Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.
Monday 28th September 2020
Dear Parents and Carers
Further to my letter last week sharing the sad news about Mr. Huw Wright, I am writing to inform you that the school will be closed for an inset day on Friday 9th October 2020.
During this inset day staff will engage in Professional Learning around the Recovery and Reconnection curriculum and the implementation of the Curriculum for Wales at Ysgol Bryn Castell. As part of the schedule for the day, staff will have an early lunch session for one-hour to enable them to attend the funeral of Mr. Huw Wright.
Your support and understanding to allow the school community to grieve for a member of staff, colleague and friend has been overwhelming and we welcome you to join with the school community in sending our love and sympathy to Huw’s family at this difficult time.
We recognise that this sad event may result in a range of emotions for our young people who may already be finding the transition period to full school reopening and the Covid-19 pandemic challenging and unsettling. We would encourage you to reach out and seek support if you or your child are finding things difficult by contacting one of the following services or YBC during school opening hours;
The school continues to offer support for all members of our YBC family as we start to understand and accept this tragic news.
Many thanks for your messages of support,
Helen
Helen Ridout
Headteacher
Monday 21st September 2020
Dear Parents and Carers
I am writing to inform you of the sad news that one of our Teachers, Mr Huw Wright, sadly died on Tuesday 15th September and I would welcome you to join with the school community in sending our love and sympathy to Huw’s family at this difficult time.
Huw had recently started a sabbatical scheme called ‘Welsh in a year’ with Cardiff University through the Welsh Government, but has been a big part of our school community and YBC family prior to that, teaching pupils within Key Stages 3, 4 and Post-16 over the last 3 years.
As you can imagine, the school community and YBC family have an incredibly challenging journey ahead in terms of managing the impact on our very special learners at the school, alongside grieving for a member of staff, colleague and friend. We do have support systems in-place in the school and will continue to support all members of our YBC family as we start to understand and accept this tragic news.
The school became aware of this information last week but in-line with the wishes of Huw’s family we were unfortunately unable to share this information with you all. We will be informing pupils about this sad event during the school day on Tuesday 22nd September, however if you would prefer to discuss this with your child(ren) at home this evening then we would support that decision.
We recognise that discussing this sad event may result in a range of emotions for our young people who may already be finding the transition period to full school reopening and the Covid-19 pandemic challenging and unsettling. We would encourage you to reach out and seek support if you or your child are finding things difficult by contacting one of the following services or YBC during school opening hours;
Grief is a long journey and I am confident that as a school community our YBC family are able to navigate this difficult path and support one another and move forwards together.
Many thanks for your messages of support
Helen
The Children and Young People’s Wales Diabetes Network
Office Address: Cardigan House, University Hospital of Wales,
Heath Park, Cardiff, CF14 4XW
Network Manager: Jon Matthias
Jon.Matthias@wales.nhs.uk Tel. 07989 193175
Dear Parents,
The NHS has asked for this message to be sent out to you.
Undiagnosed Type 1 diabetes in children requires urgent medical attention
If your child has ANY of the main symptoms of Type 1 diabetes please make an urgent GP appointment or contact the Out of Hours service. The main symptoms are known as the 4 Ts – Thirst, Toilet, Tiredness, Thinner. If you notice your child is thirsty or using the toilet more frequently, is always feeling tired, or has lost weight recently, seek immediate medical advice.
NHS services are very well equipped to look after children safely if they are unwell. Please do not delay seeking medical advice because of Covid-19.
There is more information available here:
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/in_your_area/wales/campaigning/know-type-1---wales
Thursday 10th September 2020
Dear Parent/Carer
Use of face coverings
The school has considered the recommendations, advice and guidance from Welsh Government, Bridgend Local Authority and South Wales Association of Special School Headteachers (SWASSH) regarding the use of face coverings for pupils at Ysgol Bryn Castell which are included in Appendix 1 for your information.
In conjunction with minimising the use of communal areas through existing control measures including the use of geographical zones, Ysgol Bryn Castell recommends the following;
Ysgol Bryn Castell will provide each secondary school-age pupil with two face coverings and a safe storage bag on Friday 11th September 2020; more face coverings and storage bags (up to a maximum of 5 per pupil) can be requested by contacting the school on 01656 815595 or admin.ysgolbc@bridgend.gov.uk.
For those pupils who wish to use the face coverings and are able to do so independently, face coverings should be stored securely in the storage bag when not in use.
Face coverings should be washed daily in-line with manufacturer’s instructions at the highest temperature appropriate for the fabric. You can use your normal detergent and you can wash and dry it with other laundry. More information about the use of face coverings can be found online at https://gov.wales/face-coverings-frequently-asked-questions.
Unfortunately, school staff are not able to support pupils who are unable to use face coverings independently and there will be zero-tolerance of any pupil who intentionally misuses face coverings due to the high health and safety risks associated with this.
Please do not hesitate to make contact should you have any concerns and wish to discuss this matter further.
Thank you for your continued support
Mrs Helen Ridout
Appendix 1: Recommendations, advice and guidance
Bridgend Local Authority
Bridgend Local Authority has sourced a number of reusable three-ply, adjustable face coverings that have been distributed to schools. The face coverings are suitable for both adults and children, meet World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended specification and can be washed at least 50 times.
The Local Authority have issued the following guidance;
|
Pupils on school transport It is recommended that all secondary school-age pupils wear a face covering on dedicated local authority provided home-to-school transport. There is no recommendation for primary school-age pupils to wear a face covering on school transport, including those on vehicles carrying mixed-age groups.
Pupils in schools It is recommended that secondary school-age pupils wear face coverings in communal areas, toilets and in corridors. There is no recommendation for learners to wear face coverings in classrooms/teaching spaces, unless schools feel that, due to the proximity of pupils and staff, this would reduce the risk to pupils and staff of the potential transmission of COVID-19. There is no recommendation for primary school-age pupils to wear face coverings in schools under any situation.
The use of face coverings by pupils with some additional learning needs (refer to Welsh Government guidance) is not recommended on school transport, or in any school setting.
|
Welsh Government
South Wales Association of Special School Headteachers (SWASSH)
Thursday 3rd September 2020
Dear Parent/Carer
I am writing to inform you that unfortunately a member of our Support Staff has been contacted by the NHS Wales Test, Trace, Protect Service to inform them that they have tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19). Since the school were informed they have been coordinating the response to this unanticipated event and have taken the following steps to ensure the health and wellbeing of our pupils and staff;
As a result Public Health Wales have advised that the school environment is now safe for learners to return.
Unfortunately however this change will mean that our Key Stage 4 (KS4) department are unable to return to school as planned from Monday 7th September; the reintegration of pupils in the KS4 department will now begin from Monday 21st September with blended learning and virtual lessons offered during the period 7th to 18th September. Staff will be in touch over the next few days to share further information and plans with learners and their families who are directly affected by this change.
We recognise that this information may present additional levels of concern to members of the school community who may already be finding this transition period to full school reopening challenging and unsettling, and would encourage you to reach out and seek support if you or your child are finding things difficult by contacting the school on 01656 815595 or through your regular school contact.
We appreciate the concern that this may cause and can assure you that we have worked alongside colleagues with the Local Authority and Public Health Wales to ensure that the environment at Ysgol Bryn Castell remains as safe as possible for your child during these challenging times. We share your disappointment that we are unable to welcome all our pupils back to school from Monday 7th September and look forward to a point in the future when we are able to do so.
Thank you for your continued support
Mrs Helen Ridout
All website content copyright © Ysgol Bryn Castell
Website design by PrimarySite.net