Dear Parent/Carer(s) 

I hope you are well. As you will be aware, we move into a further set of restrictions as a nation tomorrow. The government have made it clear that they expect schools to continue to remain open as normal, and we continue to be committed to this. I know that some parents, carers, and students will be concerned about the school remaining open, and I would like to reassure parents and carers of our current provision to make the College as safe as possible.  

·       Our main aim is to keep our corridors as empty as possible. The Ring Road ensures that Year 7-10 students spend the majority of time outside of the school building, and enter the building under staff supervision. This has worked well and allowed plenty of space for Year 11 pupils and members of staff to move inside.  

·         We have sanitiser available around the school, and we expect this to be used by all students. 

·         We have set up each classroom to be as safe as possible, with maximum ventilation and a space for staff to remain two metres from students. 

·         We have enhanced our cleaning routine, and during the half term break we once again had the building fogged (a cleaning procedure that supports our hygiene measures). 

·         We have split lunchtimes and breaks, which has allowed us to keep year groups in their year group bubbles. 

Face coverings

Following a review, we have decided that we will ask students and members of staff to wear face coverings when inside the building during ‘changeover times’. This is when students enter and exit the building to access their lessons or the toilets. This means that Year 11 pupils will need to wear a face covering when they are standing up or moving around inside the building. Staff will be wearing face coverings during these changeover times and during breaks and lunchtimes, when they are in areas with students. Students and staff are not required to wear face coverings during lessons. 

We are implementing this additional precaution because there are certain areas within the school building that become congested and, given the current situation, we want to add another layer of safety. We do not anticipate that students will be wearing masks for long periods of time. If you would like your child to be on the face covering exemption list, please let Mrs Cooper know via vcooper@penryn-college.cornwall.sch.uk and we will arrange a card system. 

We will brief all students during period one on Friday morning, and the new guidance will come into action on Monday 9 November. Please help us by ensuring that students arrive at school equipped with a face covering each day. 

Department for Education advice 

The Department for Education advice has been amended today to cover children in the clinically extremely vulnerable category. The guidance states: ‘Those children whose doctors have confirmed they are still clinically extremely vulnerable are advised not to attend school while this advice is in place. Your school will make appropriate arrangements for you to continue your education at home. Children who live with someone who is clinically extremely vulnerable, but who are not clinically extremely vulnerable themselves should still attend school.’ 

If this applies to your child, please contact reception on 01326 372379 or vcooper@penryn-college.cornwall.sch.uk and a member of the medical team will get back to you. 

Thank you 

Finally, thank you for your support, it has been remarkable, as has the work of staff and students. This collective effort will help us get through the next period of restrictions. 

Paul Walker 

Headteacher