Dear Families of Year 6
We have recently received the very sad news below about our 2021 Ford Castle trip. As overnight stays are currently not allowed we desperately want to try and organise something else. We have produced a ‘Teams Questionnaire’ and would like you to complete this with your child. Please can this be done before Monday 21st September.
“As we are all aware the Covid 19 epidemic has caused great disruption to our lives and especially to schools and pupil activities. Ford Castle has been closed since the government “lock down” in March with now no possibility of opening this year.
We have carefully reviewed our options for continuing at Ford in these uncertain times and have had to make some difficult decisions. Our 2020 income has been drastically reduced and although the government initiatives have helped many costs have still to be met this year. The end of the furlough scheme next month has caused us to dismiss most of our staff which has been extremely upsetting as we had built an excellent team and these good people now face difficult times.
The number of school bookings for 2021 is less than we would normally expect only 4 months before the start of next year and it is likely that 2021 would see a greatly reduced number of visitors. A second wave of Covid or even a large spike in infections would reduce numbers even more. In this situation we have reached the decision that Ford Castle cannot open in 2021 or perhaps even longer.”
