Saint Gabriel's Catholic Primary School - St. Gabriel's Catholic Primary School

Saint Gabriel’s Catholic Primary School
                                    Wilnecote Lane, Tamworth, B77 2LF Tel: 01827 213910
                                                    E-mail: office@st-gabriels.staffs.sch.uk
                                                     Website: www.st-gabriels.staffs.sch.uk

16th July 2020

Volume 11 Number 39

Dear Parents and Carers

E-Mail
Please see important e-mail sent on Tuesday 14th July 2020, which contained
arrangements for September 2020.This is the current plan – based on facts we know
now. It is a roadmap, based on what we know at this stage.

Parish Mass
Fr. Michael wants to encourage as many of you who feel safe enough to do so to
consider going back to Mass in person.
A number of Masses are now taking place on Saturday and Sunday, including outdoor
Masses. For further details please see https://www.tamworthrc.church/
Fr Michael really would love to see you there. Consider this carefully and maybe go
along.

First Holy Communion
Fr. Michael has asked us to pass on to parents of children in current Year 3 who were
due to make their First Holy Communion in May 2020 of a new provisional date and
time.
These special Masses will take place at 10.00am and 12 noon on Saturday 17th October
2020. Restrictions will probably still be in place with a limit of 5 people per family
group. More information to follow from the parish.

Confirmation
The current Year 6 children, who are part of the Confirmation group, will make their
Confirmation on Wednesday 30th September 2020 at 7pm at Sacred Heart Church.
Again more details to follow, once we have them.

THANK YOU
Thank you to so many parents who have been supportive and patient with us over the
past 14 weeks. At a time of great change to routines, you have helped so much by doing
as asked. Please continue to keep following the guidance given. Thank you.

IF IN DOUBT
If your child is in any way off colour or feeling sick, then please err on the side of
caution and do not send you child to school. This is the responsible course of action,
given the current situation and the potential dangers to children and adults.
Thank you to all those parents, who have swiftly come down to school to take children
home, where children have felt ill.
PLEASE KEEP YOUR GUARD UP AND KEEP UP THE PROTECTIVE MEASURES.
Where a high temperature, loss of taste or smell or a new continuous cough are
present, please book a test. THIS IS TO PROTECT US ALL. Tests are being turned
round in 24/48 hours at the moment as the TEST/TRACE system has established.
IF FOR WHATEVER REASON e.g. work/company asking employees and families to take
part in tests/sampling exercise for the NHS/other reasons YOUR CHILD ENDS UP
TAKING A TEST – ALWAYS LET US KNOW. Thank you.

Who SHOULD NOT attend school?
1.     Any staff, young people and children who are unwell with a new, continuous cough
       or a high temperature or a loss of, or change in normal sense of taste or smell
       (anosmia). IF A CHILD IS UNWELL, THEN PLEASE ERR ON THE SIDE OF
       CAUTION GIVEN CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES.
2.     Staff or young people and children who have someone in their household who has
       coronavirus symptoms.
Thank you to those families who have followed the NHS Test and Trace advice as
shown on our website. Please make sure you follow all such advice.

Handwashing
Make sure you wash your hands properly from first thing in the morning and through
the day. Children, parents and staff must wash their hands before leaving for school.
Children and staff will continue to wash their hands on arriving at school and at the key
points needed though the day.
It is essential that everyone washes their hands more often, using soap and water for
at least 20 seconds. Hand washing with soap employs mechanical action that loosens
bacteria and viruses from the skin, rinsing them into the drain. Drying hands
afterwards makes the skin less hospitable to the virus.
Hand sanitiser can be effective if soap is not available or the situation makes using
soap less feasible (i.e. when outside) but using hand sanitiser provides none of the
virus-destroying friction that rubbing your hands together and rinsing with water
provides.

Blue Whale Challenge
Just to make you aware, we have been advised by Lichfield & Burntwood Youth Provision
that there is a viral challenge in circulation. It involves encouraging young people, over
50 days, to complete various challenges that include self-harm. It is on multiple
platforms and users are messaged to take part and told if they don’t they will be
‘tracked down.’ It’s called the ‘blue whale challenge.’ Police are aware and we would ask
that you report anything to them on the non-emergency number 101.

Reports
This year, in line with government guidance, we haven’t sent out physical copies of
reports. Reports have been sent out via e-mail to one preferred e-mail address per
child. The physical sending of reports took place last week by e-mail.
If you haven’t received your child’s report then please e-mail the school at
office@st-gabriels.staffs.sch.uk with your 1 preferred email address. Until we
have your preferred e-mail address we cannot send your child's report due
to GDPR regulations. Thank you.

Videos – “Meet the new Teacher”
Please have a look at the school website. You will find a short video message, compiled
by each teacher regarding next year. Please watch it with your child. You will find
these videos in the “Year Group” section. We hope that families will find it useful and
reassuring.
My thanks to all the teachers for their work in preparing. Thanks also to Charis Collier,
one of our past pupils, for fine tuning and sharpening the production quality.

Summer Food Vouchers
The Government’s recent decision to launch a ‘Covid Summer Food Fund’ will mean that
our families who are currently eligible for Free School Meals will receive food vouchers
worth £15 per week per child over the school summer holidays. This will replace the
weekly hampers currently being provided.

Message from the kitchen
From September we will be offering some hot options for the grab and go lunches. The
menu for the first week back is as follows:
Wednesday 2nd September           Ham Sandwich
               rd
Thursday 3 September              Cheese Sandwich
          th
Friday 4 September                Fish and Chips
More hot options will be on offer the week commencing Monday 7th September – more
information to follow. Thank you.

Clothed in Kindness – Uniform Bank
Clothed in Kindness is a project run by the Peel Parishes to provide free school uniform
for families in need across Tamworth. As a result of the Coronavirus pandemic,
increasingly more families are facing financial difficulties because of the impact of the
virus on the economy. Buying a new school uniform is expensive at the best of times,
some families may struggle with this expense even more so this year. Peel Parishes are
inviting the people of Tamworth to support this project by either purchasing and giving
new items of school uniform or by donating pre-loved school uniform that has plenty of
life left in it.
If you are interested in donating uniform more information can be found at
https://www.peelparishes.org/clothed-in-kindness

Join the Silly Squad! – Summer Reading Challenge 2020

This year, Silly Squad, the Summer Reading Challenge 2020, will celebrate funny books,
happiness and laughter. Children taking part in the Challenge will join the Silly Squad, an
adventurous team of animals who love to have a laugh and get stuck in to all different
kinds of funny books!
The 2020 Challenge will feature bespoke artwork from award-winning children's author
and illustrator Laura Ellen Anderson (Amelia Fang; Evil Emperor Penguin; I Don't Want
Curly Hair). The Silly Squad summer campaign will see us working with ambassadors to
promote a new digital challenge platform to reach children across the nation. The
website features video content, games, quizzes and digital and downloadable activities
to incentivise and encourage children to take part in the Challenge at home.
The Summer Reading Challenge is a great way of keeping your child engaged with
reading – please do sign up at www.sillysquad.org.uk to join the Squad!

Parking at Belgrave Club
Belgrave Club car park continues to be available for parents/guardians of children in
school. A reminder to please adhere to the following:
•      Please ensure that parking passes are clearly displayed - the club will be
       carrying out random checks.
•      Please park in the designated parking spaces (not on yellow lines, hatched areas
       or in front of the bottle banks),
•      Adhere to the 5mph speed limit and follow the one way system.
•      When parking, please avoid hitting the perimeter fence
•      All rubbish and dirty nappies should be taken away and disposed of properly – no
       rubbish should be left in the car park.
•      There is CCTV on the premises and this is used.
Abuse of any kind towards the committee, staff and members of the club will not be
tolerated and in any instance would be dealt with by the police.
We value this facility and respectfully request that parents/guardians park
considerately and adhere to the above.

Parking September 2020 - We have been informed that from September 2020 the
club will continue to offer the facility of parking for parents/guardians. Please be
aware that the cost for use of the car park remains at £5.00, per car, for the school
year (club members are free – see below). Parking permits must be clearly displayed at
all times. Parents/guardians who are club members are asked to collect their passes
from the club during opening times.
Parking permits will be available from the school office in due course. We will keep you
updated and provide further information as soon as we can. PLEASE DO NOT COME
TO THE SCHOOL OFFICE TO PURCHASE PASSES UNTIL NOTIFIED. Thank you.

Thank you
On behalf of all the staff, thank you sincerely for gifts, cards and e-mails sent in
recently.
Your words of appreciation are gratefully received. Thank you so much.

Prayer of Thanks
Even in these toughest and strangest of times, it is important to think about what we
have….and to give thanks for it.

Lord, thank you
Thank you for my children. Let me make time, to talk with them, to laugh with them, to
tell them I love them,
Thank you for the passer by, whose smile or gesture or quiet “hello” lifted my spirits.
Thank you for my life, the great gift I have been given.
I’ll try to remember to stop and think each morning how grateful I should be.
Amen

Wishing everyone a safe and healthy time ahead…..whatever you may be doing.

God Bless

Yours sincerely

John P Hayes
Headteacher