Dear all,

Following the publication yesterday of the Department for Education’s guidance on reopening schools in September, I wanted to briefly update you on our plans at Holmleigh Park.

First and foremost, unless the risk of COVID-19 transmission goes back up, I’m genuinely delighted to say that Holmleigh Park will reopen to all students in September. Year 7 and 12 students will return on Wednesday 2^nd, with all other students returning on Thursday 3^rd September.

Over the next fortnight, the Senior Leadership Team will be updating our plans and risk assessments to ensure we can do this safely. I will write to you again before the end of term with full details, but I want to highlight three key points:

First of all, we will continue to offer a broad and balanced curriculum. You may have read that some schools are considering dropping subjects and just focusing on English and Maths. Holmleigh Park will never be the sort of school which does this.  I passionately believe that your children are entitled to study a diverse range of subjects - so students will continue to study their normal timetable as far as possible, with only small tweaks to how we teach some practical subjects to minimise the risk of spreading COVID-19.

Second, we will keep our expectations as high as ever. I’ve been talking to the Year 10 and 12 students who have returned to lessons in the last month, and they have all told me the same thing; they are desperate to get back to normal! I fully understand that some students will feel anxious about coming back to school, but the best thing we can do in September is focus on teaching all students as well as possible, and making sure we get the best out of them. So, we will be teaching normal lessons from day one, and expecting students to work hard, be kind and take responsibility at all times!

Third, we will take all reasonable steps to keep children safe. We will be returning to a slightly amended school day, with each year group being based in a separate zone. We will continue to implement very strict rules about handwashing and hygiene in line with the latest guidance, and I will outline these steps in much greater detail before the end of term.

I am hugely looking forward to seeing all students in school again in September, and I hope that this will give you some hope that we are gradually moving back towards normality. In the meantime, we want to hit the ground running in September, so it’s important that students remain on top of their online learning over the next fortnight! We will be sending reports home for all students before the end of term, identifying any areas where students may need to catch up ready for September.

As always, thank you for your trust, patience and support.

Best wishes,

Mr Farmbrough

Headteacher