Dear parents/carers and students
Wearing of face masks
Following the government advice today, Headteachers/Principals have the discretion to either allow or not allow the use of face masks within their school. The scientific guidance is very clear, the risk of young people spreading the infection is extremely low between themselves.
However, I am going to recommend the optional wearing of face masks for pupils when they are moving around the premises and during social times. Please note that using public transport or car sharing requires face masks to be worn. Also, it is mandatory to wear a face mask when entering a shop, when using other facilities or inside a library. Members of staff will be provided with face shield, but they can wear these at their discretion in their classroom and when travelling across the school campus.
Please note that face masks must be plain with no logos, or other features on them. We will refuse the wearing of face masks, that extend their purpose from being an additional safety precaution, to a glorified fashion statement. It is vital that face coverings are worn correctly and that clear instructions are followed by clicking on the link here (How to put on, remove, store and dispose of face coverings) in all of the circumstances above, to avoid inadvertently increasing the low risks of transmission.
If students are found to be taking advantage of wearing face masks between lessons such as, but not exclusively, to disguise themselves, or their behaviours, then they will lose the right to wear them between lessons and social times.
Face masks will not be permitted to be worn in classrooms.
Face masks will not be necessary in the classroom even where social distancing is not possible. Face masks can have a negative impact on learning and teaching and so their use in the classroom should be avoided in relation to government advice which we are following. We have worked hard to complete a risk assessment for minimising risk to those using the school and this has been approved by the local authority and other scrutiny committees.
Mr Erwin, Principal.
