Ashdon Primary School will always do everything possible to stay open. We will only close if conditions on site are unsafe, or if too few staff are able to reach school for us to run it safely.

Bad weather

If bad weather makes a closure possible, please check:

• The school website home page

• Our Facebook page

• Essex County Council's emergency school closures page — schools and learning > schools > emergency school closures. The list updates as notifications come in, and at 6pm for the following day.

• BBC Essex (Look East)

• Parent-Class WhatsApp Groups

 

We will also contact you directly through Arbor, by email and by text message, so please make sure the school office has your current mobile number and email address, and that you are set up on the Arbor Parent Portal. Please check your junk folder, as our emails sometimes land there.

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As well as this, we usually ask a parent contact in each class to share our message on the class WhatsApp group, which helps word travel quickly. Please do remember that the formal notification always comes from school through Arbor, email and text, and is posted on the website.

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Please check those rather than relying on a forwarded message, and contact school directly on 01799 584219 or admin@ashdon.essex.sch.uk rather than through the class groups.

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Staff will always attempt to open the school, but please be aware that several of our staff live a significant distance from the village, and conditions on their journey may prevent them reaching us.

Mrs Reynecke-Raybould will inform parents as soon as she can, and we aim to circulate information by 08:00. This can occasionally take longer if she is travelling in and is delayed by conditions.

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If the school is open but roads are difficult, please telephone the office to let us know you are likely to be late. If you assume the school is closed when it is in fact open, the absence will be recorded as unauthorised unless there are exceptional circumstances.

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Other reasons for closure

Unexpected closures are uncommon, but they do happen. For example, if the water supply were cut off so that toilets and sinks were unusable, the school would have to close. If the boiler failed during colder months, the temperature could drop below the legal minimum. Internal flooding not caused by bad weather, a fire alarm fault, or a loss of power can also lead to a partial or full closure.

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If we have to close during the school day

Occasionally a problem arises after children have arrived, and we have to send them home. If this happens, we will contact you through Arbor, email and text, and ask you to collect your child as soon as you can. Children will be fully supervised until you or your named emergency contact arrives, so please keep your emergency contact details up to date. KidzActive wraparound care will not run on a day the school is closed.

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Learning at home during a closure

If the school is closed for more than a single day, class teachers will set work for the children. Activities and instructions will be shared through ClassDojo, and Microsoft Teams will be used for any live sessions or for children to access and return their work.

We know that not every family has enough devices at home for all their children to work at once. If your child cannot access their work, please contact the school office. Where we are able to, we will lend a school laptop for the period of the closure, arranged directly with you. Devices are limited, so we will prioritise according to need, and a short loan agreement will need to be signed before a laptop leaves the school.

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Keeping you informed

Whenever the school has to close, we will explain the situation, tell you what arrangements are in place, and give you a time by which we will next update you. We will keep updating you until the children are back in school as normal.

If you have any questions, please contact the school office on 01799 584219 or admin@ashdon.essex.sch.uk.