Dear parents/guardians,
Hope you are all safe and well. As we approach the end of what has been a very different last term we look forward with renewed optimism to having our pupils back at the end of August . We have all done very well so far and need to maintain our vigilance over the summer months.
The school will have a detailed Covid Response plan in place for staff, pupils and parents by mid-August in line with Govt. guidelines at that time. We have installed hand sanitisers in all our classrooms, corridors and halls, with child friendly Covid signage throughout the building. We already had anti-bacterial soap in our classrooms and will have a strict handwash etiquette for our pupils throughout the day. We will have strict protocols for visitors too with sign in log for contact tracing if required. We would ask parents to keep at a safe social distance when dropping and collecting their child and will have staggered arrival and collection times to minimise congestion.
It is important that we all feel safe as pupils, parents and staff when returning to school. While we will have learning gaps arising from the lockdown period, our initial focus will be on the wellbeing and mental health of our pupils and staff. It will take us all a few weeks to adjust and over the course of the new school year we will make up the lost ground.
The school newsletter will resume from Friday the 14th of August and we will keep you posted from then, of more detailed arrangements for re-opening. In the week preceding opening (Mon 24th of August) we will have Covid training for staff and our new Junior Infants will be coming in for familiarisation.
If you have changed email or phone number recently please email the school so we can update on the pupil database . If you are moving to a new school over the holiday period please email us as we have waiting lists for most classes.
School uniforms are now available from our supplier . This year with the restrictions in place they are only fulfilling uniform orders through their website. Orders can be delivered or there is a click & collect option. If a parent purchases an incorrect size they can exchange items over the counter here in the shop.(https://bernardowens.ie/collections/st-thomas-jns)
If you have any queries you can also contact David Hanratty on 0876117269.
Parents working in Intel: Intel has a volunteer donation program that runs throughout the year. For every hour volunteered by an Intel employee, Intel will donate €10 to the registered institution (or school).This year due to Covid, Intel are allowing homeschooling to qualify for volunteer hours. It's capped at 2hrs per day. If you are interested in supporting the school please contact Ms.Foley c.foley@stthomasjns.com as it is only a matter of registering our participating parents.
Finally, congratulations to our longest serving lollipop lady Frances Casserly who has been a familiar face to all families crossing from Hillcrest to the school over the last twenty years. Friday 26th is her last day at work and even though the school is closed we will have a small number of children waiting to cross and waving her off one last time. Thanks Frances for your service to our school and for the care you have taken of our pupils since 1997.
Wishing you all good health over the summer break and see you all at the end of August.
Michael Maher,
Principal