Welcome to Heads Up.

Over the weeks, all too often I have been adding a caveat that we are awaiting further government guidance, noting the speed with which the education landscape changes not from week to week but also from day to day in these persistent COVID-19 times.

This week, at least, we had two pieces of clarity.  Firstly, half term is half term.  There will be a much-needed break and schools will be closed for all students and pupils.  There has been so little opportunity for a respite that this recess has to be used for that very thing. A well-deserved break. Secondly, we were told this week by the Prime Minister that schools and colleges will not be fully opening for all pupils and students until March 8 at the very earliest, depending on the analysis of the data, scientific advice and whether there is a significant reduction in transmission rates.

What that does mean is that there will be more time for schools to prepare for the scale up of their Lateral Flow Device (LFD) testing. There has been excellent progress with the LFD roll out and we are pleased to have been able to share our experience from community testing, provide support and help address your queries around preparation and planning of LFD roll out on school sites.

We are not in receipt of guidance at this stage regarding exactly what will be required of primary schools in term of testing pupils; we await a government announcement, if it is to come.  Teaching and support staff can continue to use community testing centres and they are contracted to be operational in Warwickshire until at least the end of March.

A key theme for me again this week is the mental health of our young people.  It is being accepted by many that this lockdown is more challenging than previous ones for a number of reasons.  Next week, we will be sending you a refreshed range of material to support you and the families of your pupils as well as the pupils themselves.  Our young people have shown admirable resilience, but we cannot take that for granted.  The resources provided should help to enable pathways to support the issues that young people are facing.

We have already started and will continue over the coming weeks to arrange collection by schools and settings of laptops and dongles that the County Council has made available to support learners working remotely and in particular, to help our more vulnerable youngsters. I am incredibly impressed by how much has been mobilised so quickly in response to need. It is also reassuring to know these devices will help to provide access to the wealth of remote learning that you continue to make available during lockdown. We must also remember that the laptops can also be a conduit for you to extend that all important pastoral care to children who are working from home. Please do keep in regular touch whenever and wherever possible and use the remote connectivity as effectively as possible.

Planning is also ongoing for Easter holiday activities and food provision, where we will work with partners to make sure there is an offer of well organised and supervised activity.  Keep an eye out for further details in the coming weeks.  We also look forward to the launch of the Warwickshire Challenge. The provision and extent of activities at Easter will depend on where we are at with lockdown restrictions.  Should we still be facing some limitations, I am thankful that, since the distribution of the laptops, there will be a channel for this cohort of children to remain connected and to be inspired.

Thank you for all that you do to make education the best possible experience for our children and young people. Have a good weekend. Please do manage to get a break and see you next week.

Best wishes

Ian Budd