Latest News | Croesty Primary School

COVID-19 Update

Thu 19 Mar 2020 School

COVID-19 Update 19/03/20

Dear Parent/Carer,

I am writing to confirm that all schools in Wales will close on Friday 20^th March at 3:15 pm as a result of the Covid-19 Pandemic. The full written statement from Welsh Government can be found using this link:

https://gov.wales/statement-minster-education-kirsty-williams-school-closures-wales

As we find out more with regards to what role schools and school staff will play in supporting other sectors, I will continue to update you at every point moving forward. Please ensure that you have access to your school email account, our school website – www.croestyprimaryschool.co.uk and your child’s Hwb email and password.

Pupils’ home learning plan

It is clear now that schools will be closed for some time and our staff have been working hard this week to set up opportunities for the continued access to learning on line for our children during the closure. Each year group will have an elearning classroom on hwb which will be updated on a daily basis with engaging learning activities which will be appropriate to move your child’s learning on. At this stage I would familiarise yourself with the help video that we have posted on our web site if your child is unfamiliar with logging on at home. This can be found from the top drop down menu: Parents – Learning during School Closure. We will email everyone when the elearning classrooms are ready to access. There will also be an elearning classroom for children who receive additional support from Mrs Williams and we strongly encourage children with Lexia or Mathletics accounts to continue working through their programmes. Children on Lexia should complete 3x 20 minute sessions each week.

We will be sending a copy of your child’s hwb email and password home with them on Friday together with their mid- term report. For those not present on Friday we will endeavour to send out the key log in details to your child.

Whilst this extended period of absence presents a challenge, it also provides a real opportunity and time to spend on really important aspects of educational development and life skills more generally. For these reasons, we would really like to emphasise the importance of taking pride in the work completed. We would also welcome evidence of completed work although this is not an expectation. Class teachers will endeavour to provide feedback on any work submitted if they’re able to do so.

Many thanks for your continued support and cooperation

Kind regards

Mr M Kaye Headteacher & the Staff at Croesty Primary School

Learning from home during a school closure

Wed 18 Mar 2020 School

We have put an access video to help you use our online learning classrooms during a school closure. You'll find this under the Parents Drop Down Menu.

We will ensure that all children have their passwords and emails for Hwb on Friday together with their mid term reports.

We will notify you when lessons are online for your child to use.

Coronavirus School Update - 14 days Self -Isolation

Wed 18 Mar 2020 School

If someone in your house hold becomes symptomatic of coronavirus: with a new dry cough, a high temperature and headaches then everyone in the household should self- isolate for 14 days.

You will need to notify us in school if children are not attending because of self-isolation and must contact us on the first day, the first day of each subsequent week and on the 13^th day prior to your child returning to school to confirm that they are fit and well and have no remaining symptoms. If your child has not made a full recovery they should not return to school.

If your child is currently off school on self-isolation they cannot return to school before 14 days.

Some families are keeping children off school who are perfectly well but there is a health concern with another family member. These decisions are taken by you as a family. In such cases we advise that you contact us and explain your concern. We can then make a note on your child’s attendance record. We will ask you to then contact the school at the beginning of each week to confirm that your child is safe.

Nearly all appointments and visits to school by outside agencies have been cancelled. Such agencies include: Early Help, Barnardos, Access & Inclusion, The Educational Psychology Service and School Nurse etc. If you have an appointment expect it to be cancelled.

The school is also now cancelling any non-critical meetings with parents and we will not be offering any new appointments for the foreseeable future. We ask that you don’t gather for any length of time on the yard at the end of the day and leave the premises promptly.

In school we are currently preparing to deliver learning via the Hwb digital Learning Platform so that our children can access learning activities online from home. This will be important if schools are directed to close in the future. We will provide further information on home learning in due course.

After School Clubs Notice 15-03-20

Sun 15 Mar 2020 School

All of our after school clubs are now cancelled until after the Easter Holidays. We will arrange the return of payments for Superstars Club for the sessions that will not now be run.

Coronavirus Update 13-03-2020

Fri 13 Mar 2020 School

Dear Parent/Carer

Coronavirus (Covid-19)

Bridgend County Borough Council’s primary concern is for the safety of children in our schools and we will continue to act in their best interests.

While the situation regarding coronavirus is developing quickly, please be assured that the local authority is working closely with schools, Public Health Wales and Welsh Government in order to implement any necessary measures to protect pupils, staff and visitors from the spread of coronavirus.

While there are currently no identified cases in Bridgend, your child’s school is following specific advice issued by Welsh Government in relation to the management of coronavirus in schools.

National advice, as of today (12 March 2020), remains very much a case of ‘business as usual’, but I wanted to reassure you that the local authority is closely monitoring developments, both locally and nationally. In this respect, the local authority is currently developing a strategy to ensure that effective plans and resources are in place to respond appropriately to this changing situation.

For information, there is a range of advice available to the public on the Public Health Wales, Welsh Government and UK Government websites in relation to coronavirus.

In addition, more specific advice for parents and carers can be found on the Public Health Wales website and I would encourage you to access this routinely. Further general advice in relation to travel to or from the UK can also be found on the website of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).

In the meantime, your support as parents/carers is critical to our strategy to fight the spread of coronavirus. I can only reiterate that the best way to prevent infection is to avoid being exposed to the virus through good hygiene.

Therefore, please advise your child to wash their hands:

before leaving home;
on arrival at school;
after using the toilet;
before food preparation;
after breaks and sporting activities;
before eating any food, including snacks;
before leaving school; and
on returning home from school.

Please also advise your children to:

avoid touching their eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands; and
avoid close contact with people who are unwell.

If you are worried that your child may be symptomatic for coronavirus, please call NHS Direct Wales on 0845 46 47 or 111. Do not go directly to your GP or other healthcare environment.

Please be assured once again that the local authority is taking all possible steps to respond to this situation.

Yours sincerely

L. I. Harvey

Lindsay Iorwerth Harvey (Mr)
Corporate Director – Education and Family Support

Please note:

Reliable information about the education status in Bridgend County Borough Council will come directly from Bridgend County Borough Council or through Croesty Primary School via email, as a hard copy letter or published on our website.

From Monday 16^th March 2020

All school trips are suspended for the foreseeable future
There are to be no large gatherings in primary schools so for Croesty Primary School the following events will not now take place:

All Parent/ Teacher Consultations next week

Any concerts eg the Mother’s Day Concert planned for (23/03/20), The Junior Youth Speaks Competition (18/03/20) and the Pencoed Comprehensive Showcase Event (31/03/20)

Croesty Primary School will not be running any further Reading Café’s or Learning and Play Groups. All invites for parents to attend our assemblies are also cancelled.

All schools in Bridgend have received the same advice and the above steps will be taken by every school.

Eisteddfod 2020

Fri 06 Mar 2020 Mrs John

Llongyfarchiadau to everyone that performed, wrote, drew, painted and danced in our Eisteddfod. What talented children we have in Croesty! Criw Cymraeg did an amazing job leading the Eisteddfod and scoring today. Cennin retained the Eisteddfod Cup this year but it was a very close competition!