www.derbyshire.gov.uk/coronavirus ** SCHOOL IS CLOSED FROM 20TH MARCH 2020 IN LINE WITH GOVERNMENT ADVICE** 18th March 2020 Dear Parents As a school, the health and well-being of our children, staff and families is always our main priority.  I’d like to reassure you that we are closely monitoring the Coronavirus as it unfolds and are continuing to adapt, following daily guidance from the Department for Education, to help keep everyone as safe as possible. We understand that some of our families have members who have underlying health issues and we appreciate that these must be very difficult times as you self-isolate.  If there’s anything you need from school, please don’t hesitate to ask.  Our thoughts go out to anyone who has been personally impacted, and we hope that you and your families are safe and well. For the moment, the school is open, and we’ve implemented additional precautions as we continue to closely monitor the situation.  It goes without saying, that we have a brilliant staff team, who all work well together and support each other so that they can continue providing as best they can for the children, in challenging and uncertain circumstances. We have three events happening over the next two weeks – Class C assembly, Class B production and the zoo trip.  We will be making informed decisions about these events and will contact you accordingly.  Please keep Dojo notifications on, so that the information reaches you. For children in our nursery, the following information has been received, which you may already be aware of: the Chancellor has confirmed the Government will continue to pay for free early years entitlement places even if settings are closed on the advice of Public Health England or children are not able to attend due to coronavirus. We expect local authorities to follow the Department’s position, and to continue early entitlements funding for all childminders, schools and nurseries. We will not be asking for funding back from local authorities. Thank you for your patience and understanding during these difficult times.  Please get in touch if you feel there’s anything we can help with. Yours sincerely   Carol Taylor Headteacher