Dear parent and carers

The school will be closed from Monday and will only be open to children of parents who are key workers as included in the list sent out this morning. We are also open to children with EHCP’s and those with social worker involvement. We have contacted these parents separately to ascertain their plans

Those children eligible for Free school meals have been contacted regarding a food parcel. This will be made available for you to collect from the school and take away every day from 11:45. We have 97 children eligible for free school meals. Due to health and safety and the need to socially distance ourselves from each other we can not offer a sit-down hot meal in the hall. We would again urge you to contact the school if you will be availing yourself of this service, if you haven’t already done so that we can ensure supplies and orders

Work is available through the website and the learning platform, details have already been communicated, please do visit the webpage regularly for updates regarding work and also monitor e-mail for communication, regardless of whether your child is in school or otherwise

This is a very difficult situation, my staff have been fantastic, they are also key workers and are all stepping up to the challenge but they need to think about their health and that of their families just as we all do. They do not have the luxury of being able to work from home until further notice but will be in school working on a shift basis and the school will operate on a skeleton staff. We will answer phones as we can and monitor the office e-mail: office@st-michaels.medway.sch.uk. In reality it’s no longer a school but a child care facility for our most neediest of families and those providing front line services for our society to still try and function in some way and for our NHS staff to care for our ill and dying. I have to warn parents and carers though it is child care, it’s not socially distancing as we are supposed to be practicing – please do remember this

I can’t tell you how grateful I am to parents and carers who have been so supportive of us all, you and your children are very dear to us. Today we will be saying goodbye to them for the foreseeable future; for how long nobody knows. Hopefully we will see your children soon but it might not be until the summer and beyond. This could mean we are saying good bye to our year 6 children which breaks my heart because they won’t be able to have all the fun activities and proper send-off that they deserve, my staff won’t be able to say a proper goodbye to them either or wish them luck.

This is a very emotional day for lots of us on many different levels.

I always finish most of my newsletters and communication with this phrase but I really do mean this: please do keep safe, keep well and please God we will see you all sooner rather than later.

God bless

Mrs Katharine Sexton

headteacher