Information regarding school lockdown procedures as advised by the Welsh Government

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PRESTATYN High School has bucked the trend of falling GCSE results in Wales with a 20 per cent rise in the number of pupils achieving C or above in English language.
Many Welsh schools have seen their percentage of pupils achieving a C grade at GCSE in English, maths and three other subjects drop significantly, some schools falling by more than 20 per cent.

Prestatyn High also boasted many “outstanding” individual performances, with more pupils gaining A and A* grades.

Headteacher Neil Foley, who started last September, said:

“These results are fantastic for our pupils who can now go on and study their chosen A levels.
They are even more astonishing when you look at the national data and realise how much more difficult it was this year to achieve well in many subjects.
This is the culmination of 12 months’ hard work, grit and determination and I would also like to thank all of the parents for their support and the staff for their tireless energy”.

Measles

Read more MMR info
NHS Wales official website

Measles is an acute highly infectious viral illness caught through direct contact with an infected person or through the air via droplets from coughs or sneezes. 
 
Symptoms include fever, cold-like symptoms, fatigue, conjunctivitis and a distinctive red-brown rash.
 
Measles is one of a number of notifiable diseases in the UK. Any doctor who suspects that a patient has measles is required by law to report it.
 
Measles infection can be prevented by a highly effective and safe vaccine which is part of the measles-mump-rubella (MMR) immunisation. More information about measles is available from NHS Direct Wales On-line.
 
Take a look at our infographics on ‘What you need to know about measles’, ‘immunisation in school aged children in Wales’ and ‘immunisation in 4 year old children in Wales’. These give information about measles and the MMR and feel free to download and print off your own copy.

Prevention

Measles can be prevented by a highly effective and safe vaccine. This is part of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) immunisation.

mmr vaccinationA complete course of the two doses will protect over 95% of children against measles, mumps and rubella. The current immunisation schedule recommends one dose to be given at around 13 months and a second dose given at between 3-5 years of age.

The MMR vaccine has been used for over 30 years (it was introduced in the US in the 1970s), is currently used in over 100 countries, and more than 500 million doses have been given. Studies from around the world have shown MMR to be a highly effective vaccine, with an excellent safety record. The NHS Choices website has more information about this and other vaccines.

Minimising impact in Wales

One important role of Public Health Wales is the collection and interpretation of data about the levels of infectious disease in the Welsh population. Key infections, including measles, are under constant surveillance, to detect significant trends, to evaluate prevention and control measures and to alert appropriate professionals and organisations to infectious disease threats.

The most effective method of controlling measles is by maintaining high levels of immunisation among vulnerable groups or whole populations. Public Health Wales contribute to this through the work of the Vaccine Preventable Disease Programme (VPDP) and Local Health Protection Teams (HPTs).

These support WAG in setting a strategic direction for immunisation services, support LHBs in managing local services and achieving targets, and support General Practice and Trusts delivering services.

In addition Public Health Wales identify and follow up local cases and outbreaks of measles prevent spread of the disease amongst vulnerable people. VPDP initiates and supports interventions to increase the number of children protected against measles by the MMR vaccine.

It’s lunchtime at a high school in Denbighshire, north Wales, and the aroma of cooked chicken fills the canteen as a dinner lady in a pinstriped apron puts food on to plates. The line of children who are waiting to be served a chicken burger, beans and chips builds around the hall.

The children are here for a free school meal but those queueing won’t be going to lessons afterwards because they are being fed during the summer holidays as part of a scheme that has been boosted by £500,000 from the Welsh government .

The investment comes after a report by MPs this year said up to 3 million children across the UK risk going hungry in the holidays. This summer a record number of food banks across Britain have called for donations due to growing demand during the school holidays. And the problem of holiday hunger came into sharp relief in Wales when a food bank in Swansea ran out of stock.

In Prestatyn high school, student liaison officer James Williams says:

Parents say that having lunch is a huge help for them. Without this some children won’t get meals with the same consistency they do during term time. This is one way for us to guarantee a young person gets two meals a day.

The school’s programme includes meals, visiting speakers and sports activities. Once a week family members join the children for lunch. It has cost around £14,000 to run the scheme during the holidays with, on average, 65 primary-aged children each day in the hall. The Welsh government has given £4,250.

The school ran a pilot last year that helped 25 children, and it hoped to expand the scheme this summer by drafting in different staff and sourcing money from its free school meal budget. I don’t think we could have done it to the capacity we have without the Welsh government funding,

says Williams.

Angela Evans and her son Mathew, 11, enjoyed the lunch club and activities at Prestatyn as she says it helped him make new friends ahead of secondary school.

Read more
The Guardian – Wales takes bite out of children’s holiday hunger

From 1st September 2017, Denbighshire County Council’s School Meals Service will reluctantly be increasing the cost of school meals by 20p. This will mean secondary school meals will rise to £2.25 per day and there will be minimal price rises on some individual menu items. The equivalent cost of free school meals will also rise accordingly.

Read more
Secondary School Price Increase-2