During the summer holidays ADHD solutions are running a number of activities for families.  If you are interested please follow the link below:

http://www.adhdsolutions.org/summer-activities-2021

Disabled children who live in Leicester City can take part in free activities that are available during the summer holiday.  

The sessions will take place every Wednesday at New Parks Children, Young People and Family Centre.  A wide range of activities will be on offer including arts and crafts, accessible bikes, forest school and the chance to meet some animals. 

To view the programme timetable and to register for a place visit: 

families.leicester.gov.uk/disabled-children-summer-programme 

Big vaccination weekend

Drop-in clinics are being held across Leicester and Leicestershire this weekend, 25 to 27 June. No appointment is needed and they're open to all adults - just walk in. Some will be offering Pfizer vaccine and some AstraZeneca. First and second doses available. Find venues and opening times on the NHS website.

Grow Your Own Grub Celebration

There will be a  Grow Your Own Grub Celebration at Abbey Pumping Station on Saturday 3rd July 2021 11am – 2pm. Oaklands are entering this competition and we would invite all our families  to come and choose their favourite mealbarrow.

June 2021

Dear Parents and Carers,

Since the wider relaxation from 17 May this year, we have begun to see a worrying rise in positive cases, and this has been particularly high amongst in children and young people and those in their thirties. Like the rest of the country, the more transmissible ‘Delta’ variant (the variant of concern first identified in India) is now the dominant strain in Leicester. The infection rate in Leicester remains significantly higher than the national average.

We are writing to ask for your support, as parents and carers, to continue to be careful when organising any ‘gatherings’ such as birthday parties or sleepovers. Please follow the guidance, including the rule limiting the indoor mixing of households.

Schools in the city are continuing to follow the same measures that kept the case numbers low between March and May this year. We recommend secondary pupils continue to wear face coverings in communal areas and many children will sensibly continue to wear face coverings in lessons to lower the risk of spreading the virus.

Secondary schools are providing children with lateral flow tests to be taken twice a week at home while they have no symptoms. Please encourage your child to take the lateral flow tests and to report the results. The tests have picked up cases in many children who had no symptoms and this meant the child could self-isolate and not spread the virus to others.

You, as parents, can also take lateral flow tests twice a week and we encourage you to do this. Remember if you or your child has any symptoms, you should self-isolate for 10 days and book a PCR test (gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test).

For any of your children who are moving to a new school after the holidays, there would normally be a day for them to visit their new school and meet new classmates and teachers. This is called Transition Day. Unfortunately this day will not be going ahead in Leicester schools this year because of the pandemic and the risk of mixing children from many different schools. Each school is making arrangements to welcome children with virtual tours of the school and online sessions with new teachers and classmates.

We would also urge everyone who is eligible to have their vaccination when invited to do so. Vaccination, alongside the measures above, are the best ways to reduce the spread of coronavirus and protect both ourselves and our loved ones. Other than in a very few cases, the tiny risks associated with vaccination are far lower than the very real risks from infection. If you are over 23, you can now get vaccinated to prevent further spread. You can book your vaccinations on the national NHS system (nhs.uk/covidvaccine), at a hospital hub (leicestercityccg.nhs.uk/my-health/coronavirus-advice/coronavirus-vaccine) or contact your GP. 

Remember, the best way to reduce the transmission of ALL cases, not just variant cases remains: social distancing, frequent hand washing, wearing face coverings when required, keeping the number of people you are in contact with as low as possible and getting tested regularly as part of the lateral flow testing or when symptomatic. In other words:

• Do not send your child to school if they have any symptoms

• Arrange a test if any member of your household has symptoms and isolating all contacts until the results of the test are known

• Keep your child at home if they have been identified as a contact with a confirmed case

• Continue to do twice weekly lateral flow tests and confirmatory PCR tests if any results are positive

Schools and settings continue to have arrangements so that children are able to attend school so please do keep sending your child to school throughout the rest of the summer term unless they are unwell, have had a positive test or advised to self-isolate. As usual schools will only grant leave of absence for exceptional circumstances.

For further help and advice, visit the council’s website (leicester.gov.uk/coronavirus) and remember to keep a distance from others, wear face coverings and wash hands often. Get tested regularly.

If you’re getting together with friends and family, please remember that the pandemic isn’t over. Take care to avoid spreading the virus and do take the opportunity to get vaccinated.

Kind regards,

Martin Samuels                                 Ivan Browne

Strategic Director,                             Director of Public Health

Social Care and Education               and Sports Services

Sessions are on Thursday and Friday. 18th July - 22nd October. At Rowleys Field Allotments,  Braunstone. 

Suitable for children on the autism spectrum and their family. 

Sessions are free.

Booking is essential and can be done via our website 

https://bamboozletheatre.co.uk/shows/bamboozle-backyard-the-wildings/

Plans announced to speed up Covid vaccinations in Leicester

The Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Clinical Commissioning Groups and Leicester City Council are pleased to announce details for how they will be increasing the pace of the Covid-19 vaccination programme in Leicester over the next two weeks, to help stop the spread of coronavirus in the city and in particular the variant of concern B.1.617.2, a coronavirus variant first identified in India.

The plans include six new temporary drop-in vaccination services, additional GP-led drop-in clinics, extra slots at the Hospital Hubs and extra vaccination capacity to ensure people get their second dose of the vaccine eight weeks after the first dose. This all comes in response to an announcement last week by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Matt Hancock MP, that Leicester would be speeding up its vaccination process, following a rise in cases of the coronavirus.

Although cases of the variant are relatively low in Leicester compared to other areas, the plans have been put in place to help prevent the number of cases from rising.

New temporary drop-in vaccination services

Five new vaccination services are now open and will be vaccinating until Sunday 6th June 2021.

• Coleman Neighbourhood Centre, Balderstone Close, Leicester, LE5 4ES

• Eyres Monsell Community Centre, Hillsborough Rd, Glen Parva, LE2 9PQ

• Fosse Neighbourhood Centre, Mantle Road, Leicester, LE3 5HG

• Hamilton Library, 20 Maidenwell Avenue, Leicester, LE5 1BL

• De Montfort Hall (The Garden Room), University Rd, Leicester, LE1 7RU

A further service will open soon at Tudor Community Centre, Bewcastle Grove, Leicester, LE4 2JU.

These are drop-in clinics so you don’t need to book an appointment.

They will be open from 12pm to 9pm most days, except Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th May where they will be open from 10:30am to 9pm. Opening times may be subject to change. The clinic at Hamilton Library will be starting at 2pm on Tuesday 25th May.

Current opening hours will be published at each site and online at: https://www.leicestercityccg.nhs.uk/additional-covid-vaccination-clinics/ 

Vaccinations are being offered to people who are eligible for the vaccine in line with national guidelines. This includes people aged 32 or over; anyone who has a health condition that puts them at higher risk of Covid, and anyone who lives with them; adults who live with two or more adults, not from the same family; carers and health and care staff. We are only inviting people to come forward for these drop-in clinics who live in the areas of Leicester listed below, as these are where uptake of the vaccine is lower than in other areas:

• City centre North

• City centre South and Southfields

• West End

• Newfoundpool

• Spinney Hill

• Charnwood

• St Matthews and St Peters

• Northfields

• Crown Hills

• St Saviours

People who do not live in these areas and are not in an eligible group will be turned away. Vaccines are available for people who live elsewhere in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland via the National Booking Service, the Hospital Hubs and GP practices. Details can be found online at: www.leicestercityccg.nhs.uk/coronavirus-vaccine/

The sites will all be offering the Pfizer vaccine which means it is suitable for people of all eligible ages and pregnant women. T

he vaccination hubs at Leicester’s Hospitals will also be making additional vaccination slots available. Booking details will be provided to local residents in the prioritised areas, by community-based teams.

Additional GP-led drop-in services

Drop-in vaccination clinics have already been successful in increasing vaccination numbers locally. These tend to operate for one or two days at a time in an area. The next drop-in clinics will be operating at the following locations:

Prajapati Hall, 21 Ulverscroft Rd, Leicester, LE4 6BY. Sunday 30th May 2021, 10am to 6pm.

Merridale Medical Centre, 5 Fullhurst Avenue, Leicester, LE3 1BL. Wednesday 26th & Thursday 27th May. 8:30am to 6:30pm.

Caroline Trevithick, Executive Director of Nursing, Quality and Performance for the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Clinical Commissioning Groups said: “It is really important that anyone in an eligible group and living in the specific areas of Leicester we have identified comes forward in the next two weeks to be vaccinated. We are making it as convenient as possible for people to do that by making additional clinics available in the heart of local communities, including evenings and weekends.

“We are particularly keen to vaccinate anyone aged 50 and over or with a health condition who hasn’t yet come forward. They are more at risk from becoming seriously unwell if they catch the virus and we want to make sure they have the best possible protection if cases of the variant of concern do continue to rise.”

Leicester’s Director of Public Health Professor Ivan Browne said: “Stepping up the vaccination programme in Leicester provides us with a vital line of defence against the variant first identified in India. If you are eligible, please ensure you are vaccinated by visiting one of these drop-in clinics to get your jab.

“We are very happy to support the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Clinical Commissioning Groups with this vaccination programme. Where necessary, we can also use our ground teams who have been knocking on doors in local neighbourhoods to offer tests and advice for many months”.

Second doses

The NHS is bringing forward when people in the highest priority groups, receive their second dose of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) vaccination, if they haven’t already had it. This is so people that are at greater risk of getting seriously ill due to coronavirus, can get maximum protection earlier. Up to now, the NHS has been offering the second dose of vaccine up to 12 weeks after the first dose. With new variants of coronavirus circulating, it is important that we ensure people that are at greatest risk can get their second dose earlier -at around 8 weeks after their first. The local NHS is increasing its capacity to be able to do this as part of the local plans to minimise the risk associated with the variant of concern. You will be contacted about how to book your second dose by the part of the NHS who provided your first dose, for example your GP practice, a hospital (Swiftqueue) or the National Booking Service.

For further information contact: PressofficeLLRCCGs@leicestershire.nhs.uk

Dear Parents/Carers,

We are now at the end of an extremely successful half term. Children are well-established back in the school routines and staff have enjoyed seeing them grow and achieve again in the school environment this term.

Covid-19:

Half Term Contact Tracing: Schools have been asked to continue their contact tracing role during the half term break. If we are notified of any positive cases next week, we will of course update you. It is very important that if your child becomes unwell with any of the symptoms of Covid-19: a high temperature, a new or continuous cough, a loss of taste/smell, you take them for a PCR test. Please notify the school office as soon as possible if you have to take your child for a PCR test and if they have a positive test result: office@oaklands.leicester.sch.uk or call 07742 800987 (10am-12 noon)

If you have not yet had a vaccination, we would encourage you to contact your GP about where and when you can have a vaccination. There is additional capacity across the city to do this now. We are also aware that if you register as a carer (for your SEND child) with your GP then you are able to get both vaccinations more quickly.

Parent/Carer Support: With funding from the Department of Health and Social Care, Bild (British Institute of Learning Disabilities) have been providing a Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) helpline to provide support for family carers and support staff during Covid-19. Self-help featured highly on the requests for support that were being received so a range of resources and information can be found on their website here:

https://www.bild.org.uk/resource/pbs-helpline-resources-self-help/

Beat The Street: We were thrilled to see on the first day of Beat the Street, Oaklands was the 2^nd school on the leaderboard. We are now 1st!! Well done to parents/carers who have been out with children and got active! It is a great scheme and we would encourage you to keep us at the top of the board by using the map sent to explore the local area, improve physical and mental wellbeing for your family and help the school possibly win some great prizes.

School Trips: Next half term, we are intending to start taking children out into the local environment again. We feel that this is a valuable part of our curriculum and we want to help prepare children for going out with families during the six-week summer break. This may simply begin with children having a picnic at the front of the school beside our lovely Oak tree, and extend to a walk down Whitehall Road including using the zebra crossing, to perhaps visiting the park or going to a local shop.

Year 6 Leavers: Next half term we will continue to prepare our Year 6 children for moving on to a new school. We are still considering how to say Goodbye to them and the best way to involve parents considering Covid-19 safety measures. We will of course keep you updated.

Diary Date: On Thursday 8^th July between 10-11am we will hold a virtual end of term coffee morning for parents. The leadership team would very much like the opportunity to catch up with parents (via Teams) before the end of term. More information will be sent to you about this after half term.

We wish you all a happy half term,

Regards

Sarah Osborne (Headteacher)

Please see our new page about positive behaviour support (PBS).  It has lots of information about the strategies that we use in school and how you could use it to support your child at home.

https://oaklands-school-leicester.secure-primarysite.net/positive-behaviour-support/

Quick Link - Local Offer Live Brochure

With live performances, workshops and stalls sharing information all online, it is a key place to find services that offer support locally for special educational needs and disability.