Category Archives: Whole School News

Text Message from Renfrewshire Council – 23rd June 2020

Scot Gov announcement of full-time education from August: a message to parents and carers from Steven Quinn 23 June 2020

The following is a message to parents and carers from Steven Quinn, Director of Children’s Services. It is dated 23 June 2020 and provides the latest information on Scottish Government’s plans to reopen schools and nurseries.

Following an announcement by the Deputy First Minister at Scottish Parliament today, we are reviewing the details presented in his statement for a full-time return to school and nursery from August 11 if COVID-19 continues to be suppressed. We will update our teachers, early learning practitioners, school and nursery staff, parents and carers as soon as we can.

Thank you for your continued patience and support and in the meantime, follow us on Facebook @renfrewshirecouncil, on Twitter @RenCouncil or sign up for our Schools and Nurseries digital newsletter for the latest updates.

Staggered Start and Finish Times – August 2020

As you know, the Scottish Government has said that physical distancing of 2 metres is required to keep your child safe. Based on this guidance, we have maximised all the spaces in the campus to ensure we can retain this 2 metre distance at all times. This means we will be introducing a staggered start and finish time for all classes. The playground will be clearly marked to show children where to stand prior to entering the building. Children should only arrive at their expected entry time as there will be no space for adults inside the building or in the playground.

The times will be the same whether your child is in Group A or Group B i.e whether they are coming on a Monday/Tuesday or a Thursday/Friday. If you have more than one child, all children should arrive at the earliest time. Entrances will be clearly marked and staff will be available to bring the classes inside.

In the morning:

8.45 – P3 and P7 will enter the building through separate entrances.

8.50 – P2 and P6 will enter the building through separate entrances.

8.55 – P1 and P5 will enter the building through separate entrances.

9.00 – P4 will enter the building.

In the afternoon:

Children should leave the playground as soon as they leave the building.

2.45 – P3 and P7 will exit the building through separate exits.

2.50 – P2 and P6 will exit the building through separate exits.

2.55 – P1 and P5 will exit the building through separate exits.

3.00 – P4 will exit the building.

If collecting a child, parents should meet them outside the playground area and leave the grounds immediately in order to preserve the safety of all. Parking will be limited so please use alternative ways to come to school, where possible.

Class Groupings for August 2020

This August will look different from any other year in that schools will return to a model of blended learning – with pupils learning in school on some days and from home on others. The letters below outline what this will look like.

A text will be sent from the school telling you which group your child is in.

If your child is in P1 from August 2020:

P1 Grp A Parental Letter 0820

P1 Grp B Parental Letter 0820

If your child is in P2, P3, P4, P5 or P6 from August 2020:

Group A Parental Letter 0820

Group B Parental Letter 0820

If your child is in P7 from August 2020:

P7 Grp A Parental Letter 0820

P7 Grp B Parental Letter 0820

If you have any questions about this, please contact the school.

Classes and Staffing – August 2020

As you will be aware, from August half of the children will come into school on a Monday and Tuesday (Group A) and the other half will attend on a Thursday and Friday (Group B). Wednesdays will be used for enhanced cleaning and to allow all teachers to have their contractual non class contact time to prepare lessons and support pupils with remote learning. We will be able to confirm which Group your child will be on Monday 22 June.

We know that parents are feeling anxious about what school will look like and what it means for you and your child. To help with this, I am sharing the class teachers with you.

Primary 1 – Mrs McLauchlan

Primary 2 – Miss Goldie

Primary 3 – Miss Keegan and Mrs Fulton

Primary 4 – Mrs Campbell and Miss Cunningham

Primary 5 – Miss Monaghan and Miss Harper

Primary 6 – Miss Hamilton and Mrs Gordon

Primary 7 – Miss Allan

Our Support Staff remain the same from August and will be supporting all the classes as required. They are Mrs McGroarty, Mrs Colton, Mrs Watson, Mrs Wilson, Mrs David and Mrs Arnold. Mrs McGregor will continue to be our Senior Clerical Assistant.

I am also delighted to tell you that Mrs McLeod has been appointed as Depute Head Teacher (Acting) from August and Mrs Patterson will be returning for 6 weeks in August before retiring.

We will also be publishing on the school website early next week videos of the teachers and the classroom set-up to give you an idea of what it will look like, so please watch out for this.

As always, if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to call the school.

Best Start Grant School Age Payment – Social Security Scotland

Below is the link to the School Age Section on the Social Security Scotland website, this has all the information about the benefit which opened for applications on 1st June. I would also recommend following Social Security Scotland on Facebook as there is a number of posts made regarding this payment.

https://www.socialsecurity.gov.scot/what-we-do/stakeholder-resources/best-start-grant-school-age-payment