Your safety comes first
​Coronavirus (COVID-19) Procedures - update as at 23rd September 2020

The school has been open and running well from Tuesday 4th August 2020 with excellent feedback from students and tutors on our procedures. We continue to modify these in line with changing conditions and Government advice and update this page regularly.

Please read the notes below carefully. Your attendance at the school will be taken as confirmation that you have read, understood and will abide by our procedures which will help to keep everyone safe and well. Thank you.

Dear All
 
We hope that you are all still keeping safe and well. Please see below the procedures we have now put in place, and continually monitor and modify, since re-opening:

Summary of covid-19 safety protections

• Each class size is restricted to a maximum of 10 students plus the tutor
• The school layout has been amended to accommodate all necessary social distancing measures
• The front classroom and dining room area have been opened up into one large space to accommodate socially distanced work table layouts
• The back classroom is opened only occasionally, when class sizes are particularly small, with staggered / distanced seating
• A one-way system has been put in place in parts of the school, with signage and distancing markings, and barriers where required
• Doors and windows will remain open for best ventilation. Please wear extra layers if you feel the cold.
• Tutors will demonstrate via cameras projected onto large screen TVs out in the classrooms and will sit behind screened-off desks. Tutors can be approached for one to one assistance at the correct safe distance. In certain arts and crafts, tutors may need to circulate around the classroom, at 1m+ distance, wearing a face covering. If you are uncomfortable with this, please tell the tutor.
• Students and tutors are asked to observe social distancing at all times, and not move around the classroom to look at other's work
• Shared tools must be sanitised after each use – where possible students will be provided with own set or can use own tools
• Refreshments and lunch will be served individually in individual Brown Paper Bags and can be taken in the garden, eaten at desks, on a walk or in own cars, or you can bring your own refreshments if preferred. Lunch choices will be made by completing a 'menu form' in the morning
• Tea, coffee and water will be available as usual; handles of urn and coffee pots must be sanitised after each use. Please bring your own mugs / drinking vessel!
• Additional daily sanitising and cleaning measures have been put in place. Sanitisers and cleaning materials will be available on each desk, in each classroom, by the refreshments, on any shared tools tables and at the entrance/exit
• The ladies washrooms have been modified so that the centre cubicle is closed to avoid overcrowding - we ask that you keep to one in the loo and one washing hands; the disabled / men's toilet has been converted to a unisex loo for the future. Spray cleaning materials are provided so that everyone can sanitise the loo after use
• It is requested that all tutors and students wear appropriate face coverings when moving around the school and classrooms, although when seated and working at your desk, face coverings can be removed if you prefer (subject to any changes in Government guidelines)
• We expect and encourage you to wash your hands well very regularly. We have seven sinks available in the school and all have nail brushes and plenty of soap and paper towels. Please bring own sanitiser supply if preferred to soap and water
• Anyone who has been in contact with, or experiencing symptoms of covid-19 in the last 14 days, or in quarantine because of returning from places under quarantine, will NOT be permitted to enter

​We provide a regular update to students on the status of your particular course. If your course is cancelled by us, we will offer a full refund, or a transfer to another course, in line with our usual policy. If you cancel your attendance, our usual cancellation policy applies.

Online Workshops
In the meantime, we have extended our programme of safe, socially-distant online LivePlus workshops and ArtTalks, which are extremely popular.  You can see the full programme at this link: ArdingtonAcademy.

​These small group sessions are hosted live on Zoom video conferencing, which our students and tutors describe as incredibly simple to use.  Feedback on your work and discussions with other students and the tutors are a feature part of these sessions. We hope to see you again soon, and in the meantime, do feel free to give us a call or drop us a line to discuss any aspects of our programmes and procedures.

With best wishes, Yvonne and Simon