Coronavirus

Page last updated: 23 Feb 2021

Following the government announcement on Monday 22 Feb, Nescot is now making plans to re-open to students and staff from Monday 8 March. The return to campus will involve Covid testing for both students and staff. To allow this testing to be carried out safely, we will be staggering the first day back for the different groups of students based on their subject and faculty. More information will be provided to students through this web site and Nescomms.

All staff are expected on campus from 8 March (except staff who have been advised to shield). Detailed arrangements about staff testing will be confirmed through managers ahead of this.

During the week on 8 March, we expect much learning to continue to be delivered remotely. We anticipate all (or most) on-campus classes will have resumed by week commencing 15 March.

The college will be enforcing its existing Covid arrangements, in particular requiring students and staff to wear face coverings in communal areas. Further guidance about face coverings in classrooms etc will be provided ahead of the return date.

The current situation (now until 8 March)

STUDENTS

• Those booked in to the Gas and Electrical Academy should still attend.
• Exams: currently some examinations are still going ahead as planned. We will be contacting individual students about exams.
• Vulnerable students: please see below.
• All other students must NOT come into college until further notice. Instead students will be expected to attend online lessons which will follow normal timetables. Please log in to Google Classroom at the time of your normal lesson (or follow any other instructions received from your tutor).
• The campus is now shut to all students (except as above).
• All learning is now online lessons following usual timetables, unless otherwise informed by your tutor. This will continue until further notice.
• HE students: remote learning continues as planned and will continue remotely until further notice.
• Students are advised to check NesComms for messages from their teachers.

VULNERABLE STUDENTS

For certain vulnerable learners the college campus will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10am to 4pm during the lockdown (not including the February half term week). These students will be able to access online lessons in College following their timetable. At other times there will be work set by teachers to be completed with support staff.

All access to the College is via the 'old reception' (walk down the path on left hand side of the Adrian Mann Theatre as you come onto campus).  All ID passes have been disabled.  The names of the students due in College will be listed in advance and you will need to sign in with security.  It will not be possible to just turn up on the day. For any queries about access for vulnerable learners, please email us.

STAFF

The campus is now shut to all staff, unless by agreed exception. Please consult your line manager if you need to obtain permission to access the campus. Clinically extremely vulnerable staff MUST NOT attend the campus.

NESTOTS, Innovation salon and sports facilities

• Nestots nursery remains open.
  
• The college's Innovation salon, gym and sports centre remain closed until further notice. The Osteopathy Clinic is currently closed to the public except by specific arrangement for consultations connected to study or exams, and is reviewing the situation.

HEALTH & WELLBEING INFORMATION

The College is in touch with various partners to help look after the health and wellbeing of our Nescot community. Some useful resources can be found below (note: links to third party information).

Health and Wellbeing advice for Parents and Carers (Surrey County Council and NHS)

Health Apps you can trust (Surrey and Borders NHS)

FURTHER UPDATES

We are in a rapidly-evolving situation and will provide a further updates when necessary. Please check this web site and the college's social media pages for the latest info.

The information below covers the college's Covid-19 procedures as at Dec 2020. These will be re-assessed before we re-open at the end of the current lockdown.

We confirm we are complying with the government's guidance on managing the risk of Covid-19.

Face coverings and exemptions

Exemption cards must be obtained by students who are exempt from wearing a face covering in college.

What do students need to do if they think they are exempt from wearing a face covering?

If exemption relates to a medical condition the student must contact the College Nurse who is based in N17or by emailing iwhite@nescot.ac.uk Students can ask their parent / carer to write or email the College Nurse or the student’s Personal Development Coach to let us know about this.

We have produced a card for exempt students to wear in their lanyard so that they are not asked to wear a face covering. The card must be carried on campus by exempt students from Monday 2 November.

Welcome message and FAQs

We recognise that the Covid-19 pandemic continues to have an impact on how we all live and work and we have adapted college life to make studying here as safe as possible. Nescot has a very large campus, with lots of space and new facilities, so social distancing is easier for us to achieve than many schools and colleges.

It is compulsory to wear a face covering in all communal indoor areas of the College. (Unless you are exempt. Exemption cards must be carried). This includes corridors, waiting areas and canteens but does not apply within classrooms and workshops in your 'bubble'. You may need to wear a face covering in exams (see below). Please help protect your college community and respect this rule. Full information is available to the college community through Weblearn and Sharepoint.

What are lessons like?

Staff make sure that lessons are as Covid-safe as possible for students, apprentices and staff. Our arrangements will follow the latest government guidance about cleaning, hygiene and safe distancing between students in classrooms and workshops. Students at Nescot were able to begin the 2020-21 academic year with full timetables.

Nescot uses Google Classroom as a digital platform for its teaching, learning and assessment. Google Classroom helps to make lessons and resources interactive and available to students at all times. At Nescot we believe that technology and digital skills play a vital part of learning, and this also means that, as we now in a new lockdown, the College is more than ready to keep high-quality teaching and learning going. We will continue to ensure that young people also get their full English and maths tuition if they need it alongside their main subject.

We know face-to-face learning at our campus is an important part of the student experience. When we are able to resume in-person learning, we will do everything possible to ensure the safety of all members of the Nescot community.

What happens if a student has symptoms or someone the student lives with has symptoms?

When the college is open, a student must not come to College if:

• they or someone they live with is showing one or more of the symptoms of COVID-19 which are a new, persistent cough, a loss of taste and/or smell and a high temperature. Parents / carers must inform the College immediately by contacting the Head of Department or Personal Development Coach;
• the student (or the person the student lives with) should book a COVID test as soon as possible. The student’s parent / carer must inform the College that a test has been booked;
• if the student (or someone the student lives with) has a positive result they must self-isolate for 10 to 14 days; (a negative test result means that the student can return to Nescot when the student feels well enough to do so. The student’s parent / carer must provide the College with the official notification confirming the result). SEE CONTACT INFORMATION BELOW.
• the student has travelled to a country where there is a mandatory 14-day period of quarantine on return to the UK.

Do students and staff have to wear face coverings in college?

In indoor communal areas of the College such as corridors and eating areas students, staff and visitors must wear face coverings. Students and staff do not need to wear a face covering in a classroom (unless requested by the teacher). In outside areas students and staff do not need to wear face coverings but should comply with social distancing rules.

When are students exempt from wearing a face covering?

There are some circumstances where people may not be able to wear a face covering. Students need to be mindful and respectful of this, the reasons for this may not be visible to others. There are number of reasons why some people cannot wear face coverings. Here are the main ones.

• Some people cannot put on, wear or remove a face covering because of a physical or mental illness or impairment, or a disability.
• Some people have an underlying health issue which could be made worse by wearing a face covering, for example, asthmatics.
• A person who relies on lip reading and needs clear sound or facial expressions to communicate.

What do students need to do if they think they are exempt from wearing a face covering?

If it relates to a medical condition the student must contact the College Nurse who is based in N17or by emailing iwhite@nescot.ac.uk Students can ask their parent / carer to write or email the College Nurse or the student’s Personal Development Coach to let us know about this.

We have a card for exempt students to wear in their lanyard so that they are not asked to wear a face covering. The card must be carried on campus by exempt students.

Face coverings in exams

Students would normally be expected to wear face coverings in non-practical examination rooms (where it is a written or online examination). Students who have a confirmed medical exemption will not have to wear face-coverings. In practical assessments or examinations such as those taking place in technical workshops students are exempt from wearing face coverings.

In instances where students wear glasses they may also be exempt from wearing face coverings during the examination. Social distancing will still apply in all examinations in line with government’s guidelines and requirements at the time of the examination.

We update this web page regularly, so it is advisable to check back if you have any questions.

Contacting the College

What about other services at Nescot?

Qualifications at Nescot's Gas and Electrical Academy are running. Click here for more information.

Our Osteopathy clinic remains open - find out more about our on-site ICOM centre here.

Our hair and beauty salon, Innovation, and our sports facilities and gym are now OPEN again following government advice. Please see their web sites for details.

https://innovationhairandbeauty.com/

https://nescotfitness.com/

This page is updated when there are changes to guidance. Please check back here and follow us on social media to ensure you stay up-to-date.