Please find the latest letter from the National Clinical Director Jason Leitch to all Parents and Carers below:
Letter to Parents and Carers from Jason Leitch National Clinical Director – 16 September 2021
Dear Parent/Carer,
I hope you and your family are keeping safe and well. Please read the attached letter which introduces South Lanarkshire’s new Community Wellbeing Helpline for all families of Hamilton Grammar School.
Hamilton Grammar School, in partnership with South Lanarkshire’s Community Wellbeing Helpline team, would like to draw your attention to the free, confidential money advice service that is offered to all families and pupils in the school. General advice can be given on a range of benefits including Free School Meals, Clothing Grants, Education Maintenance Allowance. Assistance can also be given in crisis situations such as having no money for food, gas or electricity.
Referrals can be arranged to Money Matters who can support you in making benefit claims and provide you with assistance in any debt or money matters. Call 0303 123 1009, email or follow the QR code to fill in an online referral and the Wellbeing team will contact you.
Our flu immunisation programme will take place on Thursday 16th September. It is being offered to all pupils, and the immunisation team are planning on treating all pupils on this date, however a catch-up session might be arranged if they feel it is required. Arrangements for pupils on the day will be announced to classes next week.
Any remaining consent forms should be returned to the school office ASAP.
For help with completing the form, or with any other enquiries about the immunisation please contact the lead nurse, Carol Anne Hammond, on 07966 296 416
To all parents / carers,
All S1 pupils must remain on the school grounds during lunch and Interval. This is to ensure all data checks are complete and friendship groups are well established. There are plenty of picnic tables for pack and school lunches. This arrangement will be reviewed at the September weekend.
Miss Brien (S1 year head)
Dear Parents/Carers,
Please see Cost of the School Day recent updates from June – Aug 21.
Since the launch of the Hamilton Grammar School Uniform Hub in June 2021, many pupils have benefitted from both recycled and brand-new school uniform. Our Hub is going from strength to strength, and it cannot thrive without the generous donations from our Hamilton Grammar Community. We extend a sincere thanks to all parents, carers, and pupils for your generous donations.
Please see follow the links below for the latest Government update for pupils with Free School Meal Entitlement
Primary schools in Scotland have successfully supported the annual Flu immunisation programme since 2014. This year the programme is being extended to secondary school pupils.
Pupils were issued with consent forms last week for this immunisation, which is being offered to all pupils in Scotland. These forms must be returned to the school office by Friday 27th August.
Blank forms will be issued to pupils who did not receive a form last week.
For help with completing the form, or with any other enquiries about the immunisation please contact the lead nurse, Carol Anne Hammond, on 07966 296 416
This leaflet offers more information for parents about the programme:
Pupils who stay on at school may be entitled to an Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) – a £30 weekly allowance. It provides financial support to help young people from low income households continue their education.
In order to receive EMA you should apply online via the South Lanarkshire Council website (https://www.southlanarkshire.gov.uk/info/200188/secondary_school_information/158/education_maintenance_allowance_-_financial_help_for_senior_pupils).
Please note – even if you received EMA before you must re-apply for the new school year
You will not start to receive payments until your application has been processed and you have received an acceptance letter from South Lanarkshire Council.
Pupils must also complete the learning contract in the S5/S6 Google classrooms to receive EMA.
Please note that you will not receive an EMA payment for a week in which you have an unexplained absence or unacceptable number of lates. If you are absent for more than a week please submit a medical certificate or doctor’s letter.
Please find a copy of the latest information letter from NHS Lanarkshire below:
The letter contains information which may answer any questions you have regarding cases within schools and testing.
Please find a letter from the Headteacher regarding the return of pupils for the 2021-22 school year below:
Dear Parent/Carer,
I hope this letter finds you well. We are looking forward to welcoming all our new S1 pupils on Monday 16th August as they begin the next step on their educational journey at Hamilton Grammar. We appreciate, however, that some of our new pupils may be anxious and, therefore, I hope that this summary letter helps to provide some reassurance.
We should all remember that, although this is a return to education for our pupils, it will not be a return to normality. That said we will do everything that we can, under the circumstances, to make the experience as much like our normal school day as possible.
Please also note that the headteacher will correspond directly with all parents in advance of returning to school on Monday.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR MONDAY THE 16TH OF AUGUST
At school:
All pupils (except those exempt) should wear a face mask when entering the school in accordance with Scot. Gov guidelines.
All pupils should wear School uniform (details on school website = P7 handbook).
All S1 Pupils will enter the building through Door 6. Door 6 is at the very top of the playground -facing towards you- See below:
On entering the building, pupils should sanitise their hands using the wall-mounted equipment provided near the doors (additional hand sanitising procedures will be communicated to pupils). Teachers will guide pupils to their allocated class. Pupils should avoid physical contact with other pupils at all times during the day, both inside and outside the school building. The school day will operate as normal with an 8.45 am start and a 3.35 pm finish. At the end of the school day, pupils should sanitise their hands and follow the one-way system which will be clearly signposted.
Interval and Lunch:
All S1 pupils will remain within the school grounds
Interval will be from 11.15 to 11.30, however, S1 pupils will be released at 11.10am for a limited period to allow them to become familiar with the layout.
Lunch starts at 1.10 -1.55, however S1 pupils will again be released at 1.05 for a limited period.
All pupils will use the picnic benches outside for pack lunches or food purchased from the canteen. Alternative arrangements will be made in the event of inclement weather.
Initially there will be no lunchtime or after school clubs. We will look to introduce these as soon as we can and taking account of Government guidance on these matters.
In Class:
Pupils will be given an induction on arrival in their PLP (Personal Learning Plan) and registration class. Pupils will receive their timetable, school layout, one-way system plan and other key documents. Several documents require to be completed and returned; therefore, we would ask that you make the necessary arrangements for this to be returned the following week. Please also note that there is no requirement for pupils to bring their PE kit to school on Monday.
In order to support our S1 pupils to navigate the school, teachers will provide additional support for the first week in relation to the location of subject classrooms and our school facilities. Our primary focus during the initial period will be on wellbeing and helping our new pupils to feel settled in the School environment.
Placing Requests:
All new S1 pupils who are placing requests need to provide the school with a copy of their birth certificate. On Monday please send the original birth certificate in with your son / daughter in a sealed envelope. This will be photocopied for our records and returned to your son / daughter the same day.
We hope that these arrangements will enable our 1st year groups to commence their formal timetable from Monday 16th of August.
Miss Brien
S1 Year Head
