The head teacher of Whitstone School in Shepton Mallet has set out the plans for the staggered return of students after the Christmas holidays.

In a letter to parents yesterday (December 18), Guy Swallow explained the current plans following the government's announcement this week that secondary students will have a staggered return to attendance in person to enable schools to prepare for mass Covid testing.

However, Mr Swallow said the school was looking at the government's plans and would announce more details over the Christmas holidays, and thanked parents of Whitstone students for their continued support.

In the letter he said: "The government's latest set of announcements have left us in the enormously difficult position of having to review and potentially change our carefully balanced plans for the start of the new term, hours before we finished for Christmas.

"As such, we are still working on our plans for a safe and successful return to school at the start of next term but are also now reflecting on the government announcements and the implications for our students and the wider community.

"At this point in time, I believe that it is important to provide you with a degree of certainty to enable you to plan for the beginning of January.

"As with other government announcements recently, it is likely that there will be further changes to how children return to secondary school before the start of January.

"However, I would like to give you an overview of the likely start to term. I will confirm these plans in more detail during the Christmas holiday.

"I can confirm that Monday January 4 will remain as an inset day for all students however, this day will now include a degree of logistical planning.

"Students will not have new work set on this day however, students may wish to refresh their memory of topics studied during the previous term using Knowledge Organisers (Years 7-9), revision guides, lesson notes and existing resources on their Google Classroom learning spaces.

"During the remainder of the first week, students in Year 7 to 10 will be working from home in line with the government announcements.

"Students in Years 7 to 10 will receive information prior to Tuesday January 5 outlining the format lessons will take and providing assistance if required.

"Students whose parents are critical workers can send their children into school from Tuesday January 5.

"It is clearly important that staff who work for the NHS and emergency services can still undertake their work at this crucial time.

"Please be aware that there is no requirement that you do so and you may have alternative childcare arrangements that you can use. This will help to reduce the risk of transmission in that week.

"If you are one of these key workers and believe that you will need to send your child into school, please would you let us know by Wednesday December 30, as that will help us formulate plans for your child(ren).

"As was the case during the summer lockdown, these students will be supervised in IT classrooms and will complete the same work online as the rest of their year group.

"Students in Year 11 will receive face-to-face lessons during these days and will return to school in full uniform.

"Further information will be provided regarding the exact logistics of students returning to school and the expectations in place.

"There have been a number of occasions during the course of this year where the government guidance to schools has changed at a rapid pace and with little notice.

"Your support as parents and members of the community has been appreciated and the kind words passed to our staff over the past few weeks has meant a lot.

"We are lucky to serve such a wonderful community and look forward to working closely in the new year.

"Despite the potential changes or additions to government advice that may come next week, we will aim to stick with these plans to give you the certainty that you need."