Information about school closure on Tuesday 19th July 2022

Dear parents/carers,

I apologise for this second letter regarding the extreme weather situation, but it is unprecedented times and we are trying to act in the best interests of our students at all times. We did the right thing for our students today by fully opening and we need to make sure we do the right thing for tomorrow.

Having listened again to the weather forecast and having reviewed this extreme weather situation again this evening, it is clear that the forecast temperatures have risen even more, with now a potential 42 degrees plus in some areas. Therefore, it has been agreed by the senior team that:

• BOURNE ACADEMY; SPALDING ACADEMY; GILES ACADEMY & THE THOMAS COWLEY HIGH SCHOOL WILL NOW BE CLOSED ON TUESDAY 19TH JULY 2022

This has been a very difficult decision, which has not been taken lightly. We have coped well in all schools today. However, in light of even hotter weather, we have again reviewed students travel to and from school, and are now extremely concerned about heat on crowded buses and for our students who walk quite a distance to school.

Additionally, now with a number of local secondary and primary schools, and some local nurseries announcing closures late this afternoon and this evening, this has meant that staff absence has been impacted on far more than first anticipated and covering all classes will be a significant challenge.

However, please note that despite being classed as a full school closure in all four centres, we feel it necessary and want to continue to support families of key workers only who cannot accommodate their child/children at home, as we did during the pandemic. For these parents all four schools will remain open and you can send your child to school, where they will be registered on entry to school. For these students the measures in the letter issued earlier today will apply and with the significantly reduced numbers that we will now be expecting you can be reassured that we will be able to accommodate students safely in the airconditioned rooms and inside of the building. Parents will not need to book in for a school place, will be able to support all those students who arrive.

Please note all staff will be required to attend school as normal, where teachers can set work via Show My Homework (Class Charts at The Thomas Cowley High School) from air-conditioned rooms and also set up plans for the new academic year. For staff needing to work from home, due to childcare issues, they too will be expected to set work online so we can support all our young people working from home. Using this method of setting work is a far better way of supporting our young people than using TEAMS for this day, as it is more flexible. Students can even always choose to complete work when it is a bit cooler, rather than in the heat of the day.

We look forward to welcoming our students back to school on Wednesday 20th July 2022. Please bear in mind that this day is Celebration Day at Bourne Academy; Spalding Academy and Giles Academy, which we anticipate these trips will continue as planned.

Kindest regards,

Mrs Lucy Conley
Executive Headteacher SLATrust