Dear parents and carers,
The recent changes announced due to the vaccination targets being met have allowed us to proceed full steam ahead with a number of events and activities planned for the remainder of the year. A big thank you to the Parents and Friends Association for their organisation of Fun, Food & Carols on Thursday 2nd December. It promises to be a great community event. Fingers crossed that the weather is kind.
Changes to COVID quarantine requirements from the Department of Education
The Victorian Government has announced important changes to the management of COVID-19 cases and close contacts in schools and other settings as we reach the 90% double dose milestone for eligible people in the coming days.
This means that students who are exposed persons (previously identified as close contacts in education settings) from an exposure at school no longer have to quarantine for between 7-14 days. They can instead return immediately to school after providing evidence of a negative result from a standard PCR test to our school.
In exceptional circumstances the Department of Health may determine that close contacts in significant school outbreaks are still required to quarantine for seven days. In this scenario, students will be notified directly of any additional quarantine arrangements.
Rapid antigen tests are strongly recommended for those students who have returned a negative PCR result and return to school.
They are a great tool for families to use to keep our school safe and ensure that positive cases are identified at the earliest possible time. You will get a pack of five tests and you should use them each day before your child attends school until you run out.
Families should also use a rapid antigen test whenever their child is visiting a high-risk location or setting during this period. This includes visiting elderly or immunocompromised relatives or friends.
While the face mask requirements have been further relaxed in most settings, primary schools will continue to need students in Y3-6 wearing masks indoors. This is due to this age group still being predominantly unvaccinated at this stage.
Thank you for supporting this important approach, which will help keep our school safe and reduce the disruption to the entire school community.
Working Bee
On Saturday 27th November, we will be having a working bee from 8am to 12pm. The purpose of this working bee is to tidy up the school grounds so that it is looking its best for Fun, Food & Carols. We will need volunteers for a range of jobs such as weeding, clearing debris and sweeping. We will also be undertaking the School Council-led project of painting the Administration/Library building. We are fortunate to have a team of volunteers led by an experienced painter and a donation of paint to complete the job. This building will be painted a white colour in keeping with the colour of the new hall and will integrate with the rest of the Parkhill buildings. A big thank you to School Council for organising this.
Any volunteer support would be greatly appreciated. You can register in advance on the following link https://forms.gle/XNZ8aHg1KDUHxHoU6
Have a lovely weekend,
David Wells
Acting Principal