We respectfully acknowledge the Ngunnawal people, the Traditional Owners of the land on which we work and learn, and pay respect to the First Nations Peoples and their elders, past, present and emerging.
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Dear SCA families,
In the last week we have been planning for the return of most of our students on either 25th of October (K, Yrs 1, 2, 6) or the 1st November (Yrs 3, 4, 5). The decision to re-open schools has been made by ACT Health in conjunction with the ACT Education Directorate. Catholic Education Canberra Goulburn (CECG) has also been working with ACT Health and the Education Directorate to fully understand the requirements for COVID safe schooling.
CECG has provided, based on this advice, a Roadmap to a safe school return. This document has formed the basis of our planning and our decision making for the specific context at SCA. Following this advice, and with confidence in the systems, we are looking forward to the students returning to school.
ACT Health has advised us that it is safe for students to return to school, however, I understand that some parents may not feel they are ready to safely return their child /children to school. This may be because they or a family member have a significant illness, are unable to be vaccinated, or are simply not yet willing to return.
Our school staff and community will do what it can to work with all families for the rest of this year. To help you be confident in returning to school, on top of ACT Health advice, I share with you some of the specific measures our staff will undertake to ensure the safety of our community. (To save space, all details regarding each action have not been included. If you would like further detail, please don’t hesitate to contact me at school.)
By Monday 25th October the majority of our staff will be fully vaccinated, and a further range of safety measures will be enacted to protect the safety of students and staff. These include, but are not limited to:
General Requirements
• All staff and visitors must check in using both our Compass Kiosk and the Check In CBR app. |
• Parents and carers should not enter the school grounds except for an essential reason. |
• Timely and accurate student attendance (roll marking) is to be completed for each class (both online and on campus) |
• All adults to wear a mask, inside and outside, except in circumstances as per CECG Roadmap. |
• Years 3-6 children may wear a mask if provided by their parent. |
• All people entering a room must sanitise their hands. |
• Any child or staff member with cold or flu-like symptoms will be isolated and sent home. |
• Classrooms and learning spaces will be sanitised twice daily. Sanitising of desks and chairs will be done daily. Cleaners will clean doors, taps, benches, handles etc daily. |
• Groundsman to clean toilets after recess each day, therefore, toilets will be cleaned twice each day. |
• All rooms with people present will have windows and/or doors open to provide cross ventilation. Where available, ceiling fans will be in operation on slow. • Playground equipment will be sanitised each day. |
Support
• SCA will continue to support learning from home for students who are vulnerable to COVID-19. Existing processes will be implemented to support students who cannot learn on campus due to illness or medical vulnerabilities. |
• All students will continue to have access to school counsellor and Chaplain. |
• On-campus wellbeing and learning supports will return in line with the phased return to on campus learning. |
• All staff have access to priority vaccination and wellbeing supports will be prioritised for staff in Term 4. |
Facilities
• Community use of School facilities (hall, oval etc) is not allowed. |
• Library is open for school use only with strategies in place to minimise multiple classes accessing libraries at the same time. |
• As well as additional toilet cleaning, students will be directed to use toilets only in their own classroom block. |
• Canteen will operate with COVID-19 safety measures in place. This will include pre-ordering only and contactless delivery to classrooms to minimise gathering in canteen lines. |
Visitors
• Visitors, including parents and carers, are allowed on campus for essential purposes only, or as required to sign in or out a student attending Out of School Hours Care. In these circumstances, parents and carers should minimise the amount of time spent on campus as much as possible. |
• Parent/teacher interviews will be held online or over the phone. |
• Masks are required for all visitors as outlined previously. |
Excursions and School Activities
• A staggered break system will be introduced for the return to school. K-2 (Stage 1) students will have their recess and lunch breaks at a time separate from Year 3 – 6 (Stage 2 and Stage 3) students. • Classes to eat lunch and play in separate areas from other stage groups. |
• Activities that bring multiple classes together will be minimised. Where mixing of year groups is required, this will occur outdoors. |
• Assemblies are not allowed until further notice. Singing can occur in outdoor spaces, however, audiences are not allowed at this time. |
• Students to remain in own classrooms, and not work in other areas. |
• Specialist teachers (Library, Music and Indonesian) will thoroughly sanitise surfaces in their learning spaces between each class. |
• Classes will not mix with other year levels, except for within their Stage Level (K-2 and 3-4 and 5-6) and then only while outdoors. |
• Excursions, interschool activities, extracurricular activities and close contact activities such as indoor and contact sports are not allowed. |
• Morning Assembly will not take place. Children will gather immediately outside their own classroom. |
• During afternoon pick-up, students will be directed to sit in Stage Groups to minimise mixing of children from multiple year groups. |
End of Year Events
• Transition activities (such as Kindergarten Orientation) can go ahead with COVID-19 safety measures in place to minimise movement of students between schools. This may include virtual tours with further advice to be provided in early Term 4. |
• Further advice on end of year celebrations, including graduations, Masses, award ceremonies, will be provided in early Term 4 and will be subject to the health conditions at the time. |
Assessment
• Teachers will continue to assess learning progress while recognising the context in which learning has taken place. |
• Written reports will be sent home and parent / teacher interviews will be provided at the end of term. |
OSHC
• Parents and visitors must remain outside the building. • Stage Groups (K-2, 3-4, and 5-6) will be given separate play areas. • Sign-in/sign-out desk with QR code for CBR Check-In App and hand sanitiser relocated from inside the OSHC building to the deck of the OSHC building as this eliminates Parents/ Carers entering OSHC. • Disposable gloves and wipes available at all times. • Hand sanitisation station set up at the entrance to OSHC (as well as sign-in desk). • Children required to sanitise hands upon entry to OSHC. • Entire room (including door handles) sprayed with Glen20 four times per day (before BSC, after BSC, before ASC and after ASC). • All tables are cleaned with bleach and leave on sanitiser before and after each use. • All scissors and pencils sprayed with Glen 20 after use. • Toy sets regularly cleaned with leave on sanitiser. • Basins and tap handles sprayed down regularly. • Where possible, all shopping is done online. • Floors are swept and mopped twice daily. • Carpets are cleaned with NO VAC sanitiser/deodoriser four times per day. • Food preparation surfaces wiped down before and after. • Food is served by staff members wearing gloves and face masks. • All staff members are required to wear face masks. • Windows left open to ensure ventilation of room. • Playground spayed with leave on sanitiser before use. • Deck rail sprayed with Glen 20 before BSC opens, and at closure and before ASC opens, and at closure. • Signage displayed on front door and around the OSHC room on correct way to wear face masks, hand sanitising and the use of the CBR code. • Any staff member with cold or flu like symptoms unable to attend work. |
Should you have any questions, comments or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to contact me at school. If you wish to speak with me in person, I am holding an open and flexible, on-line (Microsoft TEAMs) meeting on Monday 18th from 4.30pm. If you would like to speak with me, please use the following link at any time from 4.30pm on Monday.
Join on your computer or mobile app Click here to join the meeting
Please Help Us to Do Our Best
To ensure we can best staff our school for the anticipated return of students, we need to know who is returning to school and when. In the following days an on-line survey will be sent to all families. We ask that each family complete the survey as accurately as you can. Of course, if your situation changes after completing the survey that is understandable and all you need do is contact us.
Thanks in advance.
Community Council
Our Community Council will have its second last meeting for the year next Tuesday, 19 October. If you would like to share any thoughts or questions with the Council, please feel free to send an email to council.scaconder@cg.catholic.edu.au .
It was once said…
Children are the world’s most valuable resource, and its best hope for the future. - John F. Kennedy.
Blessings to you and your family.
Matt Egan-Richards
Principal
Don’t forget to go into your phone’s setting and turn notification on for Compass updates.