselves and must not share it with others. It will also be a very useful to ensure they come with a sun hat / cap for protection from the sun. On days when showers or rain may be forecast a coat should be provided so we can still go outside as much as possible.

Whilst Uniform is not mandatory for this summer period, the standards are. Shoulders must be covered, no strappy tops, sensible footwear, no heals, open sandals etc please.

The Government guidance and risk assessments that we must all ensure that:

When coming to school, all parents/guardians will be expected to observe the 2 metres social distancing whilst queuing with their child/ children on entry into the school building.

Everyone makes use of the dots that have been be marked on the floor at 2 metre intervals so that you can identify how to keep a safe distance whilst on the grounds and where to stand.

Everyone gives way to each other at points around the school where access paths etc may narrow. This may mean some of you standing on the grass or waiting at a safe distance from the gate or path. Thank you.

Everyone must take note of the social distancing and keeping safe signage that has been placed on the perimeter fence line, on the entry doors to the building and within the school grounds.

If you need to wait at the doors, all parents/children are to queue in single file maintaining safe distancing of at least 2 metres using the painted dots.

When on the school grounds, Parents must:

Monitor and control your children at all times
Maintain social distancing
Encourage the children to use hand sanitisers on arrival
Vacate the premises immediately after drop off and collection at the end of the day
All parents and guardians must assure staff that their child/ children DO NOT show symptoms of the virus before entering the school.

Please remember that other than waiting to collect your children at the end of the day, no one will be permitted to congregate on the grounds of the premises and those who are dropping off pupils will be required to leave immediately after drop off.

If your child is unwell they should not come to school.

If you are unwell you should not come to the school.

Should any pupil display symptoms, they will not be authorised to attend the school. Should any member of the pupil’s household be symptomatic or self-isolating, you must contact the headteacher to discuss these individual cases. The headteacher will the discuss the matter with a senior member of the education team or Health and Safety for further advice and guidance.

You are advised of the following essential information that needs to be provided to the school that includes:

Are you, your child or anyone in your household a confirmed case of COVID-19/Coronavirus?
Do you, your child or anyone in your household have symptoms – a new continuous cough and / OR a high temperature, loss of smell or taste;
Are you, your child or anyone in your household in self-isolation?

Please ensure we have your most up to date mobile number.

Please ensure we have an email address so that we can contact you by email. One of our biggest problems in lockdown has been getting messages to all parents at the same time. If you share your email we can email you documents and newsletters and selected useful information. If you aren’t willing to do this please make sure that you use our website or app on a regular basis to ensure you keep up to date.

Expectations of the children

We ask the children to come in and try to be positive and open minded to the activities on offer. It’s not school as we know it but a chance to reconnect, discover and ask questions.

We ask the children to listen to the rules that we all have to follow, especially the social distancing and hand washing and we ask that they do their best to ‘do as they’re asked to’ so that we all stay safe when in school.

We ask them to listen carefully to the ‘Digital learning’ strategy and how to access digital lessons so that they can access learning when they aren’t in school.

The children must bring the food and a water bottle that they need each day.

Return to school information (Part 2) What will learning look like?

Sun 21 Jun 2020 Mr A

What will ‘learning’ look like?

In line with health guidance, children and young people are in the same small groups at all times each day, and different groups will not be encouraged to mix during the day.

Children will have designated days to attend and school will start either at 9:00 or 9:20 for each class and finish at 2:20 or 2:40 so that all pupils can enter and leave safely. They will enter via the identified doors (See timetable)

There will be a teacher and a Learning Support assistant in each class and as far as can be possibly maintained, the same staff will be with the children through the day and on each day that they attend. Whilst inside the building, the children will use only their classroom as a base.

For the next few weeks, uniform is optional. Children are not expected to wear it as they will probably have outgrown it! However, if it still fits them and they want to wear it as it makes them feel more comfortable, that is perfectly acceptable. (Uniform will be mandatory again from September. You can order uniform through the main office if you would like to do so.)

On entry all children will have hand sanitiser put on their hands, please encourage them to rub it in and then go to the classroom and wash their hands. On entry to the class, staff and children will wash their hands for at least 20 seconds (Sing happy birthday song to yourself twice).

Frequent handwashing will take place throughout the day. E.g. play, lunch, after being outside. Staff will teach and reinforce with the children how to wash their hands thoroughly. Disposable paper towels will be in the classroom along with bins specifically for the disposal of used towels tissues etc. Children are encouraged not to touch their faces. If they need to cough or sneeze, they will be taught to use an elbow or a tissue and to use bins for tissue waste.

As we all know, we have to ensure 2m spacing wherever possible so the children will sit at the desks as they appear in the pictures that are attached. However, we will be making use of as much outdoor learning as we possibly can, so we don’t anticipate or expect the children to sit at their desk all day. However, when we are in we will expect them to stay at their learning stations and follow the teacher’s instructions to stay safe. If children refuse to do this, sadly, for the safety of other they may need to go home.

The Education Minister has reinforced the importance of being outside if possible… “schools should maximise the time outdoors”. We will therefore go outside as much as possible and read stories, draw, colour, play games, explore, exercise, do mindfulness activities, do yoga etc.

When inside there will still be a focus on wellbeing but we will most definitely include a focus on ‘digital learning’ and how we access Hwb accounts, learning activities, resources like ‘Active Learn’ and how we share our work so that we all know what to do and where to get help. More information will be sent out about digital learning and the school’s strategy for this shortly.

Classes will have no more than 8 pupils and each class will have an allocated Teacher and Learning Support Assistant. Who will stay with them through the day.

Every child will have their own pens, pencils, rubber, ruler etc, provided by the school, and these will be kept in individual wallets and then trays. Any written work will be complete in a single book during this initial return to school. There will be no ‘shared’ resources and where children use resources like playdough they will be in individual bags for use by one child only. Other resources available have been organised into a use, clean and store rotation basis for each group. Sadly, reading books cannot come home at present but online reading books are available through ‘Active Learn’. We are looking at how we can lend children books to take home over the summer break.

In terms of social distancing, staff do understand that some children, especially the younger ones, will have difficulty in maintaining social distance. Where this happens please be assured that staff will encourage them to learn and respect ‘social distance’ rather than take an authoritarian approach. However, where children are seen to deliberately break the rule and disregard requests to follow the rules, then a more disciplinary approach will need to be employed in order to keep everyone safe. If we believe it is necessary, you will be called and asked to take them home. You must collect them.

At play times, the children will go out onto the yard in year groups but each class will be allocated one of the yards to ‘play’ on. We are still exploring what resources can be given to them to play with. E.g. hula hoops can be used by individuals as long as they are wiped between each individual using the hoop!

Children must take any coats or bags to class with them and they will be stored at their table for the day. Any belongings must go home at the end of the day.

ALL Children will need to bring sandwiches and water for lunch. Lunch will need to be eaten in the classroom. Staff will clean tables before and after the children have eaten. Children will also need to bring their own snack or playtime as the Tuck Shop cannot be run at this time.

Tables will be cleaned regularly by staff in the room through the day. E.g. play, lunch, after being outside.

All Children will require their own water bottle that they bring to school each day. Water fountains are out of use but the bottle can be refilled from taps in school, with staff wiping the taps regularly for cleanliness.

Guidance and risk assessments inform us that we need to control access to the toilets. This does not mean that they can’t go to the toilet, but it means that there will be rules that must be followed and that children may have to wait briefly outside then toilet at busy times. We have to place a limit of 4 pupils in each toilet block at one time and this does mean that toilets will need to be monitored by staff who will need to control access, dispense hand sanitiser where necessary and ensure safety. If children need to go to the toilet during lesson times, please understand that they will need to be escorted to ensure that children stay safe. Staff will wait outside in the corridors.

Children will enter and leave the building at specified times through doors for each class. Please see the attached timetable /list. There can be no exceptions. Please be prompt in collecting your child. Where you have more than one child in school, staff will help by holding on to your child but you must make every effort to collect them as quickly as possible. Thank you for your anticipated support.

The school is providing timetabled opportunities for all pupils from Reception to Y6 to attend for at least 3 days over the next three. This may become four based on Local Authority decisions.

Masks and protective equipment. Other than where social distancing can’t be maintained and there is an increased risk to health, the staff will not be wearing masks, visors and PPE in class. Times when we would wear PPE would include

Administering First Aid where body fluid is involved

Helping those with health plans that might have medical needs or personal hygiene care.

Supporting pupils with additional needs where the wearing off PPE reduces risk to the pupils and the staff with whom they work.

Return to school information (Part 1)

Sun 21 Jun 2020 Mr A

Dear Parents,

We are keen to share information with you so that you can prepare for the return to school on the 29^th of June. We appreciate that some schools have sent information out long before us but we have tried to ensure that we send simple and consistent messages. We know that some schools have needed change the advice given several times as the message from government has changed.

You may have heard on the news that schools may be open for three weeks instead of four. Please be assured that this news is as frustrating to us as it is to you. Please also know that none of our staff have at any point to date said that they will not work. This is a discussion and decision that is being made at Government / Local authority / Trade Union level. As soon as we have clarity we will let you know. At present we are being told to prepare for three weeks with the option of a fourth.

Having thought about how to share what is a lot of information we have decided to share it as 3 separate sections rather than one long letter, so that you can find them again in the future should you need them. The sections are as follows…

This overview letter
What will learning look like?
Expectations of pupils and parents

A separate ‘Digital Learning strategy’ is being finalised and we will be publishing it and an overview as we clarify our approach. Our intention is to simplify the range of software and ensure that you and our children know how to access learning activities, share the learning being done at home and keep in contact with the teachers and the school. We see this working over the rest of the Covid period and beyond, enhancing learning as we move to the ‘new normal’.

As previously stated, children will return on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. We have split the classes into three groups using two categories. First by age and then we have amended some lists so that children from the same family attend on the same day.

Each group has been given a specific day and that day will remain the same over the 3 or 4 weeks so that the children and their families know which day is theirs and can plan around those days.

In the first instance we have to stick to these lists. I am sorry we cannot consider personal requests such as who wants to be with friends, it is impossible to organise in this way. We appreciate there may be issues for some parents who are working and where parents have emailed the school with an outline of the issues faced we are working to try to resolve this but please understand that we may not be able to adapt the timetable.

We are unable to publish lists of names for each group due to GDPR regulations and so on Monday 22^nd and Tuesday 23^rd we will be texting families to say which day the children will be able to come in to school. Obviously, this has to be based on the numbers we hold for you so if you have changed number recently it is imperative that you let us know.

To ensure the children enter and exit the school safely we have needed to stagger pupils’ entry and exit times and doors. We have managed to do this using just 2 separate times for each part of the day. 9:00 and 9:20 to enter and 2:20 and 2:40 to go home. We have needed to shorten the day in order to set up and in the morning and clean at the end of the day. The exact doors and times can be seen in the “Entry and Exit” timetable.

Please be on time to ensure the smooth running of these operations, as this will minimise the risk to you and your children.

Please be aware that parents and guardians will not be permitted inside the main reception or any other part of the school. We kindly ask that you communicate with us via telephone or email. If it is deemed necessary for you to come to school an appointment will be made.

What have we been doing to make it as safe as possible to return to school?

Whilst it might sound a bit boring our first step was to read all the guidance and risk assessments schools have been given in order to understand what we needed to do.

We investigated spacing desks at 2m in the junior classrooms to understand how many pupils we could safely have in a room and we explored what desk arrangements might look like in the Infants given that we wouldn’t expect them to sit at desks in rows.

We have looked at how we make the classrooms easy to keep clean and have removed all non-essential resources and furniture. Sadly, the classrooms look far from the inviting and comfortable rooms they were before lockdown but we know we can keep them clean and we will work with the children to improve how they look as we return to school.

We have cleared the corridors wherever possible to ensure the maximum passing space. This has meant the removal of cupboards and furniture in the Juniors and resources in the Infant corridors.

We have to store all our resources somewhere and so the Junior hall has become a giant store room which will be out of bounds to pupils.

Entry and Exit timetable

Class	Door	Time in	Home time	Door
Reception EJ	Rec/Nur	9:00	2.20	Rec/Nur
Reception CM	Rec CM	9:20	2.40	Rec CM
Y1 CD	Infant Middle	9:00	2.20	Infant Middle
Y1 KO	Infant Middle	9:20	2.40	Infant Middle
Y2 KH	Y2 KH	9:00	2.20	Y2 KH
Y2 MB	Y2 KH	9:20	2.40	Y2 KH
Y3 DD	Rear of 3D	9:00	2.20	Rear of 3D
Y3 CR	Lower middle	9:20	2.40	Lower middle
Y4 FW	Tuck Shop	9:00	2.20	Tuck Shop
Y4 GD	Tuck Shop	9:20	2.40	Tuck Shop
Y5 CO	Top	9:00	2.20	Top
Y5 CJ	Middle-middle	9:00	2.20	Middle-middle
Y6 LD	Lower middle	9:00	2.20	Lower middle
Y6 CG	Middle-middle	9:20	2.40	Middle-middle
STF JF	Top	Various	Various	Top
STF JD	Top	Various	Various	Top

Return to school resources from ELSA

Sat 20 Jun 2020 Mr A

Please find attached a series of photographs showing an excellent resource from ELSA to help you support your children as they return to school. We hope you will find them useful.

7th Virtual Pupil of the Week Awards

Fri 19 Jun 2020 Mr A

Here are 7th Award winners. Well done to everyone who contributes work each week, we are very proud of you all. I you haven't won so far, keep going your efforts will I am sure be recognised.

The award video can be found here..

https://swansea-gwyrosydd-primary.primarysite.media/media/7th-virtual-pupil-off-the-week

Returning to school advice for parents

Thu 18 Jun 2020

Please ind below some advice that has been shared by ASDinfoWales. It is good advice and may help you to reduce your childs anxiety about returning to school and help you support them as they get ready to return on the week o 29th June

Returning to School

Summer Term 2020

Welsh Government has offered you as a parent/carer the opportunity for your child to return to school before the summer holidays start. This will help plan and prepare for returning for the new school year in September 2020.

School and local authority staff are now preparing and planning to reopen schools to all children and young people as safely as possible.

Some parents are worried about sending their children back to school, some children are also worried about returning. Others are really looking forward to returning. If your child has autism or needs additional help in school, returning and preparing to return could present some challenges but possibly some opportunities.

Before all the schools reopen, this is a time for you to think about and plan for your child to return to school safely. If your child is old enough, involve your child as much as you can in this planning.

Resources & website links

There are lots of resources and videos already available that can help you to think about and plan this, please see below:

Your child’s school and the local authority can also help you plan. The school may have already contacted you to talk about this.

There are voluntary organisations who can also help you. Family and friends may also be a good source of help and support.

If your child has particular health needs you may want to talk with a health professional you know well about returning to school e.g. GP, Health Visitor, Paediatrician.

Stars Team – Coronavirus Resources

http://www.starsteam.org.uk/coronavirus-resources

Reach Out ASC – Coronavirus, home & School and Transition resources

www.reachoutasc.com/resources/transition-to-new-class

Twinkle

www.twinkl.co.uk (you will need to create an account to access these resources)

https://www.twinkl.co.uk/resource/returning-to-school-social-situation-t-s-2548814

Elsa Support

www.elsa-support.co.uk/category/free-resources/coronavirus-support

www.elsa-support.co.uk/back-to-school-after-coronavirus-story

www.elsa-support.co.uk/downloads/separation-anxiety-item-371 (£3.50 charge)

Social Stories

www.carolgraysocialstories.com/social-stories

TEACCH

www.teacch.com

Please see the following 10 tips which could help you and your child in returning to school:

Talk about it – Talk to your child about returning to school and explain clearly and simply what will happen. Remember to continue talking to your child about this after he/she returns to school, but choose your times! Make sure you explain in a way your child understands. Using pictures and symbols could help, what works best for your child.

Identify positives, possible problems and solutions – What will be good about returning to school? What could be difficult? What are you hoping for? What is your child hoping for in returning to school? And school staff?

Plan for now and for later – You will need information from school to develop a plan and make preparations. You may need to modify your plan depending on how the return goes and as the situation changes. COVID 19 has brought many changes and could bring more.

Work together with your child, family and school staff – This will increase the chances of a safe, successful return. It is really important that everyone agrees to and is aware of the plan and this plan is monitored and reviewed. Share with school your child’s achievements and experience of “lockdown”.

Develop useful routines – Start practising now. You may need to start going to bed earlier and waking up earlier. You may need to start wearing different clothes, changing mealtimes. If you’ve been using a schedule you will need to change it, if you haven’t been using a schedule, think about using one. Make sure your schedule contains quiet times for relaxation and some exercise. Using pictures and symbols should clarify and increase predictability helping to reduce anxiety.

Set a clear countdown for return – Consider using a calendar and visual prompts to remind yourself to work towards returning. Social stories or social scripts could also help. Some children will need a lot of details and explanations, others will not. Consider how much detail and preparation your child will need. Try to involve school staff in this especially if there has been limited contact with school

Check in with yourself and your child – How are you doing? How are you feeling about this? You could use a set of symbols or emojis to check in with your child. Remember feelings can fluctuate during the day and it is useful to monitor this. You may need to carry on checking how your child is feeling for quite a long time. This is probably a good habit to develop.

Prepare for “The New Normal” – Is it possible to see the new physical arrangements – the classroom set up, entrances, exits, hand washing facilities and physical distancing boundaries/markers. How will your child get to school? Will your child need to bring sanitizer, face masks or their own pens and pencils? What about lunchtime – snacks and drinks? Is there a quiet area available? What will remain the same? There are lots of things to check out. Hopefully the school has addressed many of the general issues around safety and functioning but you may need to enquire further.

Settling into school again – It may take a long time to settle in again. Allow for this. Allow time to relearn, recover and settle in. Recognise that there may be changes to staff and class composition. Your child may miss some things from their previous experience of school. You may have experienced the loss of a friend or a family member. Be kind to yourself and your child.

Hopes for the future – Do what you can do now to make sure school is the best place it can be for your child as he/she returns. Remember to celebrate your achievements whilst not at school and what was good about being at home together. Keep that going when your child returns to school.

Parental requests or specific school days

Thu 18 Jun 2020 Mr A

Parents/Guardians,

Following our posting of information Tuesday, we have had requests for specific days and for pupils to be with their friends. At this moment in time I am sorry but we cannot accede to these requests as we do not have the time and capacity to check what everybody wants and then try to make everything fit and work. However, we have no doubt that there will be pupils who will not return to school. When we know who these are we will consider and try our best to meet requests where people have specific difficulties e.g. parents working on specific days and unable to meet the pick-up/drop-off times but available on other days.

I am sorry but we cannot ensure pupils are with friends of their choice at this time.

Please can any requests be made via email clearly stating your Childs name and details of the reasons for change to mailto:Gwyrosydd.primary@swansea-edunet.gov.uk.

Thank you for your continued support,

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