1 November 2021

 

 

 

Dear Parent/Carer

 

PROCEDURE IN THE EVENT OF AN EMERGENCY LOCK-DOWN OF THE SCHOOL (an emergency event, not Covid)

 

I am writing to let you know that we have recently reviewed and updated the school’s lock-down procedure.  This procedure outlines fully the actions that we would take in the event of an intruder coming onto the school site, someone in school trying to cause harm or external factors such as gas leaks.  It covers anything that causes concern in terms of the safety of our school community.  Thankfully, these occurrences are extremely rare, but nevertheless, it is important that we have plans in place to deal with any such emergency, in the same way that we are always prepared should the need arise for an evacuation of the building in the event of a fire.

 

Whilst we have regular fire evacuation practices throughout a school year (the last one was in October just before the holiday), we have only previously had one lock-down drill, done in April 2019, therefore many of our school community have not done this before. 

 

During assemblies this week, all students are being informed of what actions would be taken by staff and what would be expected of students in case of this type of emergency.  Following on from these assemblies, during early November, we will arrange a lock-down drill practice so that staff and students have the opportunity to practice and understand how this process would work. 

 

The information that is being given in assembly and the practice that will take place are not intended to cause concern or alarm to students in school, or to parents.  It is, in fact, designed to do the opposite and reassure you that we are well-prepared should any such event occur in the future. 

 

I therefore felt it was important to let you know in advance that the drill is going to take place during early November, so as to ensure there is no opportunity for misunderstanding or miscommunication about what is happening in school when the drill is initiated.

 

Yours sincerely

 

Tina Smith

Headteacher

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