Remote Learning & Covid Catch-up
Remote Learning Provision – Information for Parents & Carers
Attendance is mandatory for all pupils of compulsory school age. Schools should consider providing remote education to pupils in circumstances when in-person attendance is either not possible or contrary to government guidance.
This might include:
- occasions when school leaders decide that it is not possible for their setting to open safely, or that opening would contradict guidance from local or central government
- occasions when individual pupils, for a limited duration, are unable to physically attend their school but are able to continue learning, for example pupils with an infectious illness
In these circumstances pupils should have access to remote education as soon as reasonably practicable, though in proportion to the length of absence and disruption to their learning.
Where needed, you should consider providing remote education equivalent in length to the core teaching pupils would receive in school and including recorded or live direct teaching time, as well as time for pupils to complete tasks and assignments independently.
Good practice is considered to be:
- 3 hours a day on average across the cohort for key stage 1, with less for younger children
- 4 hours a day for key stage 2
- 5 hours a day for key stages 3 and 4
Provision for pupils with SEND
If pupils with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) are not able to be in school and require remote education their teachers are best placed to know how the pupil’s needs can be most effectively met to ensure they continue to make progress.
We recognise that some pupils with SEND may not be able to access remote education without adult support. Schools should work collaboratively with families and put in place reasonable adjustments so that pupils with SEND can successfully access remote education. In this situation, decisions on how provision can be delivered should be informed by relevant considerations including the support families will require and types of services that the pupil can access remotely.
The requirement within the 2014 Children and Families Act for schools to use their best endeavours to secure the special educational provision called for by the pupils’ special educational needs remains in place.
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Covid-19 Catch-up Premium
The government announced a catch-up premium to ensure that schools have the support they need to help all pupils make up for lost teaching time.
The guidance on the use of funding states that “although all children have had their education disrupted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, it is likely that disadvantaged and vulnerable groups will have been hardest hit”.
Each school is responsible for allocating this money in order to meet specific, identified areas for focus – such as those relating to learning, assessment, intervention strategies, resources and pastoral needs, in order to help reduce the impact of Covid-19 on children’s learning.
St Mary’s created a plan and policy to show how the funding is being spent, the reasons for these decisions and the intended impact. This plan can be found below. The LGB will review each school’s expenditure in order to oversee reporting on impact.
