Rook’s Nest Academy Mini Newsletter
Issue 19 – 9th October 2020
Dear Parent/Carers,
We have been advised by Public Health England that there has been a confirmed case of COVID-19 within the school.
We know that you may find this concerning but we are continuing to monitor the situation and are working closely with Public Health England. This letter is to inform you of the current situation and provide advice on how to support your child. Please be reassured that for most people, coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness.
The small number of children who have been in close contact with the individual who has tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19) have received a letter informing them that their child must stay at home for 14 days.
The school remains open and your child should continue to attend as normal if they are well.
What to do if your child develops symptoms of COVID 19
If your child develops symptoms of COVID-19, they must not come to school and should remain at home for at least 10 days from the date when their symptoms appeared. Anyone with symptoms will be eligible for testing and this can be arranged via https://www.nhs.uk/ask-for-a-coronavirus-test or by calling 119.
All other household members who remain well, must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days. This includes anyone in your ‘Support Bubble’.
Further information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection
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
Symptoms
The most common symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19) are recent onset of:
- a new continuous cough
- a high temperature
- a loss of, or change in, your 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 the nhs.uk website at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/check-if-you-have-coronavirus-symptoms/. If you are concerned about your child’s symptoms, or they are worsening you can seek advice from NHS 111 at https://111.nhs.uk/ 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
Do
- 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/
WHAT A GREAT START!!
We had our first “Spend a Penny Project” collection on Tuesday. We managed to raise just over £150. We will continue with the monthly collection which could see us raising close to £500 by Christmas. Please try to get all your family and friends involved in supporting us.
Launching the ACADEMY SANDWICH LUNCH OPTION
At RNA we are one of a very few schools in the Outwood area who are lucky enough to have their own on-site kitchen. We make meals fresh everyday rather than having them delivered in and reheated for the children. The Academy kitchen have continued to provide meals for the children throughout the Covid-19 situation, and full service has been available from the start of the academic year. Universal free school meals are available for all children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 regardless of their home situation. This initiative allows for any child in these year groups to receive a school lunch for free. We have noticed that many of our eligible pupils are bringing sandwiches from home. From discussions with parents we have identified a few key reasons for this. Firstly, parents were not aware that the Academy lunch service is continuing unchanged and secondly, that the children prefer sandwiches to a cooked meal. With this in mind we would like to announce the launch of the ACADEMY SANDWICH LUNCH OPTION for Autumn 2.
Children will be able to select daily from a choice of sandwiches (ham, cheese or jam), fruit choices, salad sticks (cucumber, carrot etc), a home bake selection and a drink (fruit juices or milk-based drinks). We hope that parents will see this as a positive addition to our meal offer as it will save them money, time and allow children a fresh sandwich option that has not been sat around all morning in a lunch box. We would encourage any parent whose child is currently having sandwiches, from the relevant year groups, to contact the Academy before Wednesday 21st October if they would like to take up this offer. In the current climate, the elimination of packed lunches from home would also reduce possible cross contamination issues.
We will also be changing our 4-week menu when we return after the holiday and this can be found on the school website here. You will find new and exciting options to tantalise the taste buds which have already been endorsed by enthusiastic Y6 pupils.