Dear Parents/Carers,
You may be aware that, as of Saturday 31st October, Oxford City will be entering Tier 2 (high alert) of restrictions. This does not directly impact the school or the running of the school as the school is not situated in the Oxford City area. Indirectly however, there may be families and members of staff that do live in the Oxford City area and Botley is obviously a very close neighbour of the district. Given that, I thought that our community would want further information on how this may, or may not impact us at Botley School. The following summary information has been provided by Oxfordshire County Council:
Can I travel outside the area for work or school?
Yes. People living inside and outside of high level areas can continue to travel for work or school.
How do the changes affect schools, colleges and early years settings?
Oxfordshire’s schools, colleges and early year settings will remain open; they are following Public Health England and Department for Education guidance on keeping students and staff safe.
Does my child need to wear a face covering at school?
Face coverings should be worn in secondary schools by staff, visitors and students when moving around school in corridors and communal areas where social distancing is difficult. It will not usually be necessary to wear face coverings in the classroom, where protective measures already mean the risks are lower, and where they may inhibit teaching and learning.
Does my child need to wear a face covering on the school bus?
All children over the age of 11 should wear a face covering on council-provided transport from home to school, unless they have specific medical conditions.
If you wish to find further information on the Tier 2 High Alert for Oxford City, please follow these links:
http://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/council/coronavirus-covid-19/oxford-high-alert-level
What this change to the Oxford City Status demonstrates is the continued need for us all to remain highly vigilant in following the preventative measures we already have in place at Botley School. The staff and adults on site will continue to support each other, our parents and pupils in adhering to our school risk assessment at all times. We have so far been fortunate that the school community has not been hit by an outbreak of positive tests amongst the staff or pupils and, by keeping strictly to our protocols for minimising risk, we hope that this will remain the case in the coming months.
Thank you for your continued support
Mrs Reid