Return to school roadmap for term 4

Stay at home continues from Tuesday 5 October

I hope you had a change of pace over the holiday break and enjoyed some time together without having to balance learning from home with other demands.

We have all welcomed the news of eased restrictions in LGAs of concern which will see some positive changes in Term 4 for our HSC students in particular.

As our school is in an LGA that is still under stay-at-home rules we will continue to learn from home for the start of Term 4. It is important that you continue to keep your children home if you are able to work from home.

While we are planning for our return to face-to-face learning and our teachers are completing their COVID-19 vaccinations there will only be minimal supervision for students on site and all students will be provided with the same work as they would be completing at home. I know we are all excited about the coming freedoms available to those who are fully vaccinated in NSW but I ask every family to hold on just a few weeks more to give us the time we need to complete our planning for your child’s return.

Return to school roadmap for Term 4

In Term 4, where stay-at-home rules are still in place but high community vaccination and low transmission conditions are met, students will return to school in a staged approach for prioritised cohorts, with no mingling or on-site activities.

We anticipate that  students will return to face-to-face learning with NSW Health-approved COVID-safe Level 3 plus settings on school sites in the following order as announced by the Premier on Thursday 30 September:

·       25 October: Year 11

·       1 November: Years 7, 8, 9 and 10

The return to school roadmap is subject to change depending on new information expected through the Public Health Order and additional advice from NSW Health. You can stay up to date with the most recent advice on our Advice for families page.

For those families who have siblings across year groups I know it will be difficult to keep some at home while others are back on site. But to re-iterate the message above – we need this time to prepare our school and operations for having all our students back so it’s essential that you only send your children to school in line with our set plan.

Access to sites for HSC students

From the beginning of Term 4 HSC students sitting exams this year will be able to attend school for revision, learning and wellbeing support and to have access to their teachers in a limited way. More information on this will be available in the coming days.

From 18 October, all HSC students will have access to school campuses and their teachers. This will support them in the lead up to their exams.

HSC exams will proceed for all students from 9 November 2021 in a COVID-safe way, in line with NSW Health advice.

Refer to the NSW Department of Education HSC advice for more information.

Vaccinations for students aged 12 years and over

Young people aged 12 years and over are now also eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. You can book in your children for Pfizer now, or Moderna where indicated there is availability. Vincentia Medical Center have indicated that they have spare appointments this weekend for Pfizer if you want to book in soon. Appointments can be made via HotDoc.

Vaccination appointments are available at more than 3,000 locations across NSW, including GPs and pharmacies. More appointments will become available as supply increases, so keep checking for new appointments in coming weeks.

Learning from home

For families who are continuing to learn from home, our google classrooms  have a wide range of curriculum-based activities to further support your child’s learning. We will continue to provide paper packs for students and families that require them. Our LASP, Clontarf, GG and Support staff will continue to provide personalised support where required.

Thank you again for your understanding and support during what is going to be both an exciting, but also an anxious time over the coming Term.

Please take some time to check out our wellbeing resources for students and families. You’ll find useful tools for mental health and Term 4 preparation. Please do not hesitate to reach out if we can do anything to help you and your children to prepare for the return to face-to-face learning or if you have any concerns about the return to school.

We are spending the first week back at school finalising our COVID-safe plans for a return to face-to-face learning and I hope to share these plans with you in the coming weeks.

Kind regards

Ruth Winfield

Principal