Message from Peter Nathan, Director of Education re COVID19 and other updates 11.05.2021
FAO: All Schools/All Phases
Dear Headteacher/Principal,
I very much hope you are well and that the summer term is going smoothly. I have visited a number of schools and the excitement and indeed joy of the children being back in school is palpable to see – although of course getting used to the discipline needed in school is challenging for some after so long working remotely. Local COVID data continues to show a positive picture with decreasing cases and low hospital admissions (the latest dashboard attached).
i) Government COVID announcements - masks - amongst the announcements made yesterday by the prime minister, mask wearing will be no longer required for children in schools from next Monday (17th May) but it is still expected that staff will wear masks where social distancing is not possible (corridors & communal area including staff rooms) - the link to the guidance is here - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/984846/FINAL_Face_coverings_in_education_guidance.pdf .
There is no change currently to other safety or social distancing requirements although we are talking to the DfE about the roadmap out of restrictions.
ii) Overnight school trips & residentials - these are permitted from 17th May subject to risk assessments and other COVID related guidance. There may well be some parental and indeed staff concerns of course relating to these potential trips at the moment. International trips are not advised at the moment but the guidance recommends waiting until the Autumn term.
iii) Extra-curricular activities and wraparound care - to quote from the guidance “From 17 May, in line with the commencement of Step 3 of the roadmap, where wraparound and other extra-curricular activities for children are taking place indoors, they will be able to take place in groups of any number. However, it remain important to continue to minimise mixing between children, where possible. This can be achieved by continuing to keep children in consistent groups every time they attend the setting. Smaller groups should be considered when it is not possible to do this. When considering appropriate group sizes it will be important to take into account factors such as the recommended occupancy levels of the premises you are operating from and levels of ventilation. For example, guidance for providers of grassroots sport and sport facilities recommends that the maximum occupancy of an indoor facility should be limited by providing a minimum of 100sqft per person.”
iv) Other COVID guidance changes from the DfE – within the guidance provided by the DfE there have been specific changes made to the information on: attendance - advice on pupils who are abroad - pupils travelling to the UK from abroad - educational visits - wraparound provision and extra-curricular activity- music, dance and drama and school performances - pupil wellbeing and there is a section on transitional, taster and open days, and also annex B, which is guidance on year 11 to 13 exam cohort attendance and provision for the 2021 summer term. The link to the guidance is here -
v) Education staff well-being charter – the DfE are launching an education well being charter for schools to sign up to which I would urge you to read through and share with governors and staff. The link is here -
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/education-staff-wellbeing-charter - the DfE have said there will be funding to train a mental health lead in secondary schools and colleges. In addition there is further funding being provided to support the return to normal schooling (resilience and recovery) which may mean there will be additional support and training provided to schools (further details to follow).
vi) OFSTED update - I attended a meeting with Mike Sheridan (OFSTED) and have attached the latest OFSTED update as discussed at the last headteachers briefing.
vii) Appropriate Body – Early Careers Teachers – a reminder that if you have ECTs (previously NQTs), that you will need to sign up with an AB by 25th May and Sarah Fryer has further information on this as needed and runs the Enfield AB service.
viii) DfE School Attendance returns - The DfE has been looking at attendance data over the period of the pandemic and has identified that Enfield is one of the areas with excess absence not related to COVID. They have used the daily Education Settings Survey to form this judgement. Enfield’s submission for this return is very low, often less than 50% and I need to ask that schools make every effort to complete and return this to the DfE on a daily basis. I do realise that the return does take some time to fill in but DfE officials have said that it is likely that the requirement will be dropped once ministers are sure that the level of attendance is strong.
ix) Enfield Learning Excellence Board – borough KPIs - the board met on Monday and confirmed targets for the next 4 years (attached). There was an excellent presentation by Brimsdown School on their curriculum development work – they are part of the good practice dissemination project and would welcome visits to their school. If you want a copy of their presentation, please let me know. There was considerable discussion about pupil places and the reduction in numbers of children coming into our Reception classes. This will be looked at in more depth at the Pupil Place Planning and Admissions Panel in a couple of weeks time which has headteacher and diocesan representation.
x) Next Headteachers Briefing – this is taking place on Friday 21st May from 1:30pm to 3:00pm.
There has been a lot of focus on well being and mental health recently and I would ask you to consider this in relation to yourselves ( I am sure you do). For my part planting potatoes, carrots and beans at the weekend was very relaxing although cricket was less so ( I need to score some runs!!). Visiting Raynham Primary School last week was a really pleasurable experience and it is clearly an excellent school with some great practice – I particularly enjoyed the farm within the school (a must see) which is a great addition to their science curriculum. Thanks Anna Trott for your welcome.
I very much hope that you have a good week and enjoy our new freedoms from next Monday.
Best wishes,
Peter Nathan
Director of Education