Returning to Education in January 2021 Guidelines - Suffolk One

Returning to Education in January 2021 Guidelines
We hope that you have enjoyed a peaceful and relaxing Christmas break.

Following the DfE announcement on Wednesday 30th December, the Senior
Leadership Team at One Sixth Form College has met to discuss the further
implications for our students. Further to these discussions, the pertinent points
in Gavin Williamson’s statement are itemised below:

   •   The magnificent efforts of all the leaders, teachers and staff in all of our
       schools, colleges have ensured that settings are as safe and COVID-19
       secure as possible but we must always act swiftly when circumstances
       change. The evidence about the new Covid variant and rising infection
       rates have required some immediate adjustment to our plans for the new
       term.
   •   This is of course a rapidly shifting situation but some things remain
       constant: we continue to act to preserve lives and the NHS and we
       continue to protect education by putting children first. Above all our
       response is proportionate to the risk at hand and makes every use of the
       contingency framework that we put in place earlier this year.
          o Accordingly, we will be opening the majority of primary schools, as
              planned, on Monday 4th January.
          o We have already announced our intention for a staggered return to
              education this term for secondary-age pupils and those in colleges.

   •   Because the Covid infection rate is particularly high among this age group,
       we are going to allow more time so that every school and college is able
       to fully roll out mass testing of all pupils and students. I would like to
       thank school leaders and staff for all their ongoing work in preparing for
       this.
   •   This kind of mass testing will help protect not just children and young
       people, it will benefit everyone in the community because it will break the
       chains of transmission that are making infection rates shoot up. This in
       turn will make it safer for more children to physically return to school.
           o All pupils in exam years are to return during the week beginning
               the 11th January, with all secondary schools and college students
               returning full time on the 18th January.
           o During the first week of term - on or after the 4th of January -
               secondary schools and colleges will prepare to test as many staff
               and students as possible, and will only be open to vulnerable
               children or the children of critical workers.
           o The 1,500 military personnel committed to supporting schools and
               colleges will remain on task, providing virtual training and advice on
               establishing the testing process, with teams on standby to provide
               in-person support if required by schools. Testing will then begin the
               following week in earnest, with those who are in exam years at the
               head of the queue. This is in preparation for the full return of all
               year groups on the 18th of January in most areas.

o   To allow this focus on establishing testing, throughout the first
              week of term, exam year groups will continue to have lessons
              remotely in line with what they would receive in class, and only
              vulnerable children and children of critical workers and those sitting
              vocational exams will have face-to-face teaching.

Essentially, we will follow the following guidance:

   •   Schools: return in January 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Main points:

The main points for this guidance are:

   •   priorities for the return of students
   •   asymptomatic testing for coronavirus (COVID-19)

Since the start of the academic year, the continuing efforts of leaders, teachers
and staff across education and childcare have ensured that settings remain as
safe and COVID-secure as possible.

To support public health efforts during the return to education in January 2021,
colleges in England will be able to offer staff and students access to additional
coronavirus (COVID-19) testing from the first week of January. This will help
deliver the national priority of keeping as many students and teachers as
possible in education beyond the start of term, minimising the spread of the
virus and disruption caused by coronavirus (COVID-19) cases arising in
education settings.

Younger students in colleges are being prioritised for testing, in response to the
recent higher rates of coronavirus (COVID-19) infection.

All colleges will be offered the opportunity to test their students, with time to
prepare from the week commencing 4 January 2021 and reaching as many as
possible over the week of 11 January 2021. The government will encourage as
many as possible to take up the offer.

This guidance sets out the exceptional measures to be put in place at the start of
the new year.

Already, the implementation of safety measures and the system of controls in
place in education settings creates an inherently safer environment for children,
young people and staff, in which PHE and DHSC have confirmed the risk of
transmission of infection is substantially reduced. Testing beginning week
commencing 4 January will help to identify asymptomatic cases more quickly.
This will avoid individuals carrying the infection unknowingly.

Rapidly identifying and containing any asymptomatic cases through this testing
programme will align with the rapid coronavirus testing that the government is
putting in place from the start of the spring term. Coronavirus (COVID-19)
asymptomatic testing in schools and colleges guidance provides more detail.

To manage transmission of the virus we are:

   1. supporting colleges to set up a regular testing programme to test staff
      and the close contacts of staff and students who test positive for the virus
   2. reducing the number of students in colleges for the week commencing 4
      January, with vulnerable young people, those due to take public exams
      and assessments and other priority groups attending, with wider exam
      cohorts prioritised for remote learning
   3. giving colleges access to help, support and facilities to test as many
      students as possible as they resume face-to-face education

Asymptomatic testing is strongly encouraged for all 16 to 19 year old students.
From 18 January normal timetabled delivery should begin for all students, who
will not need to have had a test in order to return.

The DfE has also published the infographic below, setting out how the start of
term will work for different groups:

Summary of key points:

  1. Schools with secondary-age pupils are asked to prepare for a
     phased start back to planned on-site provision to allow for these
     pupils to be tested .This should involve:

    •   full-time on-site provision from the first day of term for all vulnerable
        children and young people, and the children of critical workers
    •   preparation in the week commencing 4 January so that as many
        secondary-age pupils and staff as possible being can be offered 2
        lateral flow device tests, , prioritising staff, vulnerable children, the
        children of critical workers and pupils in exam year groups
                  •    BTEC assessments will proceed as planned during the week
                       commencing 4 January,
                  •    remote education being prioritised for pupils in exam year
                       groups (primarily year 13) during the week commencing 4
                       January,
                  •    remote education being provided for all other pupils from 11
                       January, with remote education resources shared with these
                       students week commencing 4 January,
                  •    all pupils back in school for face-to-face education on by 18
                       January.
    •   Pupils prioritised for on-site provision should be kept in consistent
        bubbles in the week commencing 4 and 11 January until the rest of
        their year group returns to normal on-site provision. Outside of school,
        they should continue to adhere to local tier restrictions.

  2. Special schools and colleges have some flexibility on face-to-face
     attendance of pupils and students in the first week of term to
     enable them to appropriately mobilise the testing programme.

  3. Vulnerable children and young people include those who:

    •   are assessed as being in need under section 17 of the Children Act
        1989, including children and young people who have a child in need
        plan, a child protection plan or who are a looked-after child
    •   have an education, health and care (EHC) plan
    •   have been identified as otherwise vulnerable by educational providers
        or local authorities (including children's social care services), and who
        could therefore benefit from continued full-time attendance, this might
        include:
              •       children and young people on the edge of receiving support
                      from children's social care services or in the process of being
                      referred to children's services
              •       adopted children or children on a special guardianship order
              •       those at risk of becoming NEET ('not in employment,
                      education or training')
              •       those living in temporary accommodation

•       those who are young carers
               •       those who may have difficulty engaging with remote education
                       at home (for example, due to a lack of devices or quiet space
                       to study)
               •       care leavers
               •       other children and young people at the provider and local
                       authority's discretion including pupils who need to attend to
                       receive support or manage risks to their mental health

Key points for One Sixth Form College from Monday 4th January:

Week               Staggered return to education

04/01/21 –         •    BTEC/RSL/CTEC/IMI exams to proceed as scheduled.
08/01/21                    o Pupils prioritised for on-site provision will be kept in
                               consistent bubbles in the week commencing 4 and 11
                               January until the rest of their year group returns to
                               normal on-site provision.
                            o We will maintain our Covid-secure protocols that are
                               already in place. Outside of college, they should
                               continue to adhere to local tier restrictions.
                   •    All students except Foundation Learning, vulnerable and
                        key worker categories working from home.
                            o Full-time remote education, following the college
                               timetable and as close as possible to that which a
                               student would get in class, prioritised for exam
                               groups (as per this list).
                            o Remote education for all other Yr12 students.

11/01/21 –         •    BTEC/RSL/CTEC/IMI exams to proceed as scheduled.
15/01/21           •    Testing of students, prioritising exam groups and
                        vulnerable & critical worker categories (here).
                   •    Phased return of exam group students in college for face-
                        to-face teaching (as per this list) (in conjunction with C-19
                        testing).
                   •    Full-time remote education, as close as possible to that
                        which a student would receive in class for Yr12 students.

18/01/21 –         •    BTEC/RSL/CTEC/IMI exams to proceed as scheduled.
                   •    Phased return of all other students in college for face-to-
                        face teaching (in conjunction with C-19 testing).

   •   Students who will need a device to access their online learning will come
       into College to collect it from 1pm onwards on Monday 4th January –
       students who need them for Monday AM can use a LRC desktop for the
       first lesson until a laptop/chrome book is available for them.

Regarding C-19 testing, details have been supplied and planning is underway:

Summary:

   1. Introduction to rapid, asymptomatic testing for schools and
      colleges - Week 1-2 Initial Testing from week beginning 4 January

   •   All schools and colleges with secondary-age pupils and students (including
       special schools and alternative provision) will be offered the opportunity to
       test all staff and students.
   •   Planning support for schools and colleges will be provided. The testing
       workforce will be made up of paid agency staff, volunteers or school and
       college workforces, to be determined by the individual school or college.
   •   Training will be provided, and schools and colleges will receive funding to
       help them with testing costs.
   •   Pupils and students will be offered two Lateral Flow Device (LFD) rapid
       tests spaced three to five days apart (minimum 3 days).
   •   The workforce will be offered one test in the first week and weekly
       thereafter as part of the longer-term routine testing programme.
   •   The LFDs provided to schools and colleges are simple to use (young
       people can swab themselves, with a trained person supervising them).
       They produce a result in around 30 minutes.
   •   Anyone with a positive result will need to leave school/college, take a
       confirmatory Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) test and follow the self-
       isolation guidelines (currently 10 days).

   2. Ongoing Routine Testing for Schools and Colleges

   •   This approach will allow all those (pupils, students and staff) who are in
       close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 to
       return to school/college if they agree to be tested for 7 days following
       their last contact with a positive case.
   •   If at any point a member of staff, pupil or student or student tests
       positive, they will need to leave school or college, take a confirmatory PCR
       test and follow the isolation guidelines.
   •   This is a phased approach, starting with secondary schools and colleges
       (staff, pupils and students in year 7 and older), with plans to extend to
       primary schools thereafter.
   •   We will provide separate guidance on SEND for pupils, students and
       educational settings.

Whilst we appreciate that some may have concerns about their return to college,
rest assured that your safety and well-being - and that of the entire community
at ONE - is of paramount importance. We will continue to implement the Covid-
secure measures that we have established since March 2020 to minimise the risk
of infection and to protect the NHS. Furthermore, we will continue to review our
mitigations and controls in order to enhance the protection of our staff and
students in line with Government advice and guidance.

The introduction of Covid testing is the next step in ensuring that we play our
part, as described below:

   •   Rapidly identifying and containing any asymptomatic cases through this
       testing programme will contribute to public health efforts and support the
       effectiveness of the regular rapid testing programme that schools with
       secondary-age pupils are being supported to set up and deliver once this
       initial testing is concluded. The coronavirus (COVID-19) asymptomatic
       testing in schools and colleges guidance provides more detail. This will
       enable school staff to be tested weekly, as well as daily testing of both
       staff and pupils who are close contacts of a positive case, to avoid the
       need for self-isolation.
   •   Our approach is intended to minimise the impacts of coronavirus (COVID-
       19) in education beyond the start of term and to support all pupils
       attending education. Being in education is vital for children's development
       and wellbeing. Time spent out of settings is detrimental to children's
       learning, development and wellbeing, particularly for disadvantaged
       children. That is why, beyond this exceptional period, it continues to be
       our aim that all pupils, in all year groups, attend school full-time. We are
       clear that next summer’s exams will go ahead as they are the best form of
       assessment.
   •   The risk to children themselves of becoming severely ill from coronavirus
       (COVID-19) remains very low. For the vast majority of children, the
       benefits of being back in the classroom far outweigh the low risk from
       coronavirus (COVID-19) and schools can take action to reduce risks still
       further.
   •   In relation to working in schools, while it is not possible to ensure a totally
       risk-free environment, there is no evidence that children transmit the
       disease any more than adults, and no evidence that staff in education
       settings are at any greater risk of fatal outcomes than many other
       occupations.

We look forward to welcoming you back to college and send our warmest wishes
for a happy and healthy 2021.

Senior Leadership Team – One Sixth Form College