Support will be available for pupils and normal timetables in place when pupils return, Hermitage Academy’s head teacher said this week.
Robert Williamson gave the assurance after the Scottish Government said its aim was now for all schools to fully reopen on August 10.
He used a video on the school’s website to address concerns about timetables and admitted plans for pupil transport were ‘in flux’.
But he said: “We will be on this.
“We will be looking after your young people, we will be keeping you informed, and we will be making sure this is a smooth transition back to normality for all of our young people – a smooth transition from primary to secondary for our new S1, and a smooth transition for all those young people with some more challenges than the rest.
“We will make sure that support is in place at all stages.
“Timetables, of course, have been delayed – we had our timetables at a considerably advanced stage and we were then told of course to put our alternative model, which effectively is working in the larger blocks of learning.
“It now looks, after the announcement from the depute first minister, as if we will be coming in to our normal timetable.”
He said final decisions still had to be made regarding this and although timetables might only be issued on the first day of term, staff would ‘make sure that is not a stressful time’.
“We are still in negotiations at the moment as to what kind of first week we will have,” he added.
“We are looking for very much a ‘soft week’, if I’m honest, and sticking roughly to the plan we put out there for you.
“There will be an in-service day on Tuesday (August 11), only first years on Wednesday, and then instead of half the school, we anticipate it will be the whole school on Thursday and Friday.
“However, if that changes at all, we will give you that information in plenty of time.”
He acknowledged that parents would want reassurances about buses and trains, including whether PPE would be worn, and said staff were trying to obtain as much detail as possible, while transport authorities were looking at the issue.
Mr Williamson added: “At the moment we are ready to go for distances within the school. At the moment we are still ready to go for every second week having support material online.
“Our janitorial staff are aware that changes will take place over the summer and we will be in touch with them.”
Concluding the video, which is more than ten minutes long, he said: “Thank you very much for your patience during this – please continue to be patient with your young people, please continue to empathise with the stresses they are going through amidst your own strife and please remember that you can always get in touch with the school.
“I will be checking emails over the summer after taking a brief break, and I will be making sure that we get answers out to you if there are any real queries that you think will cause some difficulties for you.
“But it’s ‘stay calm and carry on’ in a slightly different situation.
“All the best for the summer: please look after yourselves and your family, remember how much we care about you, and remember we will be back very soon and contact is always available.
“Look after yourselves and thank you.”
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