The MP for Copeland has met with school pupils to find out how they are resettling in the classroom.
Since the Prime Minster announced that schools could begin to reopen from June 1, schools and staff across the region have been working hard to ensure a safe reopening.
Across Copeland all schools have returned and this week, Trudy visited Captain Shaw’s Primary School in Bootle to speak to the headteacher and pupils on their return.
It is one of the many village schools in Copeland that has had a phased return of year groups and will open to all age ranges next week.
Trudy said: “Headteachers and school staff across Copeland have been doing an excellent job preparing for a wider opening, including putting protective measures in place and engaging with parents and children.
“I commend all school teachers and staff who have adapted to this unprecedented way of working, aided by technology and recourses provided by the Department for Education, enabling a virtual education at home.
“We want to get all our children back into education as soon as we can because it is the best place for them to learn, and also because we know it is best for children’s mental wellbeing to have social interactions with other children, carers and teachers.”
Some schools across Copeland have remained open throughout the lockdown period, opening as hubs to provide education and childcare for key worker families.
Due to the range of schools in Copeland there is no single approach to reopening schools, with individual schools and school clusters making their own decisions.
Adelaide Morris, Headteacher of Captain Shaw’s C. of E. Primary School, said: “Captain Shaw’s has been able to reopen to pupils in all the year groups requested, due to the fact that we have small numbers and appropriate staff levels, which has worked very well in this initial phase.
“Staff and pupils have had a really positive experience of coming back into school and parents are happy with our provision. We recognise that as a small school we will be vulnerable to school closure, if families or staff need to isolate and as such we see any time in school as extremely valuable.”
