Dear SHS Community
I know this is a difficult and scary time for lots of people – children and adults alike. Everyone has lots of questions and rightly so. There are 3 questions that seem to be the biggest concerns. I hope the documents below will help with these questions.
What are the risks to our children, staff and what can Stretford High School do about it? Read our SHS School Risk Assessment here
What has Stretford High School done so far and what are you going to do? Read our Coronavirus Safety Plan here
What are the government doing to help and protect us?
Government coronavirus action plan
The government coronavirus action plan sets out what the UK has done to tackle coronavirus (COVID-19), and what we plan to do next.
The situation is constantly reviewed and action informed by expert science and advice, guided by the Chief Medical Officer and the Chief Scientific Adviser.
The action plan can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-action-plan
Action plan recap
The action plan sets out a four-phased approach in response to coronavirus – Contain, Delay, Mitigate, and Research, based on the latest scientific evidence.
The current emphasis is on the Contain and Research phases, however planning for Delay and Mitigation is already in train.
As part of the Contain phase, we have been providing advice to educational settings in England. We also launched a DfE helpline to manage the flow of increasing queries, from providers parents and young people.
How to wash your hands properly
Wash your hands more often for 20 seconds with soap and hot water.
Watch this short NHS film for guidance:
Teach young children how to wash their hands with the NHS handwashing song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9VjeIWLnEg
Public Health England recommends that in addition to handwashing before eating, and after coughing and sneezing, everyone should also wash hands after using toilets and travelling on public transport.
Department for Education coronavirus helpline
The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Email: [email protected]
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)
If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UKPRN) available when calling the helpline.
Where to find the latest information
Updates on COVID-19:
https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
Guidance for educational settings:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19
Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus
Educational resources:
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/101-coronavirus-/resources
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/schools
Latest Department for Education information:
https://twitter.com/educationgovuk
https://www.facebook.com/educationgovuk/
Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel advice
As of 10 March, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated advice about travel to Italy. The FCO is currently advising:
-against all but essential travel to Italy
-against all travel to Hubei Province, in China
-against all but essential travel to the rest of mainland China
-against all travel to the cities of Daegu, Cheongdo and Gyeongsan in South Korea
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is not currently advising against travel to any other country/territory as a result of COVID-19.
The latest travel advice can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus
Updated advice for travellers returning from Italy
On 10 March, Public Health England updated its travel advice for travellers returning from Italy. The advice can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public
Further information on what you should do if you are asked to self-isolate can be found here:
https://publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2020/02/20/what-is-self-isolation-and-why-is-it-important/
The importance of hygiene
Personal hygiene is the most important way we can tackle COVID-19, especially washing hands more; and the catch it, bin it, kill it strategy for those with coughs and sneezes.
How to wash your hands properly
Wash your hands more often for 20 seconds with soap and hot water.
Watch this short NHS film for guidance:
Teach young children how to wash their hands with the NHS handwashing song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S9VjeIWLnEg
Public Health England recommends that in addition to handwashing before eating, and after coughing and sneezing, everyone should also wash hands after using toilets and travelling on public transport.
Educational resources
The e-Bug project is led by Public Health England and has a dedicated webpage for learning resources on hand washing and respiratory hygiene.
Resources are currently available for KS1, KS2 and KS3 and can be used in various settings including schools:
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/schools
Department for Education coronavirus helpline
The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Email: [email protected]
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)
If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UKPRN) available when calling the helpline.
Where to find the latest information
Updates on COVID-19:
https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
Guidance for educational settings:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19
Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus
Educational resources:
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/101-coronavirus-/resources
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/schools
Latest Department for Education information:
https://twitter.com/educationgovuk
https://www.facebook.com/educationgovuk/
Government coronavirus action plan
Yesterday, the Prime Minister confirmed that the government’s response to COVID-19 remains in the Contain phase – the first phase in the government’s coronavirus action plan.
The coronavirus action plan was launched last week. This document sets out what we have done to tackle coronavirus (COVID-19), and what it plans to do next, depending upon the course the current coronavirus outbreak takes.
The action plan can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-action-plan
Advice from Public Health England continues to be for education and children’s social care settings to remain open, unless advised otherwise. We are continually reviewing how best to support all educational settings and the impact of any measures will be considered carefully before being implemented.
Updated travel advice for travellers returning from Italy
Yesterday, Public Health England updated their travel advice, recommending that anyone returning from Italy should self-isolate, even if you do not have any symptoms. If you do develop symptoms, call NHS 111.
The latest travel guidance can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public
Further information on what you should do if you are asked to self-isolate can be found here:
https://publichealthmatters.blog.gov.uk/2020/02/20/what-is-self-isolation-and-why-is-it-important/
The importance of hygiene
Personal hygiene is the most important way we can tackle COVID-19, especially washing hands more; and the catch it, bin it, kill it strategy for those with coughs and sneezes.
Wash your hands more often for 20 seconds with soap and hot water
In addition to handwashing before eating, and after coughing and sneezing, both children and staff should also wash hands after using toilets and travelling on public transport.
Public Health England has a dedicated webpage with a range of posters and digital materials at:
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/101-coronavirus-/resources
Sign up is quick, free and means you will be alerted as more resources are made available.
Department for Education coronavirus helpline
The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is now available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care. Staff, parents and young people can contact this helpline as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Email: [email protected]
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)
If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UKPRN) available when calling the helpline.
Where to find the latest information
Updates on COVID-19:
https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
Guidance for educational settings:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19
Travel advice for those travelling and living overseas:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/travel-advice-novel-coronavirus
Educational resources
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/101-coronavirus-/resources
https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/schools
Latest Department for Education information:
https://twitter.com/educationgovuk
https://www.facebook.com/educationgovuk/
We are continuing to receive regular updates and advice regarding the Covid-19 virus.
The following link is useful to assist schools and other educational settings in providing advice for pupils, students, staff and parents or carers.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-educational-settings-about-covid-19
You should also use the dedicated helpline for assistance as follows:
Phone: 0800 046 8687
Email: [email protected]
Opening hours: 8am to 6pm (Monday to Friday)
Public Health England has released advice on the coronavirus for places of education.
