Tēnā koutou e te whānau

It was a real privilege to open the new Ōrongomai Nature Playground last Monday. The children were super excited about finally trying out the play equipment. The opening of the playground fitted in perfectly with our current focus on kaitiakitanga, particularly as one of the key drivers for the design, was the inclusion of natural materials.

We are also very proud of the bespoke pou that have been installed. The pou are scattered throughout the playground and represent each of our five new school values. You can see the values pou being unveiled by the children in the video above. 

In staffing news, I'm pleased to announce that Gary Hancock has been appointed to the vacant part-time caretaker position at Halswell School. Many of you will know Gary as a current parent and a former Board member. Gary has made a great start to the new role, and we are delighted to have him join our team.

I would also like to take the opportunity to acknowledge Giarne Harrison, who stepped down from her role as a trustee at the last Board meeting. Giarne has made a tremendous contribution to our Board over the last two and a half years and has been a powerful advocate for ensuring that we continue to foster and value the cultural richness we are so fortunate to have in our community.  

COVID-19 update

As you may have noticed by the number of Hero notifications you have been receiving of late, we now have a significant number of COVID-19 cases at our school. At the time of writing, we have 37 students who have confirmed cases, along with three staff members and approximately 60 students who are isolating at home as household contacts. The majority of these cases have come from household contacts. Although we know that it is impossible to remove any risk of transmission altogether, we are confident that the controls we have in place at school are certainly slowing the spread. 

Finally, please note that we will be closed for a Staff Only Day this Friday. This day will be used by our teachers and support staff to engage in a professional development workshop facilitated by the Ministry of Education. I hope that many of you will have the opportunity to enjoy a 'long weekend' with your whānau. 

Ngā mihi nui

Stuart cameron

Principal