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Coronavirus Information 20th May 2020

This is your daily email to keep you updated on the government’s response to coronavirus (COVID-19).

Celebrating Thank a Teacher Day

Today we are saying thank you to teachers, senior leaders, support staff and all those working in education settings who are making a difference to their schools and communities during the coronavirus outbreak. To mark the day, you can send a free thank you card to a colleague.

The Secretary of State for Education, Gavin Williamson, said: “Thank a Teacher Day gives us all a great opportunity to thank everyone working in education, but I especially wanted to express my respect and admiration for all staff in nurseries, schools and colleges for going above and beyond to help this country tackle coronavirus and continue to support young people.”

Free thank you cards can be found here:

https://thankateacher.co.uk/

To find out more about what the department is doing celebrate, sign up to our teacher mailing list here:

https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/UKDFE/subscriber/new

Updated guidance on the apprenticeship programme

We have updated our guidance for apprentices, employers and training providers during the coronavirus outbreak. This update includes additional information on training and assessing apprentices in line with the government’s new safer working guidelines, calculating wages for furloughed apprentices, off-the-job training, and redundant apprentices.

The guidance can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-apprenticeship-programme-response

Updated guidance on safeguarding in schools, colleges and other providers during the coronavirus outbreak

We have updated our guidance on safeguarding in education and childcare settings during the coronavirus outbreak as they plan for wider opening. The guidance includes advice on updating the child protection policy, designated safeguarding lead arrangements, protecting vulnerable children and mental health support for children and young people.

The guidance can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-safeguarding-in-schools-colleges-and-other-providers

Reminder to submit the daily online attendance return to the Department for Education

Please continue to provide information on your educational setting’s status during the coronavirus outbreak. Your data helps us build a national picture of educational provision so that we can focus support more effectively, monitor the impact of the virus, and ensure children are safe.

The online form can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-attendance-recording-for-educational-settings

The information below has not changed since yesterday.

Guidance on the wider opening of education and childcare settings

Guidance on the actions for education and childcare settings to prepare for wider opening from 1 June, at the earliest, can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/actions-for-educational-and-childcare-settings-to-prepare-for-wider-opening-from-1-june-2020

Guidance on implementing protective measures in education and childcare settings can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-implementing-protective-measures-in-education-and-childcare-settings

Guidance for parents and carers as schools and other education settings in England open to more children and young people can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/closure-of-educational-settings-information-for-parents-and-carers

Department for Education coronavirus helpline – Monday 25 May Bank Holiday opening hours

The Department for Education coronavirus helpline is available to answer questions about COVID-19 relating to education and children’s social care.

Phone: 0800 046 8687

The helpline will remain open over the May Bank Holiday weekend for staff, parents and young people as follows:

10am to 4pm – Saturday, Sunday and Monday

Our standard opening hours will resume on Tuesday 26 May:

8am to 6pm – Monday to Friday
10am to 4pm – Saturday and Sunday

If you work in a school, please have your unique reference number (URN or UK PRN) available when calling the helpline

Handwashing advice

It is essential that everyone washes their hands more often, using soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Hand washing with soap employs mechanical action that loosens bacteria and viruses from the skin, rinsing them into the drain. Drying hands afterwards makes the skin less hospitable to the virus. Hand sanitiser can be effective if soap is not available or the situation makes using soap less feasible (i.e. when outside) but using hand sanitiser provides none of the virus-destroying friction that rubbing your hands together and rinsing with water provides.

The latest guidance and video on hand washing can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public

The e-Bug project is led by Public Health England and has a dedicated webpage for learning resources on hand washing and respiratory hygiene.

Resources are currently available for KS1, KS2 and KS3 and can be used in various settings including schools and at home:

https://e-bug.eu/

Collection of guidance for educational settings on GOV.​UK

All of the Department for Education’s coronavirus guidance for educational settings can be found in one place on GOV.​UK at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-schools-and-other-educational-settings