Please see our Emergency Management Information for parents and caregivers below:

Key risks for our school

In addition to planning for events such as fires, earthquakes and pandemics, we also specifically plan for tsunami, flooding and armed intruders due to our location.

Incident Management Team

Henk Popping, Principal
John Stanley, Deputy Principal and Acting Principal as required
Richard Smith, Deputy Principal.

Preparing for and practising our plan

Activities and systems our school has in place to support emergency management planning and response:

• Board Meeting standing agenda items.
• Staff meetings.
• Staff induction processes.
• Staff admin notices.
• Classroom emergency procedures at all entry and exit points.
• Discussion with students about fire, earthquake, evacuation drills.
• First aid training for staff and year 8 students.
• Lockdown drills.

Emergency kit

Our emergency response kit is kept in the school office. It contains the following:

• Solar-powered radio.
• Hand cranked and solar powered torches.
• Evacuation key for school speaker system control box in foyer.
• Emergency blankets.
• First aid equipment.
• Asthma emergency kit.
• Bollard removal key for front gate.

Students with diabetes and or other medical conditions are encouraged to keep emergency supplies in their bags at all times in addition to their kit in the office.

We also keep a supply of blankets and milo for students who need additional support.

There is an Automated External Defibrillator available in our school foyer.

Reviewing the plan

We will review our plan regularly as part of our Health and Safety procedures with at least one review a year.

Communication in an emergency

We will communicate with parents and caregivers in an emergency through the following:

• E-text.
• Email.
• Facebook.
• If internet, mobile and phone lines are down we will communicate through local radio stations.

All communication will come from the school Principal or the Board of Trustees chairperson.

Authorised persons to uplift your child

We will only release children to parents, caregivers and emergency contacts already approved by the parent/caregiver for that purpose.

Parents and caregivers are reminded each term to update their child’s information if things have changed.

Students will not be permitted to leave the school site during an emergency without a designated parent, caregiver or emergency contact person.

Evacuations

The school has an evacuation process where all students, staff and visitors move quickly to the top field beside the bottom astroturf.

We use the school speaker system to communicate evacuation alarms or to initiate a lock down.

Shelter in place and lockdown

In the case of a lockdown, students and teachers will shelter in their own classrooms or the nearest classroom / school building if outside. Doors will be locked, blinds drawn and students asked to sit under their desks out of visual sight.

Parents and caregivers:

• If we need to bring everyone inside in a lock down, with the exception of emergency services, we won’t be letting anyone in to the school once we have shut our doors.
• Please wait for information and instruction from us and do not come to the school until asked to do so, even if it is the end of the day. Arriving when we are still managing an emergency could put you, your child and our staff at risk.
• We will continue to provide the very best care we can to keep your child as safe as possible.
• If needed and when it is safe to do so, we will ask you to come and collect your child.
• For some shelter in place events, there won’t be any need for your child to be picked up as the school will continue as normal after the event has ended.

In the case of an earthquake, fire, flooding or tsunami, a decision will be made regarding the safest place for students, staff and visitors to gather / shelter.

Reunification process

Our reunification process following an emergency event is as follows:

• Students are to remain on our school site, supervised by teaching and support staff.
• Parents will be kept informed regarding our emergency event and if required asked to pick up their child from school.
• We have up to date class lists and parent contact details in an emergency folder held at the office. This will be used to tick off students as they leave with their parent or designated emergency contact person.
• If our school site has no safe place for shelter, we will move everyone off site to a safe shelter and advise parents accordingly.

The school will continue to supervise and care for students whose parents / emergency contacts are unable to pick them up and will do so until all students have been safely reunited with their families.

Supporting children after an emergency event

Support for students following an emergency event:

• We will provide your child with age-appropriate information about the event.
• We will monitor all children to identify if there are any wellbeing concerns.

If you have any concerns about your child please speak with us. We have support mechanisms we can access to provide you and your child with the help you need.

If you would like any further information about our emergency management planning – please contact our Principal; Henk Popping or John Stanley, Deputy Principal.