Harrogate headteachers ‘nervous’ as schools return during covid surge

Harrogate headteachers say they are “nervous” about this week’s return to school as covid testing and face masks are reintroduced to minimise disruption during an expected rise in infections.

Secondary school pupils will now have to wear masks in class as well as in communal areas to help tackle the spread of the Omicron variant.

All students will also be expected to take an on-site test and complete twice-weekly testing from home under rules reintroduced by the government in response to surging cases.

Neil Renton, headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School, said that although infections amongst staff and students were currently low, a rise was expected and this could lead to extra measures including entire year groups learning from home. He said:

“We have got seven staff who have tested positive, but this is not enough to significantly disrupt our provision.

“At this stage we are fine, but we are nervous and do have some trepidations about the term ahead.

“We had a point before Christmas where 30 staff members were off due to covid. We didn’t have to close year groups, but it was very tight.

“This is not new to us as for the past almost two years we have had significant disruptions.

“I’m confident we can continue to deal with this. Where I have a nervousness is if staff absences become so high we have to make a decision on whether it would be better to send a year group home.

“This is a decision I and many other headteachers may have to wrestle with in the coming weeks.”

Sylvia Brett, principal at Harrogate Ladies’ College, also said plans were in place to deal with any disruptions, including the recruitment of supply staff and combining classes. She said:

“We will do everything we possibly can to continue to deliver the high quality of education our pupils and families expect during these difficult times.”

Read more:

The return to school comes as there is a further push for staff and more young people to get vaccinated.

Latest figures show 77% of 16 to 17-year-olds and 58% of 12 to 15-year-olds in the Harrogate district have received vaccines which are being made available at sites including the Great Yorkshire Showground, Ripon Racecourse and local pharmacies.

Support to schools

After cancellations in 2020 and 2021, the government is currently planning for exams to go ahead as normal this summer.

Stuart Carlton, corporate director of children and young people’s services at North Yorkshire County Council, said support would be offered to schools throughout the year and that the top priority was to ensure all students receive face-to-face education “where possible”. He said:

“Being educated in the classroom, among their friends and with the support of teaching staff, is the best place for pupils.

“Schools have worked hard to ensure they remain safe places and to minimise the spread of the virus, with the support of the council.

“We have provided updated risk assessment templates with the latest government guidance for education settings in the county.

“Schools have access to public health colleagues for advice and we are providing support and guidance in other areas such as health and safety, human resources and property issues.”

Harrogate district schools see ‘large rise’ in obesity since covid

Schools in the Harrogate district have raised concerns about increasing rates of childhood obesity since the start of covid.

A report to be discussed by North Yorkshire County Council‘s Harrogate and Knaresborough area constituency committee tomorrow says there has been “a decline in the healthiness and quality of packed lunches and snacks being brought into schools”.

It adds that “many schools” in North Yorkshire have raised concerns about covid’s impact on children’s eating habits and obesity levels.

Eighty percent of respondents to a council food in schools survey in October last year wanted the healthiness of food in school to improve.

Read more:

New guidance to schools

In response to the concerns, the county council has developed a new leaflet for parents and carers preparing packed lunches.

The leaflet provides healthy alternatives and is currently rolling out in schools as part of a pilot scheme.

The council also runs various other healthy eating initiatives, such as encouraging healthier catering in schools, using free range eggs in schools and ensuring school meals are free from undesirable additives, colouring and sweeteners.

The report says:

“There is a lot of work currently underway across North Yorkshire to promote healthy eating with children, young people and families. Much of this work is linked to efforts to tackle childhood obesity but of course, good nutrition is about much more than just healthy weight management.

“In terms of childhood obesity, North Yorkshire’s rates have seen a large increase since the start of the covid pandemic, reflecting the alarming levels of around a 4.5% national increase in obesity rates.

“Furthermore, many North Yorkshire schools have reported concerns around the detrimental impact that the pandemic has had on children’s weight and eating habits.

“Schools have seen a decline in the healthiness and quality of packed lunches and snacks being brought into schools, and have requested support in terms of improving standards and with bringing the quality and healthiness of their own food provision and catering back to pre-pandemic levels.”

Harrogate district students can apply to £1,000 fund to pay for books

Harrogate district students studying away from home can apply for a grant to help pay for books, equipment or travel costs.

Any student currently taking a post-16 education course at a school, college or university outside of the Harrogate borough is eligible to apply.

The fund, which is administered by North Yorkshire County Council, has been made available by Haywra Crescent Educational Trust following the sale of a former education property in Haywra Crescent, Harrogate.

This year the trust has around £1,000 in total to distribute to students.

Further information and application forms are available by emailing post16@northyorks.gov.uk

The closing date for applications is January 31.

Read more:

 

Birstwith school appoints new headmaster

Nathan Sadler has been appointed the next headmaster of independent prep school Belmont Grosvenor.

Father-of-three Mr Sadler will take up the role in September next year. He is moving from GEMS Wellington Academy Silicon Oasis in Dubai, which he helped open more than a decade ago.

Set in 20-acres of grounds in Birstwith, the school and nursery welcomes boys and girls from three months to 11 years old.

Mr Sadler said he was looking forward to taking the Harrogate prep school forward “to its next chapter”.

He said:

“It is my absolute privilege to be joining Belmont Grosvenor School as headmaster starting next academic year and I am excited by the opportunity to collectively work with staff, pupils, parents and the governors to celebrate and build on the school’s successes and identity and continue to provide the children with strong foundations to thrive in their ever-changing world.

“I’m very impressed with the school grounds and emphasis placed on outdoor learning opportunities and look forward to embracing the whole school community and collectively creating life-long memories for the children.”

Gordon Milne, chair of the governors, said Mr Sadler brought a wealth of experience, including seven years in a senior leadership role in Dubai. He added:

“Nathan displayed a real passion for learning and primary education.”

Mr Sadler will visit the school in March to meet pupils, parents and staff, before taking up his position at the start of the next academic year.

Read more:

 

Harrogate primary school earns national recognition for diversity

A Harrogate primary school has earned national recognition for combating prejudice between people of different religions and ethnicities.

Coppice Valley Primary School finished second in the annual Accord Inclusivity Awards. It was one of only four schools to be praised for its work in the awards.

Accord is a coalition of organisations that includes religious groups, humanists, teachers, trade unionists, educationalists and civil rights activists, working together for inclusive education.

One of the judges, the Reverend Stephen Terry, presented the school with a trophy during a presentation assembly this morning.

After the ceremony he said:

“Coppice Valley Primary School’s effort and commitment in creating and maintaining an inclusive environment would be highly impressive were it a large secondary school.

“For instead a primary school to be embedding inclusivity into its ethos and ways of working to the extent that it is, is truly exemplary.

“The judging panel is therefore delighted to celebrate it as an inspiration for others across the country.”

Read more:

The school has given its staff gender and sexual identities training, re-examined its curriculum to address white and western bias and anonymised job applications to avoid bias.

Coppice Valley Primary School headteacher, Emma Meadus, said:

“We’re delighted to have been recognised for our work in school to promote mutual understanding and respect. It’s a wonderful achievement for the whole school community.”

Harrogate’s St John Fisher school acquires academy status

St John Fisher Catholic High School in Harrogate has today become an academy.

The school, which has about 1,420 pupils aged 11 to 18, has joined the Bishop Wheeler Catholic Academy Trust, which is based in Menston, West Yorkshire.

The trust has 11 other schools, including St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School and St Robert’s Catholic Primary School in Harrogate and St Mary’s Catholic Primary School in Knaresborough

Academy schools are directly funded by government and have more control than other state schools. They do not have to follow the national curriculum.

St John Fisher school

The trust issued a statement announcing the news.

Headteacher Steve Mort said in the statement:

“The support we have enjoyed over the last year shows how the trust will enable St John Fisher to continue providing an outstanding Catholic education to our children, and I am very pleased that we have already been able to begin reciprocating through our growing partnerships with the trust’s other schools.”

Jane O’Gara, chair of the governing body at St John Fisher, said in the statement:

“We are delighted to be joining our fellow Catholic schools in the Bishop Wheeler Trust and we are looking forward to working closely together with them to continue providing the education our young people deserve”.

The Stray Ferret contacted the school to ask why it had pursued academy status and what it would mean to pupils but nobody at the school was available to respond.

Read more:

St John Fisher was graded ‘outstanding’ at its last Ofsted inspection. Many pupils are Catholics but the school educates children of all faiths and none.

It shares an associated sixth form with St Aidan’s Church of England High School, which is itself an academy within the Yorkshire Causeway Schools Trust.

St John Fisher school

The trust, which is named after Bishop William Gordon Wheeler, Bishop of Leeds from 1966 to 1985, has 10 primary schools and two secondary schools serving 4,800 pupils in North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire. It hopes to increase this number to 18 over the next few years.

Diane Gaskin, chair of the trust board, said in the statement:

“The outstanding education that the school provides makes it a great addition to our trust family.”

 

 

 

 

Andrew Jones MP queries delay of covid vaccinations in schools

Harrogate & Knaresborough Conservative MP Andrew Jones has questioned why school vaccinations in Harrogate are not likely to happen until February.

The Stray Ferret reported last month that the rollout of covid jabs to 12 to 15-year-old pupils in Harrogate schools has been delayed, after the government initially said all children in that age group would be offered jabs by October half-term.

Speaking in the House of Commons yesterday, Mr Jones said vaccinating children five months later in February would be “too late”.

He said:

“I am hearing mixed messages about what is happening in schools. The CCG has told me that they should be eligible for visits by the end of this month, but some schools have been reporting that they are not looking at visits until January or February next year by which stage, of course, it is too late.”

Read more:

Mr Jones also asked if there is a problem with the supply of vaccines in the Harrogate district. He said the nearest walk-in centre for residents is 17 miles away in Halifax.

NHS officials have said they are unable to open any walk-in covid vaccination centres in Harrogate because clinics are already running at capacity.

Mr Jones said:

“If I look at the website on the location of walk-in centres and tap in Harrogate, it brings up five locations in Halifax, which is about 17 miles away. Are there any problems with vaccine supply, or are we having some difficulties in North Yorkshire at the moment?”

In response, Department for Health junior minister Maggie Thorpe MP said “there is no problem at all with the supply of vaccines”.

“I can reassure my hon. Friend that there is no problem at all with the supply of vaccines; we have plenty of supply. He talks about schools. The vaccine programme in schools is being carried out by the school-aged immunisation service, which is very experienced in carrying out vaccinations for different conditions in schools. If there is a problem in his area, I will definitely look into it on his behalf.”

Harrogate district schools urged to consider park and stride schemes

Schools are being urged to follow the example of a Knaresborough secondary school by setting up park and stride schemes.

Park and stride schemes incentivise parents to park in designated areas away from the school gates, with students walking the rest of the way.

They aim to improve road safety, reduce traffic congestion and improve air quality near school entrances.

King James’s School in Knaresborough introduced a park and stride scheme in 2019. Harrogate Borough Council issues permits to those taking part, enabling them to park for free in York Place car park at certain times.

Carl Sugden, headteacher at King James’s School, said:

“It helps further reduce congestion around our school grounds during drop-off and collection times and, as a result of the park and stride scheme, more pupils have the valuable opportunity to safely walk their last five minutes to school in the fresh air, promoting alertness in support of their learning and a healthy routine.”

North Yorkshire County Council and Harrogate Borough Council collaborate on park and stride schemes.

Read more:

North Yorkshire County Councillor Don Mackenzie, executive member for access, said:

“There are many advantages to park and stride schemes like this one at King James’s School. Keeping motor vehicles well clear of school entrances keeps pupils safe, provides a bit of useful exercise, and improves air quality.

“Our road safety and active travel team would be happy to talk to any schools keen to investigate the possibility of introducing a park and stride scheme.”

Councillor Phil Ireland, cabinet member for carbon reduction and sustainability at Harrogate Borough Council, said:

“I hope lots of people take full advantage of this incentive and support our efforts in making the district greener for future generations.”

Any schools interested in learning more about park and stride schemes can contact North Yorkshire County Council via the Open North Yorkshire website, opennorthyorkshire.co.uk, or email opennorthyorkshire@northyorks.gov.uk

Harrogate district schools urged to bring back face masks

Schools in the Harrogate district are being encouraged to reintroduce face masks and postpone some activities after the district’s sharp rise in covid cases was linked to young people.

The district has the 11th highest infection rate in England, with cases rising most sharply among five to 19-year-olds.

Public health officials called an urgent press briefing today and revealed every headteacher in Harrogate had been contacted with the offer of extra support and advice.

Amanda Newbold, assistant director of education and skills at North Yorkshire County Council, said:

“We are working to minimise the disruption to education by recommending that face coverings are worn in certain settings and on school transport.

“We have asked schools to consider the risk of mixing and for some out of school activities to be postponed until case rates are reduced.

“We would also ask that everybody at schools continue to conduct twice-weekly lateral flow testing and report their results.”

Attendance levels down

Neil Renton, headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School, also said extra measures including no mixing of students at break times and moving parents evening online had been introduced.

Neil Renton, Headteacher at Harrogate Grammar School.

Neil Renton

He said of the school’s 2,100 students, attendance levels had fallen from 96% to 92% largely due to covid. Mr Renton said:

“Young people have been really pleased to be back at school – it has been very positive.

“However, we are seeing more cases at this point than we saw last year.

“Cases are higher, but the distribution to learning I would argue is lower because of the different rules about isolation.

“We have some staff who have been absent due to Covid, but not at a level to significantly disrupt provision.”

Read more:

At the start of term, all schools were advised by the government that face coverings were no longer routinely needed for staff or pupils, although they were still recommended in crowded spaces such as on school buses.

But the Department for Education also said schools could temporarily reintroduce bubble groups and face masks in communal spaces in areas with higher Covid rates.

45 district schools have covid

The Harrogate district’s weekly infection rate has been rising steadily since mid-September and currently stands at a record level of 733 cases per 100,000 people.

A total of 45 schools, colleges and early years settings in the district are currently dealing with at least one confirmed covid case.

Despite the rise in infections, deaths and hospitalisations remain lower than previous waves with 15 covid-positive patients at Harrogate District Hospital on Monday.

It was also announced at today’s briefing that the Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate will reopen as a vaccination centre later this year to support the booster programme.

Louise Wallace, director of public health for North Yorkshire, has urged people to take up vaccines which are now available for 12 to 15-year-olds, as she also said everyone had a part to play in reducing the high infection rate.

She said: “The rate in Harrogate is higher than any of us would like it to be. No one at any age wants to catch covid so I want to reiterate some key messages.

“Washing your hands will not only help to protect you from covid, but also from other unpleasant things you do not want to catch this winter.

“Letting fresh air in is also hugely beneficial.

“The other big thing we can all do that makes a difference is to pop on a face covering. This is particularly important in enclosed and busy indoor areas, and on all forms of public transport.

“If you have symptoms, please isolate and book a test. It is still really important.

“And please come forward and get a vaccination. It is the best form of defence.”

New citizenship scheme to be launched for young people

A new scheme to help young people become better citizens is to be introduced in the Harrogate district.

Philip Allott, the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, is currently finalising details for the Good Ctizenship programme, which will be launched across the county this autumn.

Mr Allott, who succeeded fellow Conservative Julia Mulligan as commissioner this year, said the scheme would spread the message that it is an honour and privilege to live in this country but also comes with responsibilities.

It will recruit the likes of former police officers and teachers and operate in partnership with schools. A provider for the scheme has yet to be announced.

Mr Allott added the programme would not lecture young people but rather “get them to identify what they want to do to help their communities and then give them the tools to do that”.

He said:

“It could be giving them bags to collect rubbish or it could be about helping them engage with their neighbours.”

Read more:

The budget for the scheme has yet to be finalised but Mr Allott said:

“It won’t require a ton of money but it will require a ton of passion.

“Society has become less tolerant and young people will become a greater force for good if they buy into it. We will work with youth partnerships to roll this out.”