Dear Parents and Carers,

We know that we speak for everyone when we say that our thoughts are with all those involved in or affected by the incident that happened in London on Saturday evening. 

We know that some of you are feeling concerned, and we would like to reassure parents and carers that the school has today reviewed all security arrangements and procedures.  Advice received from the police is for us to all remain extremely vigilant, but to also ensure that we do not cause panic and unnecessarily upset and worry the children. 

In particular, we have discussed with the children at assemblies how they can stay safe and have met with all staff to discuss our security procedures, including looking at our risk assessments for school visits and transport arrangements.   If you do have any particular worries please contact a member of staff at school to discuss these further.

In terms of what to do at home, there is some good advice on the NSPCC website:

• listen carefully to a child’s fears and worries
• offer reassurance and comfort
• avoid complicated and worrying explanations that could be frightening and confusing
• help them find advice and support to understand distressing events and feelings
• children can always contact Childline free and confidentially on the phone and online.

You know your children and are the best people to support them. We are here to work with you and provide any help and guidance you need. What gives us great hope is that we know our incredibly diverse community will come together to support each other, and to show that the actions of a few individuals will not affect the positive and productive environment we provide for our children.

We would like to assure parents that, as a school, we are always extremely security conscious and the safety of the children is paramount to us at all times.

Yours sincerely,

Paul Harris, Jan Britton and Kate Mansfield