This letter has been sent to parents and carer on 27th January 2023.
Dear Parent/Carer
Thank you for your continued understanding regarding the forthcoming strike days. Despite ongoing negotiations between the government and the teaching union, it seems the NEU strike action planned for Wednesday 1st February 2023 will take place.
The government have provided all schools with guidance to be used when managing strike action which we are following carefully.
As context of staffing is different across each school the exact arrangements for managing strike action in each school will vary widely, most particularly the distribution of membership of the different teaching unions varies from school to school. Some schools will have few taking strike action, others have many more.
We are taking all reasonable steps to keep the school open for as many students as possible. However with striking colleagues being under no obligation to inform school leaders of their decision to strike I still have to ensure the effective health and safety of all students and staff on school site.
Therefore I have decided to close the school for all year groups except year 11 and those students who have already been identified as having critical worker or vulnerable status as outlined below:
Critical worker and vulnerable students: 8:30am – 3pm (normal school hours)
Year 11: 10am – 3pm (reduced school hours)
Years 7, 8, 9 and 10: Work from home
Year 11 will be taught wherever possible by their usual teachers (assuming they are not on strike), however there will be a need for them to take part in ‘seminar-style’ lessons in the hall, led by senior leaders.
Please note that Government guidance Handling Strike Action In Schools, January 2023 states: “if a school has to restrict attendance by telling some pupils not to attend school on a strike day, the Y code should be used for pupils who are told not to attend. Pupils who are required to attend should be marked in the normal way. If a pupil is required to attend school on a strike day but does not, then they must be recorded as absent. The Y code does not count towards the pupil or school’s absence record.”
Students working from home and those critical worker and vulnerable students in school will follow their timetables and receive a mix of online independent learning and where possible, online live lessons. Further information about online learning will follow next week.
I am very aware that our students, due to Covid, have already missed much learning and am very sorry for the inconvenience that this may cause. I’m sure you will join me in hoping that this dispute is resolved before the next group of strike days so that we can minimise any further impact on our students’ education.
Kind regards
Yours sincerely
Sammy Crook
Head