Parents/ Guardians Support

Newcastle College has now reopened for students for the new academic term.

We have been busy making changes to our campus and to our teaching and learning to ensure that we can keep all of our community safe. This means students will split their time between practical learning on campus and remote learning from home.

Whilst on campus, students and colleagues should wear face coverings, practice social distancing wherever possible and ensure they follow one-way systems and other signposted safety measures. Students have been provided with a 'Keeping You Safe' booklet and links to all of the safety information on our website, which details all of the safety measures in place on campus.

Newcastle College has now reopened for all students and it's great to be back!

We have been busy making changes to our campus and to our teaching and learning to ensure that we can keep all of our community safe. This means students will split their time between practical learning on campus and remote learning from home. Whilst on campus, students and colleagues should practice social distancing wherever possible, wear face coverings outside of the classroom (unless they are exempt) and ensure they follow one-way systems and other signposted safety measures. Students have been provided with a 'Keeping You Safe' booklet which details all of the safety measures in place on campus.

Check out the video below which shows you all of the changes we've made to campus.

The health and wellbeing of our students, our colleagues and all of their loved ones is our first priority and Newcastle College is here to support you.

We understand that some students may be at additional risk or feel anxious about returning to college, particularly if they have an underlying health condition, are part of the BAME community or live with someone who is vulnerable.

Please be reassured that we have taken all possible and suitable precautions to ensure that our campus is a safe place to study. This includes increasing our cleaning schedules, limiting the time all of our students spend here, enabling social distancing in classrooms and introducing the use of face coverings in all communal areas. It means that when students are on campus they will not be around large crowds and will be in a safe and clean environment.

If you have any concerns about your child's return to college please speak to their tutor, who will be able to ensure we put the right support in place.

The past six months have been difficult for everyone and we understand that our students may have concerns and anxieties about attending college.

We believe that it is important for our students to be able to safely spend time on campus with their tutors and classmates, benefiting from learning in our specialist facilities.

However, to keep everybody safe we have adapted our teaching and learning to reduce the time spent on campus and there will be changes to the way students interact while they're here.

Safety on Campus
If your child has concerns about their safety on campus, please be reassured that we have taken every possible precaution to make college a safe place to learn. We have already directed our students to all of our safety information but it may be helpful as their parent or guardian for you to go through this with them to ease their anxieties and concerns. This may be particularly helpful for those students who are joining us this year after a prolonged period out of education. If students need any support due to health concerns or mental health support, please advise them to speak to their tutor who will be able to signpost them to the relevant Student Support team within the college.

Remote Learning

Our existing students have already spent time adapting to Remote Learning since we closed our doors in March. However, particularly for new students, we understand that it may take some time to adapt to learning to the new hybrid learning timetable we have created.

Your support is more important than ever. Please encourage students not to put too much pressure on themselves and that looking after their health and wellbeing is a priority at this time. We are doing everything we can to ensure that students are supported to complete their studies successfully and won’t be at a disadvantage. Please point students to our Remote Learning hub where we will continue to add resources. If you have any concerns you can also contact tutors directly to discuss these.

Students should not come into college if they have one or more of the main symptoms of coronavirus, such as a fever, cough or loss of smell and taste and they should report their absence using the absence line.

They should stay at home for the time recommended by the NHS and book a test here.

If they are already at college when you develop symptoms, they will be asked to go to an isolated room before going home to isolate and book a test.

Students should inform the college of any test results as soon as they are received.

The advice we have received from Public Health England and the NHS Test and Trace Service is as follows:

"If a student or staff member develops one or more of the main coronavirus symptoms described only they should be tested. There is no need for their households to have a test, unless they are also symptomatic.

"Unless a student or staff member has one of the three main coronavirus symptoms, they should only be tested if instructed otherwise by the local authority, health protection team or their GP. As colleges across England return, students may feel unwell for example with a sore throat, stomach upset or a headache. These students don’t need to book a test but may need to stay off college and seek medical advice through their GP or pharmacist as usual."

If you would like to read the full information we have received from Public Health England and the NHS you can find that here.

If we are contacted to report a positive Covid-19 test from a student or colleague who has been on campus, we will follow the advice of the local Health Protection team. They
will advise us if any individuals need to self-isolate or undergo testing and these people will be informed. We will close the affected building and undergo thorough cleaning and
disinfecting before allowing anyone to return to the building.

We advise all students and colleagues to follow NHS and government guidance if they live with someone who develops symptoms or tests positive for Covid-19. 

This means self-isolating for the time period recommended by the NHS and booking a test where necessary.

This advice should also be followed if students are contacted by the NHS Track and Trace system.

We advise students to report their absence to the absence line in the usual way if they need to self-isolate. If they are required to get a test, students should report the results of their tests to the college as soon as they are received.

Attendance at college is extremely important for the progress and achievement of students. We have always asked students and their parents and guardians to refrain from booking holidays during term times. Term time holidays will be reported as unauthorised absences. You can find out term dates on our website here.

You are welcome to book holidays for students during designated holidays. However, please bear in mind that we would expect all students to attend their campus and remote lessons once term time begins and therefore we would ask that you make every attempt not to book holidays to countries which will require a quarantine period on your return. We do however, understand that government guidance and quarantine information is changing on a regular basis.