Buxlow Preparatory School & Nursery

5&6 Castleton GardensWembley

MiddxHA9 7QJ

Tel. 020 8904 3615admin@buxlowschool.org.uk

27th February 2020

Dear Parents and Carers,

Coronavirus .

At Buxlow School we are very mindful of the Health, Welfare and Safety of our children.

You will all be aware of the recent developments and risks regarding the Coronavirus, which is now present in several countries around the world. As a school we have taken stringent measures to follow DfE guidelines to ensure we are doing everything possible to safeguard against all possible risks, including common flu. We have followed their advice which includes the display of a public information poster.

We would request all parents to also exercise vigilance. If you or anyone in your family has a concern or if anyone in your family has travelled to an affected area, please firstly contact NHS 111 online; but also contact the school immediately and ask to speak directly to Mr May or Mrs Zaman. We will be able to advise. The basic advice concerning preventative measures for the virus from the NHS and DfE is:

         cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when you cough or sneeze

put used tissues in the bin straight away

wash your hands with soap and water often – use hand sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available

try to avoid close contact with people who are unwell

do not touch your eyes, nose or mouth if your hands are not clean

         If you've been to a specified area where the virus is prevalent in the last 14 days, follow the advice given by phoning NHS111 for returning travellers.

Symptoms of coronavirus

The main symptoms of coronavirus are:

a cough a high temperature shortness of breath

The risk is set at 'moderate', which means the UK Chief Medical Officers are preparing for all eventualities. We have taken the decision as a Senior Leadership Team (in consultation with Governors) to contact parents and keep parents updated. Should the situation change, we will update parents immediately.

We want to avoid causing undue anxiety. Nevertheless, we are also preparing for all eventualities (in line with the UK risk) and this includes the future possibility of the school being temporarily closed on NHS and DfE advice. Should this happen, we are setting up systems to allow us to work remotely through use of apps like Class Dojo and a further app which we will introduce shortly. We want to be prepared.

I stress that at present the risk is ‘moderate’. However, we are taking this situation very seriously and you will be able to rely on the school to take professional and decisive measures in consultation with School Governors, the NHS and DfE to ensure the safety of our school community. Please see the advice given on the Gov.uk website and link which I have set out below.

Yours sincerely,

Mr D. May

Headteacher

If you have returned from the following specific areas since 19th February, you should call NHS 111

and stay indoors and avoid contact with other people even if you do not have symptoms:

        Iran

        Specific lockdown areas in Northern Italy (see link to maps on website)

        Special care zones in South Korea (see link to maps on website)

        Hubei province (returned in the past 14 days – see link to maps on website)

If you have returned from the following areas since 19 February and develop symptoms, however

mild, you should stay indoors at home and avoid contact with other people immediately and call NHS

111:

        Northern Italy (defined by a line above, and not including, Pisa, Florence and Rimini – see link to

maps below)

        Vietnam

        Cambodia

        Laos

        Myanmar

If you have a cough, or fever or shortness of breath and have visited any of the following areas in the

last 14 days, stay indoors and call NHS 111 informing them of your recent travel:

        China, apart from Hubei province (see link to maps )

        Thailand

        Japan

        Republic of Korea, apart from special care zones (see link to maps )

        Hong Kong

        Taiwan

        Singapore

        Malaysia

        Macau

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public