Further to yesterday’s brief message, below are the detailed requirements for face coverings on school transport.

Students of all ages are encouraged to wear a face covering on all school transport services under all alert levels.

We encourage you to convey the following information on face coverings to your students and their parents or caregivers.

Students aged 12 and over

The exemption from wearing face coverings for students on school transport has been revoked under the COVID-19 Public Health Response (Alert Level Requirements) Health Order.

This means that from 11.59pm Friday 22 October, everyone 12 years and older legally must wear a face covering on school transport services (both Ministry and regional council-operated) at all alert levels unless they have an exemption.

This includes SESTA, daily, technology, direct resourced, and Māori-medium school transport services. It also includes charter buses hired by schools to transport students and staff.

Please note, while the school transport drivers are not required to enforce the wearing of face coverings, they will report any non-compliance to your school’s bus controller (noting that some students may be exempt from face covering requirements for health and safety reasons). Schools are expected to manage any non-compliance just as they currently manage behavioural issues of school transport users.