W.C 21st February is Health Week in our dining hall. During this week the dining hall will be promoting the uptake of fruit. There will also be some changes to the menu on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Tuesday Lunch
Veg Past Bake
Cheese or Turkey Sandwich
Yoghurt
Wednesday
Tomato & Basil Soup
Tandoori Chicken Bites & Chips Salad
Fish, Chip & Peas
Apple Crumble & Custard

Alternatives will be available for those with dietary requirements.

From this date pupils in P1-5, who bring a packed lunch, will be able to request milk and a piece of fruit with their lunch.

Dear Parent/Carer,

Changes were made on the 1^st February to the Coronavirus (COVID-19): Guidance on reducing the risks from COVID- 19 in schools and therefore we will be making some changes to the current mitigations that we have in place. These changes will take effect from Thursday 17^th February (Pupil return date after February weekend).

The new guidance states that there is no longer a requirement for a staggered start and end to the day. As a result, we will now be opening the doors to the school at 8.55 a.m. to allow pupils enter the classroom and wash their hands for a 9.00 a.m. start. Doors will be closed at 9.00 a.m. Please note any pupil arriving after this time should enter through the main entrance.

All pupils, including P1 and their siblings, will finish at 3.15 p.m. As the guidance for adult social distancing and wearing face coverings has not yet changed, we ask all adults in the playground to continue to stay at least 1m from adults in other households and to wear a face covering unless exempt. We appreciate that this may be different from the wider guidance for society, but this is still the guidance for Education settings.

The rest of our school day will return to more normal timings. Morning break will be 10.30-10.45 a.m., lunch will be 12.15 -1.15 p.m. There will be no afternoon break and school will finish at 3.15 p.m.

Parents are still only permitted into school if necessary to discuss their child’s needs. General parent events are still not permitted at this stage.

As pupils no longer need to stay in class bubbles, we will be looking to restart after school clubs. Information on individual clubs will follow in due course.

School lets are restarting so other community groups may return to use the school premises outwith the school day.

Enhanced hygiene, including handwashing and enhanced cleaning, remains in place. Open windows and doors to increase ventilation are also still in place, so pupils should continue to wear layers.

Parents/carers should continue to notify the school of any positive test results. Those who test positive or who are identified as a high risk or low risk contact should continue to follow the appropriate self-isolation guidance which can be found at https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/infections-and-poisoning/coronavirus-covid-19/test-and-protect/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-individuals-with-possible-coronavirus-infection

As always this is subject to change. Mitigations can be reintroduced or removed at any time  dependent on the prevalence of the virus in society.

Should you require any other information please call the school on 0300 300 0147

To access the scheme, young people need to apply for a new entitlement card.

5 to 10-year-olds will use a junior card which does not require a photograph and those aged 11 and over will use an updated Young Scot card – which is also a photo identity and proof of age card.

New cards can be applied for using the website below:

• ParentsPortal.Scot – This is an additional online national portal that allows parents of children aged between 5 and 10-years-old to apply for the ‘Junior’ version of the National Entitlement Card.  This is the quickest way for parents to access the junior card for their children.

The usual process of delivering Young Scot cards to Primary 7s will take place in March and April 2022 and this year will include a consent process to allow access to the free travel scheme too.

The janitor has informed me that a tree has fallen and is overhanging the Ashy Path. Please take an alternative route if possible.

The janitor has reported this and hopefully it will be cleared for the end of the day.

Bishopton Parent Council have signed up to Amazon Smile to help their fundraising efforts. If you would like to help out please follow the instructions below. It does not cost you anything and 0.5% of your purchases goes towards supporting the school.

Dear Parent/Carer,

I hope you and your family had a good break over the festive period. We are looking forward to welcoming everyone back to school on Thursday 6th January. Current mitigations will still be in place.  Doors will be open from 8.45a.m. to help prevent large crowds in and around the school playground. We kindly ask that you do not arrive before this time to avoid queues or crowds forming.

A reminder that all adults who enter the playground should, if possible, wear a face covering and maintain a 2m distance from all other adults. We ask that only 1 adult per family attends at drop off and collection to keep adult numbers to a minimum.

One change that will be taking place is the reintroduction of class bubbles when pupils are inside the building. This will mean that pupils will, as much as possible, remain with their own classmates during teaching time. There is no need for pupils to maintain these bubbles outdoors, therefore pupils will still be able to mix with others in the playground at break times.

In order to ensure pupils remain with their bubble in the dining area, staggered lunch breaks will continue. P1-4 will have their lunch from 12.00-12.45 and P5-7 will eat from 12.45-1.30. As always please inform the school office if your child is a home lunch.

Adult visitors, including parents, are only allowed into the building if essential to their child’s wellbeing. Adults are asked to take an LFD test before coming into the school building.

Contact tracing will remain the responsibility of public health but we ask that you continue to let us know of any positive test results. Warn and inform letters will be text out if we are notified of a positive case within your child’s class. If you receive such a text we would ask that your child takes a LFD test before returning to school the next day.

As always if you have any questions  or concerns please contact the school directly. The school office will reopen at 8.30 a.m. on the 6th January.

The map below shows the entrances for pupils on return in Jan 22.

Dear Parent/Carer,

As you will be aware, the staff and pupils of Dargavel Primary will move into their school at the start of the new term on the 6th January 2022.

At this time Bishopton Primary classes will move into their own classrooms. Please see the attachment for your child’s class for January. Class teachers will ensure pupils know where their class is before they stop next week. If you are in any way unsure of the door your child should use in January please speak to a member of staff in the playground and they will show you where to go.

At this time, all current mitigations remain in place and there will be no change to the start and end of the day procedures.

Pupils will finish on Monday 20th December and return on Thursday 6th January 2022.

We wish you all a very happy and safe festive period.

January 2022 Class Set Up

Dear Parent/Carer

Renfrewshire Council is partnering with Klas Care, Active Communities and The Tannahill Centre to deliver a new parenting programme called Empowering Parents, Empowering Communities (EPEC). EPEC is a peer led parenting programme and we are recruiting parents and carers from across Renfrewshire to train as Parent Group Leaders.

Parent Group Leaders will deliver the EPEC courses locally to small groups of parents of 2 to 11 years olds to help them:

•     become more confident parents
•     develop their parenting skills
•     increase their understanding of positive parenting.

Parent Group Leaders will receive comprehensive training and ongoing supervision and support.

The training will be delivered one day a week for 10 weeks from the end of January 2022 until April 2022.

We will arrange the training days to suit parents and carers who volunteer. We can also look at arranging the training at evenings or weekends for people who work during the week. We will also provide free childcare if it is needed.

Parents will then deliver the training to other parents in the local communities from April 2022.

If anyone would be interested in finding out more about becoming a Parent / group Leader or would like to apply, the attached leaflet and link provide more information.

https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/article/12003/Volunteer-as-a-Parent-Group-Leader

Keep Safe Kids app is a new way for children and young people in Renfrewshire to:

• find health and wellbeing support
• report bullying and wellbeing concerns

Developed by 60+ pupils from six schools and @Iammescotland, the app is also packed with help and information for you as a parent or carer.

All reports made through the app are sent directly to the school and will be picked up in the normal way during school hours. Reports can be made anonymously and at any time of day. Information is not stored on the app meaning your data is secure.

Download the Keep Safe Kids app from iOs and Android.

Links

iOs

https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/keep-safe-kids/id1519964492

Android

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.keepsafekids

If you have any questions regarding the app please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Please note that the flu immunisation for pupils of Bishopton Primary School will take place tomorrow (17th November).

Dargavel Primary pupils will receive their immunisation on the 8th December.  For families with children in both schools, each child will be immunised on the day appropriate to their registered school.

Please see the attached gritting plan. Thankfully the weather has not yet turned frosty. However, when the colder weather arrives the Senior Facilities Officer (SFO) will grit a 1m wide path as illustrated on the plan (black and pink paths).

Please stick to the gritted path to minimise the risk of slips and falls.

123105007 – Bishopton – COVID Grit Plan

Over the last couple of weeks we have seen a significant increase in the number of adults in the playground at the start and end of the school day.

With COVID still circulating in the community it is important that we all continue to follow the appropriate guidance to keep everyone safe.  The COVID mitigations for schools have remained unchanged and we ask that you continue to follow the guidance below.

• Adult social distancing is still in place on school premises including the playground. Adults from different households should remain at least 1m from each other at all times.
• Unless exempt, all adults should wear a face covering on school premises at drop off and pick up times.
• Staggered entry and finishing times are in place to minimise congestion. Adults should drop and go or pick up and go in order to keep the grounds clear for the next group.
• Only one adult per family should attend. If at all possible adults should drop off or meet pupils outwith the playground. If adult pickup is required, adults should stand as far back from the lines as possible.
• At the end of the day adults and pupils should exit the grounds immediately to allow the adults and pupils at after care to access the grounds.

Where a positive case is identified within the school the following applies. Only those who are in the same physical class as a positive case, and therefore a ‘low risk’ contact will receive a warning letter via a text message. Another letter will be sent if there are any additional cases in the same class after a 5 day period.
If you receive such a letter, the recommendation is that your child takes a lateral flow test if possible before returning to school.

By continuing to follow the guidance, it is hoped, we will be able to minimise the risks for everyone within our school community.

Thank you for your support in this matter. We will inform you as soon as there are any changes to the current approach.

Angelinis Pizzeria are once again running their Christmas appeal.  Please click on the link and nominate Bishopton Primary so that we can help local families with Christmas this year.

Please share with family and friends to boost our nominations.

Our Primary 7 pupils will be taking Poppies to classes from Monday 8th to Thursday 11th November.

If you would like your child to purchase a poppy in school then please send them with a donation on any of these days.

Thank you for your support for Poppy Scotland.

Please find attached the updated holiday lists for the rest of this session and next.

School Holidays 2021 2022

School Holidays 2022 2023

Keep Safe Kids app

The Keep Safe Kids app is a new and easier way for children and young people to access health and wellbeing information and support as well as to report bullying directly to their school.

Pupils can open the app and make reports at any time of day or night as well as make anonymous reports, helping them to control when and how they tell someone about an incident or their concerns.

Reports are sent directly to that child or young person’s school to be picked up in line with the school’s anti-bullying and wellbeing policies. Reports are not held on the app or accessible to anyone else, ensuring confidentiality and reports will not be picked up outside standard school hours.

If you have wellbeing concerns for your child, please do not hesitate to contact us directly. We are here to help.

To find out how to download or use the Keep Safe Kids app, visit the I Am Me Scotland website (https://iammescotland.co.uk/keep-safe-kids-app)

Dear Parent/Carer,

2 exceptional closure days have been confirmed for the 21st and 22nd December for both Bishopton and Dargavel Primaries.

This means that the term will finish for pupils on Monday the 20th December, There will be no early closure on this day. Both schools will finish at their normal times.

Pupils will start back on Thursday 6th January 2022.

https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/article/11751/Updates-on-Dargavel-Primary-construction

About this Event

The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills announced on 22 June 2021 the intention to replace the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and remove the function of school inspection from Education Scotland.   Professor Ken Muir, University of the West of Scotland, has been appointed to act as an independent advisor to the Scottish Government to consider and advise on the implementation of these changes and consider all functions currently delivered by both the SQA and Education Scotland.

Professor Muir wants to hear the views and ideas from all those with an interest in Scottish Education.   This webinar is an opportunity specifically for parents and carers with children and young people in education, to hear first-hand about this reform work, to express views and ideas about the kind of education system we want to see in Scotland for the future and to ask questions of Professor Muir.

When

The virtual webinar session will take place on Wednesday 27^th October from 6 30 p.m. till 8 p.m.

How to book

Please use the link below to sign-up for the event.   The event will be held via Microsoft Teams Live and the link to join will be sent the day before to the email address used by participants to register.

Please click here to book – https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/193601315747

Hi everyone,

We have made it to the end of term 1.  The pandemic continues to throw challenges in our direction but the pupils have all been amazing and have enjoyed some great learning this term.

As things stand, we will begin term 2 with the same mitigations in place. If this changes, the blog will be updated before the pupils return. Please keep an eye on things just in case.

I hope you all manage to have a restful break and look forward to welcoming everyone back for term 2.

Please note that Monday the 18th is a staff in-service day and pupils do not return until Tuesday 19th October.

Thank you all for your patience and support this term.

The school meals service, like many other organisations,  is currently experiencing supply chain issues. This has resulted in some ingredients for the current menu choices being unavailable and short notice changes being made to the menu.

The school meals service  is trying to align substitutes and alternative items as close to the menu as possible and will update the relevant allergen information accordingly.

Information on school meals can be found at https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/schoolmeals

In the meantime we will endeavour to inform you of any menu changes at the earliest opportunity.

For families in receipt of free school meals on an income basis (so not all P1 to P4 children), there will be an Autumn hardship payment in October (£160) and a winter hardship payment in December (also £160).

Families will need to have applied for free school meals in order to get the payments – they won’t be made retrospectively.  If you think you may be entitled to free school meals on an income basis, but have not applied because of the universal free school meals for P1-4, please apply in order to receive these payments.   More information and a link to the online application are here:  https://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/Freeschoolmealsandclothinggrants

For those who qualify for free school meals on an income basis (so not all P1 to P4 children), there will be a payment of £11.25 per child for the October break.