THE headteacher of Lethbridge School has warned parents of possible staff shortages due to coronavirus precautions.

In a letter seen by the Adver, Lisa Mayes outlined steps being taken to help pupils who may have to self-isolate and announced the cancellation of Easter events and after-school clubs.

She said: "We are trying very hard to keep the school open, but I must warn you that our staffing levels are dropping considerably as families begin to self-isolate.

"We are not yet clear on what further advice we will be getting about what those people who are pregnant or have certain underlying health conditions should be doing with regard to self-isolation.

"It is becoming clear that if the sort of measures that Boris Johnson has described do become the expected, it will be very difficult indeed to maintain the staffing levels we need to keep children safe.

"I understand that this is a frustrating, difficult and worrying time for many families and so I thank you for your continued support.

"The feedback I am receiving from parents shows great understanding of the difficult circumstances we are working in – trying to keep our school open as directed but also managing the very challenging situation.

"Current advice is that if you, or anyone in your household, has a cough or a temperature, then the whole household must self-isolate for 14 days. Please do not send your child to school under these circumstances.

"We will be sending home children who present with these symptoms.

"Please do not come in to the school office reception area in the morning or at the end of school. Senior staff will stay outside and be available to talk. We are trying to reduce the number of people unnecessarily entering the building.

"We will cease selling Easter egg hunt tickets. Could we ask that children bring their already purchased tickets in, ready to take part in a scaled-down version of the hunt either before the end of the week or following our return if we have a sudden shut-down.

"We would like to cancel all after school clubs from the beginning of next week, including Friday’s afternoon clubs.

"Please can I ask that no parent volunteers come to school, apart from those who are helping us run swimming on Thursday and the Friends of Lethbridge who are part of the Mother’s Day Wrap.

"By Friday, we will have on our website a sheet for each year group giving English, maths and topic ideas for working at home. We will provide more work for children in the event of a longer closure. Click the Pupils button on the Home page.

"For children with high levels of additional need who follow a curriculum that is different to that of their year group, we are currently producing packs that they will be able to bring home.

"All outside agencies who support us in meeting the needs of children with additional needs or in running the administrative side of the school are no longer being allowed by their management to visit us."