Term 3 Welcome Back - School Update
Welcome Back and COVID-Safe Operations
Welcome back to Term 3. I hope that the holidays were restful and enjoyable. Over the holidays we have seen some significant changes across NSW which has of course impacted upon schools.
Below is a guide to the operations we will be working under as students return for face-to-face schooling tomorrow.
Pick Up and Drop Off
What this does mean for our Mudgee Public School Community is that at this stage, parents are encouraged to remain outside the school gate at pick up and drop off time. For our vulnerable students or students with a disability, parents are able to drop off to the classroom. These parents will need to follow mask-wearing requirements and sign in using the service NSW QR code when entering the school.
We will continue with our regular pick-up time, which is all students finishing at 3:15pm, but we will please ask parents to remain outside the school gate. Where possible please encourage your child to meet you at the car or at a predetermined location. Please make sure you are wearing a mask at pick up time and do not congregate in large groups outside the school gate. I understand this is tricky for our younger students, so f you do have to line up and wait at the gate, please just try and use physical distancing where practical. Hopefully this will stop us from changing / varying pick up times. We will have extra staff in the mornings and afternoon to assist with this process. Please do not stop in the Bus Bay in the afternoon at pickup time. Besides the fact that you may risk getting a fine, it is also incredibly unsafe for students and parents.
Parent Helpers
Currently, we aren’t allowed to have parent helpers in the classroom. If you are one of our fabulous helpers and are unsure whether you can still come and visit, please contact the teacher you support for further clarification
Visiting for an essential Reason
If you are visiting the school for an essential reason, you must follow mask-wearing requirements and sign in using the Service NSW QR code when entering the school via the front office. You will also need to leave via the front office to be signed out by our office staff. This is every important, particularly in the result of us having an emergency evacuation so that we know who is on site.
Have you been to Greater Sydney or a Hot Spot in the Holidays?
If your child has been to greater Sydney in the holidays, providing they followed the public health orders at the time of their visit and are displaying no COVID symptoms, they are permitted to return to school. If they are displaying symptoms, they are required, like all residents of NSW, get a COVID test and isolate until the test result is negative.
What about Masks?
Students under the age of 13 are not required to wear masks; however, they are welcome to do so if they wish. For teaching staff, it is a recommendation that they wear masks but it is not mandatory. Teachers will be making judgement calls particularly in the areas of if the mask is impeding their ability to teach students or keep students safe and they will be supported to make what they believe is the appropriate decision.
Year 2 Zoo Excursion and Year 4 Blue Mountains Excursion
The current guidelines indicate excursions are only allowed to take place in our own Local Government Area. This therefore means that the Year 2 Zoo excursion scheduled for this Friday has been postponed to a yet to be determined later date. This is the same for the Year 4 overnight Blue Mountains excursion scheduled next week. We will hold the money for these excursions in the hope that they will be able to run at a later date.
Further Information
Please see the following link for the latest advice from the NSW Department of Education regarding restrictions to schools in Regional NSW https://education.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/advice-for-families/schools-outside-of-greater-sydney1?fbclid=IwAR0kF-IN9hrJm4jx8RWLEa7nCEfschk3UHbu9Sg1Ep2hEOLwo4bcK47Bi8o
I will be writing a full newsletter this Friday, where I will provide any further updates as well as more about information and events happening this term and in the coming weeks. One further thing to note, is that at this stage, our 2022 Kindergaten Transition Program e.g. Jolly Gym, will still be going ahead!
Thank you for your anticipated support. I look forward to another term of positive schooling and achievements at Mudgee Public.
John Carters
Principal