Procedures and New Terms and Conditions

Lessons

Class sizes ("bubbles") will be limited to contain possible spread of Covid-19. Teachers will teach different "bubble" groups and they will remain 2 metres distance from their students.
The Timetable has been amended to allow for cleaning and ventilation of the halls between classes.
The Timetable also incorporates staggered start/finish lesson times to ensure "bubbles" do not cross in the corridor.
To facilitate 1 metre plus social distancing each student will dance in a 1.5m x 1.5m marked square on the hall floor within similar static spaces in a circle formation and also at the ballet barre. Additionally, students will perform individual travelling dance movements whilst other students wait in designated space. (Please note spacing is subject to changes when the spread of the virus in the dance studio environment is more fully understood)
There will be a reduction in shared teaching resources - if a prop or any other item is required for a class, we will inform you with as much notice as possible.
Musical Theatre classes will take place with all children facing forward.
Due to minimising adult presence in the building - there will be no adult classes this term. No adults will be allowed in the building.
Trials for new students – One parent can watch for 10/15 minutes with mask and shoe coverings (The school will provide) If a child is unsettled then of course the parent can stay longer. No other siblings will be allowed.

Uniform

Students will be required to arrive at the halls in clean dance uniform (with outdoor clothes over the top) carrying one small bag containing their dance shoes and a bottle of water. Dance shoes are to be put on in the foyer and outdoor shoes can be left in the sanitised box provided. Water can be taken into the halls (where possible parents/guardians will be asked to take outdoor clothes and coats with them at drop off)
Dance uniforms must be washed after each lesson and not to be worn to school or anywhere else before use in their dance lesson. Dance shoes are to be cleaned at home ready for the next class.
No bare feet will be allowed. Those classes that normally do not require shoes should where ballet shoes or Jazz shoes.
If your child cannot tie up their own tap shoes, they will require elastics as laces, which will need to be tied in advance and have enough movement to ensure children can slip their own shoes on.
Tots ballet and tap classes – Parents will be required to put their own child’s tap shoes on. More details to follow.

Please also note that:

As mentioned in earlier emails, students upon arrival will be given hand sanitizer to rub into their hands, then they will go straight to the class.
We do not recommend face masks being used in dance classes since it will restrict breathing efficiency during the class, however, teachers will be wearing visors.
We will not be taking temperature readings since we understand this is not a reliable method of diagnosing the virus.
If your child or anyone else in your household has an underlying health condition which means they/you would be at a higher risk of being severely ill it they/you were to contract Covid-19, or has to shield for any other reason, then at this stage we do not recommend your child attends Autumn term classes. Although we are mitigating risk as much as possible including implementing rigorous cleaning and social distancing, your child will be indoors with several people and there is still limited research on spread in indoor exercise environments

Cleaning and Hygiene

Cleaning and Hygiene Following government guidelines, we will have a strict cleaning programme in place to minimize the risk of spreading the virus.
All students will be given hand sanitizer on their hands upon entry and will be encouraged to rub it in correctly by the member of staff at the door. We are looking at options for sanitizing their outside shoes, but an update will follow shortly.
All handrails and chairs will be disinfected after each class swap over to ensure the risk of spreading the virus is minimal.
Heavy traffic touch points such as internal doors, door handles and surfaces will be cleaned every 30 minutes.
In-between each class the studio floor will be disinfected with the appropriate floor cleaners.
The toilet and sink will be disinfected after every use. Paper towels will be on hand to dry hands.
All staff will sanitize their hands on a regular basis.
Before each day, the halls and building will be deep cleaned.
We will encourage the student to use: Catch It, Bin It, Kill It. Then encourage them to wash their hands for 20 seconds. There will be lots of posters on the wall to encourage this.
Bins in student areas have been changed to bins with lids to stop the spores spreading.

First Aid

If a first aid incident occurs the first aider will be in full PPE to deal with the incident. If an incident occurs, the 2- meter social distance rule will be abandoned but for this purpose only

Updates to Terms and Conditions  Six new clauses will be added to our Terms and Conditions, your payment of fees for Autumn Term classes will confirm your acceptance of them  1. No refund will be provided in the instances below, however, in the event of (i), (ii) or (iii) a live Zoom class will be provided instead.  (i) A student within your "bubble" has a suspected/confirmed case of Covid-19 (or any other infectious disease) and it becomes necessary for the whole "bubble" to isolate and therefore classes do not operate  (ii) Classes have to be cancelled due to a teacher needing to self-isolate and Deborah Jayne School of Dance & Theatre is unable to find a suitable cover teacher  (iii) A student is unable to attend a class because they are required to self-isolate  (iv) A student arrives more than five minutes after the start of a class and is therefore not allowed into the building.   2.Deborah Jayne School of Dance and Theatre cannot be held liable for anyone who has attended the studio premises contracting Covid-19 (or any other infectious disease) 3. If a student has a suspected/confirmed case of Covid-19 (or any other infectious disease) then you agree to inform us immediately to enable us to inform the rest of the "bubble" (as per government test and trace strategy) if a student has a suspected/confirmed case of Covid-19 (or any other infectious disease) then you agree to inform us immediately to enable us to inform the rest of the "bubble" (as per government test and trace strategy) 4. Where The child, young person, or staff member test positive, NHS Test and Trace will speak directly to those they have been in contact with to offer advice. This advice may be that the setting should be sent home and advised to self - isolate for 14 days. As part of the national test and trace programme, if other cases are detected within the class or group or wider setting, Public Health England's local health protection teams will conduct a rapid investigation and will advise on the most appropriate action to take. In some cases, many other children and young people may be asked to self - isolate at home as a precautionary measure - perhaps the whole class, group, or site. Where settings are observing guidance on prevention and control, which will reduce risk of transmission, closure of the whole setting will not generally be necessary. 5. Any families that have visited a country that is on the quarantined list will not be able to attend the school until they have completed their isolation period.

Reporting of Symptoms

It is vital that parents and staff play their part in helping to reduce the spread of the virus, by reporting to us if they display symptoms of coronavirus. If you, or your child presents a high temperature or a new persistent continuous cough, loss or change to your sense of smell or taste, sore throat or cold symptoms, you must not attend class and self-isolate for 10 days. Check with NHS 111 to see if your symptoms match that of coronavirus and get tested. You must also report symptoms to us so that we can inform others whom you or your child may have been in contact with to self-isolate. If you feel unwell, Stay at home. Do not come to class. Take part online. If your child and any other family member have been tested and the test is negative then your child can return 48 hrs after result, pending if everyone is not displaying any further symptoms.

Thank you for taking the time to read through the above. We have missed seeing the children and we appreciate your assistance in ensuring a safe return to classes.  

Miss Debbie and Teachers