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The ONLY weekly voice for secondary education Issue 212 • May 7 2009 Price £1.00
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Schools put on alert
SecEd digital
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With the launch of
as swine flu spreads
SecEddigital, thousands of
teachers are now reading
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every Thursday. You can sign
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by Chris Parr
Government guidance:
address. It is completely free
Ensure that your school has written plans that:
and we will not pass on your
Heads and teachers are being urged
• Make it clear who would take the decision whether to close a school
details to third parties. Just
to remain vigilant and ensure they are
– either because of government advice that schools in an area should
email editor@sec-ed.co.uk
well prepared to react to outbreaks of
swine flu among their students.
close, or because of reasons specific to the school (eg, too many staff
It comes after the disease forced off ill).
the closure of more schools across
• Ensure you have up-to-date contact details for staff and parents.
the country over the weekend.
• Enable you to keep a sick child separate from other pupils (and minimise
As SecEd went to press, five
schools had already suspended their
their contact with staff) until you can get them home.
timetables – three in London, one in
• Ensure that you are able to remain open, if appropriate. Your plans should
Torbay, and one in Gloucestershire. include systems to minimise the spread of infection if the school remains
One of the worst affected was
open during a pandemic, such as hand-washing and disposal of tissues.
Alleyn’s School in south London,
It is important to ensure that all your staff are familiar with the plan and that
where six year 7 students were diag-
nosed with the H1N1 virus. Two sib-
you also consider what it would be helpful to share with parents at this stage.
A place of healing
lings of one of the infected students
You should review plans regularly and in the light of any further advice
also contracted the virus, forcing from the government or local authority. You might test parts of the plan.
The Headroom service at
their school – The Dolphin School in
In a pandemic, while your school remains open, you should:
Woodmill High School
south London – to close too.
• Take hygiene measures to reduce the risk of infection spreading.
provides a place of refuge for
Shortly after the cases were con-
firmed, head of Alleyn’s, Dr Colin
• Ensure that staff showing any signs of infection go home. inning
troubled youngsters, and is
Diggory, took the decision to offer
• Ensure that pupils with signs of infection are taken home or collected.
W
achieving some remarkable
ew
all staff and students at the school • Provide any information requested by your local authority, like absence rates.
results the preventative medicine, Tamiflu. /
Andr
Pages 8 and 9
He told SecEd: “We started
working very closely with the
Precautions: A parent at Alleyn’s in London holds a box
Health Protection Agency (HPA)
of Tamiflu, which he collected from the school after REUTERS
as soon as we were made aware of
confirmation that six students have contracted swine flu
the possible infection of one of our
Photo:
pupils. It is as a direct result of this The school closures came as the “Unfortunately, large school would remain closed until Monday tion period so that we can talk
precaution that the HPA were able total number of swine flu cases in events need to be cancelled, but (May 11), and that the girl in ques- through the possible scenarios with
to so quickly identify others who the UK approached 30. special arrangements are being tion was recovering well at home. all the children.”
have become infected. At South Hampstead High made to accommodate GCSE and A number of staff members at The school has already invested
“It was a difficult decision to School in north London, lessons A level exams. The important mes- nearby South Dartmoor Community around £300 in tubs of hygiene gel,
close the school, particularly with were suspended following confir- sage is that any students who have College have children at Paignton, and asked its local authority to pro-
public exams in the pipeline. mation that a year 9 student had any symptoms of a flu-like illness so the school was on particularly duce guidelines for parents.
However, we are making contin- contracted the virus. The school must not attend school and will be high alert. On Tuesday morning (May
Spanning oceans gency plans for those pupils due to cancelled all sporting events and the turned away.” Head Ray Tarleton told us: 5), the Department for Children,
take exams.” 6th form ball. England’s exam regulator, “Schools in the vicinity of an out- Schools and Families was still
South Dartmoor Community
The affected pupils are now However, on HPA advice, exams Ofqual, said that contingency plans break need to have very clear guide- pointing concerned heads towards
College is forging some responding well to the Tamiflu including GCSE art and music were were in place should any schools lines in place, as it is vital to steer a the latest guidance, which is avail-
amazing links with schools
treatment and Dr Diggory praised set to go ahead. face disruption to their exam timeta- balance between getting everything able from www.teachernet.gov.uk/
across the globe. Head Ray
the “magnificent” response of the Head Jenny Stephen said: “The ble during the outbreak. in place should you need to close, educationoverview/flupandemic
Tarleton explains what makes
staff to the call to return to school HPA has identified those who have The first school to close its doors and not panicking staff and students. The HPA has also produced
on Bank holiday Monday (May 4) been in closer contact (with the was Paignton Community College “We have already circulated a advice specifically for schools
a global partnership work
so that all parents could be con- infected student) and has offered in Torbay on Wednesday, April 29, copy of the NHS guidelines to stu- which feel they may have to close,
Page 19
tacted and informed of the situation them medication. This has also after a student contracted the flu. dents, and have made space on the along with teaching resources for all
and treatment programme. been offered to all of year 9. It was confirmed that the school timetable for an extended registra- key stages. Visit www.hpa.org.uk
Ways to improve GCSE grades
Turn to page 5 to find out!
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