Bubbles & Distancing – Timetable, Lunch, Assemblies and More

Bubbles & Distancing

Timetables, lunch, assemblies and more

AROUND THE SITE

• The School will continue to operate year group ‘bubbles’. Strategies are in place to reduce the chance of close contact between pupils from different year groups.

• In-person extra-curricular activities for which effective social distancing is not possible will be limited to single year groups.

• Playgrounds will be assigned to single year groups on a rota, to prevent any mixing between year groups. See Appendix 2 below.

Year groups now have more closely defined lunchtime slots. See the School Day section below.

• Pupils will still move between different departments. This is so that they can benefit from specialist teaching spaces; so that the setting system, which contributes significantly to academic progress, can be maintained, and also so that teachers can generally stay in their own rooms, better enabling them to provide a safe environment.

• More staff will be on duty around the School to ensure distancing measures are fully observed. Supervision in The Queen’s Library will be increased and, when it reopens, the Weights Room will be supervised.

• All pupils should have their own stationery and not share such equipment with others.

• No more than two pupils will be allowed into the School shop at a time, with break only to be used to collect pre-orders, and a socially distanced queue to be maintained during lunchtime.

• We are encouraging pupils to bring their own water bottles.

They will still be able to get water at School to top them up. Signs at filling points will advise boys about safe usage and regular cleaning. Pupils should not drink straight from the filling point.

• Pupils will not be invited into any shared staff offices. They should use the counters in reception, Business Administration and The

Queen’s Library, as these are ‘customer service’ points and have had screens etc. installed.

• The gym toilets have been made accessible from Red Square, increasing available provision. The disabled toilet in the Main

Building will be locked, with the keys kept in reception and the medical room, for use only by those who have a disability and those in the medical room.

• Heads of Subject and QE’s senior leadership have worked together on any adaptations necessary to ensure safety - e.g. relating to the use of Science equipment and how performance music is structured.

The PE department are following sector-specific and sport-specific safety guidance.

• There are contractors on-site working on the construction of the new Music School. They will adhere to their own health and safety standards, and these contractors will remain separate from the rest of the School.