By Gavin Mackintosh-
An Essex school is mourning the loss of a teacher who sadly lost his battle with Covid-19 over the Christmas holidays.
Stuart Hall, head of ICT at St Clere’s School in Stanford-le-Hope, Thurrock died due to coronavirus related complications on New Year’s Eve (December 31). The timing of his death , just before the new year, has saddened pupils and teachers news has saddened and alarmed parents from the school.
A source from the school told The Eye Of Media.Com: ” The passing sway of Stuart Hall has affected everyone who knew him deeply. He was a very much appreciated member of this school.
This is a close knitted school were teachers are committed to developing children academically. Staff have always been committed to raising pupils standards of literacy, and most children respond well. He will be missed”
The school is not saying much about how mr.Hall caught the virus.
In a letter to parents headteacher Mrs A Hughes wrote: “I am writing to you today to notify you of some very sad news.
“Our head of ICT, Mr Stuart Hall, sadly passed away on New Year’s Eve after being admitted to hospital with Covid related complications just before Christmas.
“Mr Hall joined us at the beginning of the year and has taught many of our pupils for ICT and Business Studies. We were fortunate to have someone with so much teaching experience and expertise joining our team and we are all devastated to hear this sad news.
“Our thoughts are with his family at this sad time and they have given us permission to notify students and families of his death.”
St Clare has not revealed details of how Mr.Hall contracted the virus, but the death has cast a sharp reminder of the potential risks caused by Covid-19. It is also not known what underlying issues he suffered from.
An Ofsted report in 2018 described the school as a good school. The school has good leadership, and expectations across the school are known to be high, and children are taught strategically and motivated to be interested in the subjects they are taught.
Shut Schools
Most primary schools in the UK have been shut down until further notice due to the stated spread of the new Covid-19 strain. School Unions were at war with Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson, over the call for schools to shut down in December. Williamson wanted schools to remain open in order to prioritise the education of pupils. But Boris Johnson this week ordered the closure of all schools, with only children of key workers required to attend school.
Many children are expected to go down in academic standard for most of the lockdown period, though Ofsted says it would monitor schools to see how much support they provide to pupils studying remotely.
The death of a teacher from the virus makes schools appear like a danger zone, potentially, capable of spreading death. With missing information about how the teacher caught the virus, we are left with tragic news about a teacher’s death linked to the virus, with no information of whether he caught it from the school.