Archive of Latest News
Latest news is now shared via our Head Teacher blog which is published in the Parents section of the website. Please also visit our Twitter feed for a window into our curriculum offer and to see the purposeful and memorable learning experiences in each year group. Our Twitter feed can be accessed on the Home page of our website or by clicking on the Twitter icon in the top left corner of this page.
Please find below an archive of the news stories that we published before we started to use Twitter.
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Remote Learning Letter
Wed 06 Jan 20216th January 2021
Remote Learning Information for parents and carers
Dear Parent/Carer,
I am writing to let you know about the developments in our home learning provision and to tell you about the support that we are offering in order to make home learning less stressful for you and more engaging for your children.
We understand that many of you are working parents and that this unprecedented time has caused additional pressures in many households, therefore, we have adjusted our offer to make it easier for you to encourage and support your child in completing as much of their work as possible. Following school closures last spring and summer, many children had a mountain to climb in order to make up for the gaps in learning caused by the global pandemic. We aim to do all we can to ensure that all pupils continue to make progress in the coming weeks. Our class teachers will be on hand remotely to help your child as much as they possibly can and they will be working hard to ensure that work is accessible for all of the children and appropriate for their age and stage. Our aim is to provide a home learning offer that your child looks forward to and that can be accessed with minimal support from you. Please be aware, however, that class teachers are also supporting critical worker bubbles in school, therefore we would appreciate your patience with their online responses.
Each day, an English, maths and a foundation subject lesson (such as science, history, P.E) will be uploaded onto Seesaw/Tapestry by your child’s class teacher. Teachers will also be on hand every day to mark work and to provide feedback and, where appropriate, next steps and challenges. If you or your child has a question about their work, you can use the messaging tool on Seesaw/Tapestry to contact their class teacher. Additional fun activities and challenges will be set for your child to enjoy and will contribute to the development of basic skills or support with mental health and wellbeing.
Seesaw and Tapestry are both easy to use with a smart phone and all work can be completed on paper and then uploaded as a picture. We would encourage all parents to use these platforms if possible as this is the way that the class teacher will be engaging with the children and providing instructions for the learning and feedback on work. If you feel that you will not be able to access the online content, please contact the school for advice. If necessary, we can provide paper copies of work which you can arrange to collect from the school office.
We commit to doing all we possibly can to support all children with their continued development during this difficult time and we thank you sincerely for all you are doing to help your child to learn from home.
Yours faithfully,
Mrs Julie Stuart, Head Teacher
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Critical Worker Information Letter
Tue 05 Jan 20214th January 2021
Dear Parent/Carer,
In light of Boris Johnson’s announcement this evening, Throckley Primary School will be closed as of Tuesday, 5th January 2021 until further notice. The Government has asked parents to keep their children at home and has asked schools to remain open only for those who absolutely need to attend.
Please carefully consider if your child needs a school place due to your work being critical to the COVID-19 response and if you have NO possible alternative options.
To ensure that we are only having the smallest number of children in school, and in order to limit the spread of the virus, we will be asking for you (if sole parent) or both parents to provide evidence of critical worker status. This should include:
- your current job role
- your working schedule
We ask for this information by 12 noon on Tuesday 5th January so that we can begin to prioritise our limited places and organise childcare bubbles. Until this is received, we are unable to confirm an offer of a school place.
I must stress that if your child is offered a critical worker place at school, it is highly likely that they will not be in their usual class bubble or be taught by their own Class Teacher. Remote learning for each year group will however be provided for all pupils via Seesaw and Tapestry (information to follow tomorrow).
If, after considering all of the above, you qualify for and require a place for your child, send through the information we have requested above by responding to this email or by using the following email address: Parents@throckleyprim.newcastle.sch.uk
Please remember that if your child or another member of your family shows any COVID symptoms, they must not attend school.
Yours faithfully,
Mrs Julie Stuart, Head Teacher
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Letter from Mrs Stuart about school reopening on 5th Jan 2021
Mon 04 Jan 2021Monday 4th January, 2021
Dear Parents and Carers,
Following on from my correspondence yesterday, I can confirm that school's position has not changed and we still intend to open to all children on Tuesday 5th January, following Government advice to do so. However, we are reviewing the situation on a daily basis and will update parents as soon as possible if changes are to be made following any updates in guidance.
I understand that you may be very concerned about the safety of your children and your families from the risk of infection in light of recent scientific evidence presented by SAGE and strong lobbying from some unions. At Throckley Primary, the safety of our whole school community is paramount and we are taking all measures physically and practically possible to ensure everyone's safety.
Our school risk assessment has been updated to add in some further measures, some of which require support from parents and families, which I will outline below. I know that many of you may have additional concerns because your child or family members may be vulnerable due to underlying medical conditions. At present, Government advice is for all children to attend school unless they have been directed otherwise by a medical professional (you will have received a shielding letter about this), including those who live with shielding family members. For any parent or carer who remains concerned about their child attending school due to medical reasons, staff will be available via telephone to discuss this. However, I would like to add that, as non-medical professionals, we cannot give specific advice and would urge you to seek clarification from your child's paediatrician if you are at all unsure.
In terms of reinforcing and increasing safety measures in school, I politely request that all parents strictly adhere to the following points:
- Do not arrive on site more than five minutes prior to your drop off/collection time unless you are dropping off/collecting a sibling.
- If your child is late or you are late for collection you must contact the office for a new drop off/collection time. Do not just arrive at the office.
- If you know you are going to be late for collection, please contact the office as soon as possible so staff can be informed and your child can be reassured.
- Only 1 adult to drop off/collect a child - please do not have more than one as this unnecessarily increases numbers of adults on site and increases the risk of transmission of infection.
- Adults must wear face masks, unless exempt for medical reasons, whilst on site.
- Do not gather in groups whilst waiting to drop off/collect your child.
- Ensure your children remain with you at all times and are not running around on site.
- Please leave the site immediately after drop off/pick up and do not congregate anywhere on site.
- No messages to be passed to staff at gates at drop off/collection times. Please contact the office or use Seesaw to speak directly with class teachers.
- Do not enter the main reception area without prior appointment.
- Maintain social distancing at all times.
I would just like to end by reiterating that I am continually reviewing the situation for school and will endeavour to keep parents up to date as quickly as I can. Please bear in mind that advice from the Government can change rapidly and at the last minute. Staff at Throckley Primary are committed to continuing to provide high quality education to all of our children, giving them a safe and happy learning environment.
I understand that Tier 4 restrictions are difficult, but following them outside of school means we are all doing our bit to keep our school community safe. Thank you for your continued support, we really value it. Let's work together through these difficult times; we've done it before and we'll do it again.
Yours faithfully,
Mrs J. Stuart