Reflections on week 33

Great to be back after the Whit break and see everyone up for the remaining challenges of this year.

Please remember that we have moved the start times to 8.40am for all classes. This means that the doors open at 8.40am and all children should be here, in class and ready to begin lessons at 8.50am. Children arriving late after this time both disrupt everyone else’s learning and cannot fully access the start of each day’s work. You’ll all understand how important every lesson is after the disrupted year we’ve all been through, so please try and get here on time. I have also opened and manned the drop-off point for cars at the front of school each morning. Staff are there from 8.30am onwards.

Tameside, along with the rest of Greater Manchester as well as Lancashire, has, this week, been included by the government as an area to receive strengthened support to control the spread of the Delta Covid variant of concern. Unfortunately Covid rates across the city region are rising rapidly, with the Delta variant becoming more dominant. Rates in Tameside are now at 100.7 per 100,000 of the population, which is over four times higher than two weeks ago. With the news that the Delta or Indian variant is causing worrying increases in local infection rates, it is important that everyone continues to practise social-distancing on the school yards and, for the time being, we will continue to stagger the end of day times to help reduce crowding. The transmissibility of the latest variant has seen all of our office staff forced to self-isolate this week and next and I thank other staff for stepping in to man the phones and apologies if anyone hasn’t been able to get through.

It is great to see everyone back in school PE kits following Mrs Silk’s appeal last week and staying with this topic, it has been a delight to officiate at my last two junior sports days this week. The children all supported each other, tried their best and enjoyed being part of two lovely events. The attitudes on display were a credit to all involved. Congratulations go to Mercury (upper junior winners) and to Venus (lower junior champions.) We will hold the year 1 and 2 sports day on Monday of next week and will fit in Reception sports later this term.

It is not long now until the year 6 children go on their twice postponed, residential visit to Robinwood. Please make any outstanding payments before we go. In further good news, we are able to take the year 5 children on their residential in July. (Let’s all keep our fingers crossed and do everything possible to stop the latest variant of coronavirus from spoiling these opportunities for our children.)

Enjoy the sunny weekend ahead

Best wishes

Mr Fell