Dear Parents and Carers

In the light of the Prime Minister’s statement on Saturday 27th November following the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, we wanted to update you on the current situation in our College which is in accordance with the advice issued by the Department of Education (DfE) on Sunday 28th November.

It is really important that all of us play our part in delaying the spread of Covid and, in particular this variant, until more is known about how dangerous it might be and to allow more people to be vaccinated and get their booster. Currently despite the high rates of Covid within our communities https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/details/interactive-map/cases, rates of infection within the College remain relatively low which is great since it means our young people are not getting ill and having to miss their learning. Thank you for all your help with this.

The changes from DfE include,

Face Coverings

Many of our students have been brilliant at wearing their face coverings in communal areas throughout the Autumn Term however the DfE guidance is now clear that face coverings should be worn in communal areas by staff, visitors and students, unless they are exempt. Parents and carers should make sure that their child brings a suitable face covering to school (not a snood or a scarf). Further information on suitable face coverings and how to store them can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own/face-coverings-when-to-wear-one-and-how-to-make-your-own .

If you are exempt from wearing face coverings can you please ensure you are carrying an exemption card to show or wearing a lanyard with the card on it.

Face coverings must continue to be worn on school transport.

Testing

We continue to encourage staff and students to test at least twice a week using LFD tests which are distributed to students. Once you have carried out an LFD test please report the result (positive or negative) to the Government website https://www.gov.uk/report-covid19-result

Symptoms and PCR testing

If your child is showing any symptoms please do not send them into College but isolate and get a PCR test instead. Please note the symptoms of Covid can vary greatly between individuals but can include coughing, high temperature, loss of sense of taste and smell. They can also include headache, muscle pains, sore throat, fever and fatigue. More information can be found here https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-51048366

Isolation

Students under 18 years of age do not need to isolate if they have been a close contact or live in a household with someone who has tested positive for Covid, unless they have been directed to by NHS Test and Trace. However, the DfE has advised that we recommend to families that they should test every day for 10 days using an LFD test.

Anyone considered to be a close contact of someone testing positive for Covid with the Omicron variant will be asked to isolate for 10 days regardless of age or vaccination status. The NHS will contact you directly if they consider you a close contact of this kind.

Covid and Flu Vaccinations

Covid vaccinations remain available for students aged 12 and over and can be booked using this link https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination/coronavirus-vaccine-for-children-aged-12-to-15/

We have also just been informed by Virgin Care that they have scheduled a Flu Clinic in Exeter on Saturday 4th December for all students in Years 7-11 who missed their vaccination in College recently. Please call them on 0300 247 0082 to book an appointment. The lines are currently open 9 am until 12 pm and then 2pm until 4.30 pm. Their lines do get extremely busy, so please keep trying throughout the upcoming days and please accept Virgin Care's apologies if you don’t manage to get through first time. Alternatively, you could email Virgin Care at vcl.immunisations@nhs.net 

If you have already completed an electronic consent form for the Flu vaccine with Virgin Care, please have the reference number that would have been emailed to you ready to provide to their advisor – this will avoid any duplication. The clinic booking line will be closed at 4.30pm on Thursday 2nd December, so please do not call after this time. There will be further clinics held in January, details will be sent out as soon as possible. 

Future events

We will be returning to remote assemblies for the final three weeks of term and are currently considering arrangements for our Carol Services and the Rotary Club Concert that we have planned for December. We will update this information in due course.

Covid testing in January 2022

On Friday 26th November the Government also asked all schools to re-introduce on site assisted testing when students return in January and so we are currently looking into arrangements for this.

As ever, many thanks for your continued support.

Kind regards

Andrew Davis
Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

I am writing to provide you with information about our curriculum. Since the May half term, subject leaders and teachers have carried out a wide-ranging review and this letter summarises some of the key points.

What and why?

In education there has been a move to having a much greater focus on knowledge – what is actually being taught. As a College we want to be very clear about what knowledge students should know, how it follows on from what they have already learnt and how it prepares them for future learning.

Students should be able to talk confidently about what they are learning and why.

How?

In addition to the curriculum plans, teachers will be structuring their teaching to ensure that students are secure in the core knowledge.

Neuroscience shows us the importance of helping students commit this knowledge to their long term memory. If they can recall this knowledge easily, it frees up more brain capacity to develop more advanced knowledge and procedures. For example if students can easily recall key figures and dates in History, they can devote more time and energy to discussing sources and interpreting evidence.

In the diagram below, students receive an ‘input’ in lessons. They are then given time to ‘rehearse’ or ‘practise’ this new knowledge. At this stage it is still in their short term memory and could easily be forgotten. As time progresses, students will develop strategies for storing this knowledge in their long term memory. One way this happens is through regular ‘retrieval practice’. This is when a student or teacher revisits knowledge from previous lessons (a week ago / two weeks ago / a month ago) to check they still know it. Many lessons in College will now begin with a period of ‘retrieval practice’

Another way we are supporting your child is by the introduction of ‘Cold Call’.  This is a questioning technique where the teacher asks the class a question, gives the class some thinking time and then selects students to give their answers.  When using Cold Call, students do not put their hands up but wait to be asked.  There are many different ways this can be adapted to ensure students feel at ease and confident to answer – it is not a way of catching students out!

Environment

In order to make the task of committing knowledge to long term memory it is important that students are not distracted. In College, this means creating an environment where every minute of every lesson counts. This is why students need to follow the ECC Way.  By being prepared, engaged, respectful and kind they create an atmosphere conducive to effective learning. Teachers should produce materials that are clear and that avoid any extraneous (or distracting material).

I will write again later in the half term to describe more about our curriculum and how we will be reporting your child’s progress.  Please do not hesitate to contact your child’s teacher or subject leader if you have any queries about a particular subject or to contact me if you have any questions about the curriculum in general.

Yours sincerely

Mr Allen

Deputy Principal

We are delighted to welcome prospective students and their families to our Open Evening on the 23rd September between 4.30 - 7.30pm. Please sign in at the reception on Gipsy Lane. We have limited parking for disabled visitors only, located on Gipsy Lane only. 

Book a place here

What a journey.

As families will no doubt realise this year has been a very difficult one for many students and families and this equally applies to our Post 16 students who were receiving their results today.

As with GCSE results which are awarded on Thursday 12^th August, these are Assessment Awarded Grades. This is because in March 2021 external exams were cancelled by the Department for Education due to Covid and all schools were asked to create their own robust examination system. With the help and hard work of support and teaching staff, over a very short time scale, we have developed and implemented an examination awarding process which we believe is fair, consistent and robust. Our aim was to put in place an assessment system which took into account a range of assessments across a student’s portfolio so that all students got a chance to show their abilities.

This will mean that it will be hard to compare to results from other years. This does not mean that this year’s grades are any less valuable or deserved – in many respects using evidence from assessments across a range of tasks is gives a better indication of a student’s ability than one final long written examination and also requires students to work hard across their whole course rather than saving all their efforts for the final exam.

Because of this I am not intending to talk about Post-16 headline rates or “best results ever” since ensuring our young people are successful in their next step after ECC is far more important.

Of course, it is fantastic that two of our students earnt places at Oxford (and will be studying in the same College at Oxford though in diverse academic fields – Music and Biomedicine) with another going off to study Medicine at Exeter along with students studying from as far away as Edinburgh (Applied Mathematics), Sheffield (Physiotherapy) and York (Environmental Science) with 23 students gaining places at Russell Group universities. As well as geographically diverse universities, there is also a real diversity amongst the courses students have chosen from Live Sound (Plymouth) to Marine Biology (Swansea) to Forensic Investigation (Winchester). It is also great to see so many of our students moving into apprenticeships (about which we are still awaiting information confirming courses) as well as into the world of work.

However, today feels more about recognising how difficult the last 18 months have been for our young people during their two or three years in Post-16.

Each of these students will have their own stories to tell, whether that is about family circumstances, the battles of learning from home or worries about what the final assessment would look like. Each of them will also have been on an amazing journey and shared those experiences with our incredible Post-16 team, their tutors and teachers. Our staff know it has been really tough for many of the students which is why we are so exceptionally proud of your individual achievements and the way you have persevered to overcome the barriers that you have often faced.

Talking to students as they left our school this morning, many with beaming smiles and ready to start the next chapter in their lives, it was clear that they were overjoyed with what they personally had achieved and, I am sure that for those who may have had a tinge of disappointment about a missed opportunity, over time, they will come to realise how amazing their achievement was given the difficult circumstances under which they were having to study.

Whether students left telling me about their plans to “chillax” for a while, carry on working, start an amazing apprenticeship or get ready to start universities across the country we are all really proud of each and every one of you and wish you all the best for the future.

Finally, I am sure the students would wish to join me in thanking parents, carers and other family members for all their support over their time in Post-16 and in many cases for the previous five years at the College before that. Thanks should also go to all the staff, teaching and support staff, involved in helping students achieve these fantastic results. From the Post-16 team led by Ms Craddock and ably supported pastorally and academically this year by Mrs Thomas, Mrs Wright, Miss Burch and Miss Collingwood as well as a great team of teachers, tutors and other support staff. Thank you all.

Andrew Davis

Principal

Dear Parents/Carers,

We know that preparing for the new school year in September can be challenging. To help support you, please find attached our Uniform and Equipment Expectations Guide.

This document has been created to ensure that all parents and carers are clear about both uniform and equipment expectations from September. The information is designed to guide you when purchasing uniform and equipment for the new academic year.

It is extremely important that students come to College in September ready to learn, meeting the correct uniform and equipment expectations for every lesson.
In September, tutors will check every morning that the expectations of uniform and equipment are met. Should uniform or equipment expectations not be met, students will be given negative points on class charts. Please can you review the lists attached and only purchase items listed. 

Many students find it helpful to organise their uniform and equipment the night before by looking at their timetable for the next day. This helps them establish good routines and ensures they learn to take responsibility for their uniform and equipment each day.

UNIFORM SUPPLIERS  

Proserve Group Unit 3, Dinan Way Trading Estate, Exmouth EX8 4RS 
Ship Shape 16-18 Albion Hill, Exmouth, EX 1JL 

We appreciate your support in ensuring your child will be ready to learn in September with the required uniform and equipment. Hopefully you will find this information helpful to receive at the start of the summer holiday.  We wish all students a restful summer break, stay safe and well and we look forward to welcoming everyone back in September.
 
Yours sincerely,
Mr D Turner
Deputy Principal

Dear Parents and Carers

As we approach Step 4 of the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown I wanted to contact you about some changes to the guidance which will come into effect on Monday 19^th July. I am sorry for the late notice, however, we only received guidance on this from the Department for Education (DfE), Public Health England (PHE) and the Local Authority on Friday afternoon.

You will no doubt be aware that nationally the country experienced almost 52 000 new infections last Friday and, whilst the link to hospitalisations and serious illness is weakened, it certainly isn’t broken as these numbers also continue to rise.

In our own local area, Devon saw a 61% increase in positive Covid cases up to the 11^th July according to the Government’s interactive map and so I fully expect this to be  much higher based on the increased number of cases ourselves and other schools are experiencing.

Given this I would continue to urge caution and even though, according to the new Government guidance, Schools do not have to continue with bubbles and some other measures, we will continue to operate our Covid protocols such as staggered starts, collection points and separate entrances through to the end of term. We would also urge you to continue regular testing next week and continue to encourage your child to keep their distance from others and sanitise their hands on a regular basis.

As announced by the Prime Minister on 12^th July he intends that Step 4 of the roadmap will go ahead as planned on Monday 19^th July. This means that the following changes will come into effect:

Mixing and bubbles

• At Step 4 the DfE no longer recommend that it is necessary to keep children in ‘consistent groups’ (bubbles). The guidance now states that ‘if your school is still open in Step 4 you may wish to continue with these measures until the end of the summer term’. However, given the circumstances in our area and our desire to limit the number of students potentially exposed to the virus we will continue to operate our year group bubbles until the end of term.

Track and Trace and Isolation

• From 11.59 on Sunday 18^th July schools no longer have a role in track and trace and their legal powers to ask people to isolate will end.

• Contacts identified within settings prior to 19^th July will still be required to complete their ten day isolation period.
• From Monday 19^th NHS Track and Trace will contact parents to ask questions about contacts at home and in the community.  They will not ask them about contacts at school, but they will ask parents to inform the school.
• Parents and students are still required to report all LFD and PCR positive tests to schools. We will continue to ask you to contact us through PositiveCovidCase @exmouthcollege.devon.sch.uk until Thursday 22nd July and to start again on 3rd September (unless guidance changes in the new academic year).
• Schools will not be routinely contacted by track and trace to ask for information, but they may be contacted if they are in an ‘outbreak area’ where there are high levels of community transmission or outbreaks in other settings, as currently happens in managing other infectious diseases.
• The legal requirement to self-isolate does not change on 19^th July for individuals:
  • If they have been notified by NHS Test and Trace that they are a close contact
  • If they or someone in their household has tested positive with a PCR
  • If they or someone in their household is symptomatic

The requirements for self-isolation may change on the 16^th August when the Government has suggested that double vaccinated adults and young people under the age of 18 will no longer have to self-isolate.

• From the 19^th July students who test positive with a LFD are still required to
  • Self-isolate with their household members
  • Notify school of a positive LFD result
  • Seek a confirmatory PCR test within 2 days of the positive LFD
  • Notify school of their confirmatory PCR test result
  • If PCR test is negative and taken within 2 days, the isolation period will end for the individual and their household
  • If the PCR test is positive a full 10 days isolation must be completed by student and the household.

When the school are informed of a positive case

• Schools must continue to inform the local authority of positive cases.
• Whilst no longer required to contact track and trace, under the health and safety duty of care regulations schools are required to take appropriate action to protect students and staff; This includes those in relation to communicable diseases such as COVID.  Under this guidance schools can require students who are close contacts of the positive case not to come into school. This however does not mean that the person needs to self-isolate but it is recommended that they limit their contact with others during the identified period.
• Devon County Council will support schools who take action to carry out their duty of care in this way and to continue with the contact tracing arrangements they have in place until the end of term.  
• The Devon Public Health and Education Teams will continue to support schools, as they have done previously, through the last week of term. 

Testing over the Summer holidays

• We have been advised that LFD Testing can be paused over the summer holiday, unless your child is attending our Summer School. You can, of course, continue testing should you wish to. Test kits can be ordered online, or collected from most pharmacies. We will be asking students to take a test at home before their return to school in September, so as to reduce the risk of positive students coming into school. Please ensure you have test kits at home in order to conduct these tests. We will also ask Year 11 and 13 students to test before they come onto site to collect their examination results.

Return in September

• The DfE are asking all secondary schools to carry out testing on site before students return in September.

• Testing remains important in reducing the risk of transmission of infection within schools.
• As it is likely that students will be mixing with lots of other people over the summer break, it is recommended that all secondary school students should receive two on-site lateral flow (LFD) tests 3-5 days apart on their return in the autumn term.
• We plan to start this mass testing for students, whose parents have consented, on Wednesday 8th September. Further details will follow in a separate letter. As you are aware this is a huge undertaking for any school and we are sorry for the disruption this will cause to the start of term, particularly for our new Year 7 students. We are about to start searching for volunteers and so if you are available around this time we would love to hear from you!!
• Once the two LFD tests have taken place in school, students will be asked to resume testing twice weekly at home until the end of September when it will be reviewed.

Face Coverings

• From 19^th July face coverings will no longer be advised for students, staff and visitors either in classrooms or in communal areas. However, as a school we have decided that staff and visitors will continue to wear face coverings in areas where social distancing cannot be maintained for the last week of term.
• Students on DCC operated school transport routes will be requested to continue to wear face coverings (unless in possession of an exemption card), and to remain seated in year groups/according to seating plans if in place. This includes the transport being used during Celebration Week. This has been checked with PHE and it is important that students wear face masks on coaches and ensure they have done their LFD tests twice this week.

Remote Education

• We will continue to do our best to provide remote education for those students who need to self-isolate and for those who have been asked to remain away from school as they have been identified as a ‘close contact’ within the school setting.

We all recognise it has been a very challenging 18 months for everyone.

We are also so sad that this hasn’t been the end of the academic year any of us hoped for. From having to cancel the Year 11 Prom through to lots of students and staff having to self-isolate over the last few days it has been a very stressful time for everyone.

In due course we will obviously provide refunds to all those students who have missed out on trips that they were due to take part in during Celebration Week.

We hope that when we return to school in September we will be able to live with the virus as best we can, whilst keeping everyone safe.

Thank you once again to all the students, families and staff for all your wonderful support over the year.

We wish you a very safe and restful Summer period and look forward to seeing everyone in September.

Yours sincerely

Andrew Davis

Principal