It is great to be back straight into teaching and learning this week. 

I would like to welcome back Mrs. Picker from her maternity leave. Mrs. Picker has resumed teaching Performing Arts (Music, Dance and Drama).

I would like to welcome Mrs. Spackman into the role of Year Six classroom teacher and Mrs. Davies into the Classroom Support Teacher role. 

Mrs. Branson will be absent from school for the first six weeks of term and Miss Leonard will be teaching Year One.

This week we farewell Anita Murfitt. Anita has been our School Cleaner for nearly twenty years. We wish Anita a wonderful retirement and thank her for her years of dedicated service. 

This week we commence with some pre-emptive measures in place. It is predicted that there will be increasing COVID cases through New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory over this term, requiring staff and student absences from school. We are really hoping this will not be the case for our community. We have been directed to cancel extra-curricular activities that require staff or students to leave the school. For staff, that means external professional development and for students, this includes gala days and excursions. On the upside, these measures mean that our students will have quality uninterrupted classroom learning.

NSW CECG Term 3 COVID-19 Management Plan 

St Mary's Primary School will deliver on-campus learning with the following COVID smart measures in place to minimise transmission of COVID-19 onsite. Our approach is informed by the National Framework for Managing COVID-19 in Schools and Early Childhood Education and Care Settings, and the latest advice on winter season preparedness from the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee. This aims to eliminate or minimise the risk of harm from COVID-19 as far as reasonably practicable, and to maximise learning and development, including through face-to-face learning where possible.

The following measures will be in place in all CECG Schools. These measures will be reviewed from time to time based on advice from NSW Health.

• Vaccination - All eligible students (ages 5 and over) and all staff are strongly encouraged to be up-to-date with their COVID-19 vaccination.
• Household Contacts – Staff and students are required to follow NSW Health directions when they are deemed a household close contact and must notify the school to advise they are a household contact. It is strongly recommended that a household contact works or studies from home where it is practical to do so. A household contact must wear a face mask in any indoor setting that is not their own home if they are aged 12 years and over. Only students in Years 7 to 12 will be required to wear a mask when attending school. Mask wearing for students in primary schools is at the discretion of the student and their families. Where a student attends school they must undertake a COVID test prior to returning to school and then each day for 5 days and may only attend school if they have no symptoms.
• Check-in requirement – Check-in is not required for staff and visitors at school, but QR codes should continue to be displayed for voluntary use by staff and visitors, as well as by community hirers who may still be legally required to use the Check in app. Timely and accurate student attendance (roll marking) is to be completed for each class. In addition, parents attending permitted activities which are held indoors and during school hours should use appropriate sign-in procedures to ensure contact can be made should a significant COVID-19 exposure occur onsite.
• Physical distancing - Physical distancing should be maintained on school sites where possible. Density quotients no longer apply.
• Staying home when sick and hygiene requirements - Staff, students and visitors must not attend school if they are unwell and will be sent home if they any have symptoms of COVID-19. All staff, visitors and students should at all times maintain appropriate hand and respiratory hygiene.
• Minimising mixing - Cohorting is not required, however where learning cohorts are mixed, schools should consider additional mitigations such as minimising the length of time or the number of students or staff participating in organised activities together. The usual COVID safe behaviours should be encouraged, including physical distancing where possible, practising good hand and respiratory hygiene practices and staying home if unwell.
• Masks - Staff, students and visitors are not required to wear masks in school, though are encouraged to do so where it suits them. 
• Rapid antigen tests - Schools will have access to Rapid Antigen Tests for distribution as needed. Staff and students who are symptomatic should not attend the school to collect a Rapid Antigen Test. It is recommended households retain a supply of tests to use as required.
• Notification - Schools will continue to receive notifications of positive cases from staff and students. Staff and students who are either diagnosed with COVID-19 or have had exposure to COVID-19 should comply with the public health advice relating to notification, isolation and quarantine requirements.
• Communication - Schools will communicate to their school communities when a significant number of cases are recorded. Staff and students who are affected should comply with the appropriate public health advice, dependent on their exposure level. Staff and students who are not directly affected can continue attending school unless they have symptoms of COVID-19.
• School canteens and uniform stores can operate online and counter sales, with COVID safety business checklists in place.
• P&F fundraisers can go ahead on school sites with appropriate risk mitigation measures and COVID Safety Plans in place. There should only be a minimum number of volunteers (visitors to the school) necessary to coordinate fundraisers on-site during school hours. Where fundraisers involve other visitors, they should be held outside of school opening hours and must comply with the COVID Safe Events Guidance.
• Hiring a school facility - For a hirer to access a school facility, they must have a COVID-19 Safety Plan; including adhering to physical distancing and hygiene requirements. Private events held at a school facility must also comply with any applicable public health restrictions for events.