19th June 2023
Dear Parent,
I am writing to let you know that we are planning to have an emergency lockdown drill for staff and pupils on Thursday 13th July at approximately 10.20am. This will involve us running through the procedures we would employ in the case of a real-life emergency where there was a danger to members of the school community on-site.
Apart from the obvious reason of us being prepared for such an eventuality, the UK government has also placed a legal duty on all schools to carry out an emergency lockdown drill at least once a year. This was part of the recommendations following the enquiry into the Manchester Arena tragedy.
I will be speaking to pupils about the emergency lockdown drill in assemblies this week and we will remind them closer to the time. We are giving plenty of notice to pupils, parents and staff in an attempt to minimise anxiety or alarm for any of our community. We appreciate that it may raise some fears for our young people but feel that the benefit of carrying out the drill far outweighs any potential harm. Understandably, some children may express fears in the home environment in the lead up to, or following, our emergency lockdown drill. We would be extremely grateful of the support of families in helping to explain its importance, and please do let the relevant head of year know should you be worried about your children’s well-being.
I am going to be comparing the lockdown drill to a fire drill, which we carry out three times a year. In the 23 years I have been at Cathays High, we have not had to use the fire drill procedures for a real-life event, however, it is still important that all members of the community know what to do should this happen.
During the lockdown drill, we will be asking teachers to lock classroom doors, switch off lights and screens and close blinds. We will also be asking students and staff to hide under their desks to try, as far as possible, to make the rooms look empty. It will be important that pupils comply quickly and calmly with teachers’ requests. It is very important during the drill, and in any real-life situation, that parents do not attempt to ring the school or their children’s mobiles and we will be asking pupils to ensure that phones remain off and out of sight for the duration of the drill.
We anticipate the drill lasting for around 10 minutes from start to finish. This will give enough time for everyone to carry out the expected actions and identify any potential problems with the system and procedures which will help us to improve them for the future.
In a real-life example, we would send an automated text to parents’ mobiles to let them know that there is a lockdown situation happening. We will not be doing this during the drill on 13th July. On receipt of such a text, it will be important that parents refrain from ringing the school and especially their child’s mobile until the all-clear message is received by parents.
I appreciate that these are not pleasant matters to be considering and I am happy to answer any queries that parents may have regarding either the emergency lockdown drill or our procedures. We will be sending some reminders about the emergency lockdown drill closer to the date.
Yours Faithfully
Stuart Davies
(Headteacher)
