Welcome to Mossbourne Parkside Academy

A message from the Principal

Since Monday, 1st June, the staff of Mossbourne Parkside Academy have enjoyed welcoming back children from nursery, reception, Year 1, and Year 6.  More recently we have been able to expand this offer to include Year 5 and some Year 2 pupils. Our pupils have shown resilience and commitment to their work during this period; they have made us and hopefully you truly proud. Staff have missed our pupils deeply and this has been the first step on the long journey back to normality.

Please let me assure parents that the safety of pupils, staff and the community is our utmost priority and safety will continue to be monitored throughout the period of return. Work will continue to be provided for our pupils that have not returned; this will continue to be uploaded to Google Classroom, SeeSaw and PAM and will also be available as a printed pack from the academy’s office. Please be assured that staff are working hard, some from home, to form plans for how children of all year groups will be supported academically, emotionally and pastorally upon their return.

The last few weeks have been tremendously confusing and frightening for our young people following the murder of George Floyd. The staff of Mossbourne Parkside Academy stand united in support of Black members of our community in the determination to attain true equality for all, and beyond. Your children will be the champions of the changes which must unequivocally take place, and education is the most powerful of all tools to initiate the changes which must happen.

I also offer immeasurable thanks to the charity Magic Breakfast that have continued to provide a free breakfast hamper for all of our families; any surplus provision has been donated to Peabody. We are working with Magic Breakfast to arrange deliveries to your homes during the holiday period. Thanks should be extended to the many parents who have been in contact over the period of closure to offer support, thanks and well wishes.

Please also be aware that the academy office is open daily from 8:30am– 3:30pm, so please do not hesitate to telephone us should you have any concerns or need support with home learning, safeguarding or any other matter regarding your child’s learning or welfare.

Please be assured that we are committed to ensuring that we do all within our power to reduce the impact of the closure on pupil learning and attainment and would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your ongoing support during this difficult time.

Jane Sames

Acting Principal

COVID -19- The ‘new‘ day at Mossbourne Parkside Academy 

It has been wonderful to welcome so many children back to the academy this week. As usual, our pupils have adapted seamlessly to our new routines and processes, and to the differences in their classrooms, and we’d like to thank our families for their cooperation and support in making our new entry and exit routines work. Below, we’ve detailed a few of the new processes that we’ve put into place to keep ourselves and each other safe.

At drop-off time, children and parents queue in marked places on the pavement outside the school, maintaining their social distances. Each year group is dropped off at a different time, to avoid congestion. When each year group’s time is called, the parents drop their children off through a one-way system, and each child walks to their teaching pod where their teacher is waiting for them.

When we walk around the building, we keep our two metre spaces between us, to ensure that we are social distancing effectively. Year 6 have enjoyed their playtime and PE lessons on the roof this week. By making full use of our school spaces, we ensure that pods do not mix or interact at playtime. We eat lunch in our pods, with spaces between us marked out on the seats. We can still talk to our friends and teachers, and enjoying catching up after our time away from school.

Our classrooms certainly look different! Our desks are spaced out, with fewer pupils in each room. We each have our own stationery and books, to make sure we continue learning even while social distancing. In Early Years, children have been enjoying their outdoor play area safely and in smaller groups.

At the end of the day, our families queue up along the pavement again, and the children are collected through the same one way system.

Thank you for your support in implementing these new structures to make our academy safe for the children. If you would like to request a place for your child, please contact Ms Mohammed directly at the academy.

MPA