The five main points are:

1. No decision has been made yet about when schools will reopen. This decision will be made based on data about the spread of Covid-19 and how we are going in stamping it out. It is unlikely that a decision will be made before 20 April.

2. The very earliest schools would open would be 29 April. And this would likely only be for SOME students, not all.

3. The Ministry (and us) are preparing for several possible scenarios - opening only for staff, opening for essential workers' children, opening in shifts so that children can stay 2m apart, opening for just senior students, a combination of distance and on-site learning, staggered opening, not opening for a number of weeks etc. We want to be prepared for whatever the decision is once the data becomes clear.

4. There will be ample notice before schools open. They will not be closed one day and open the next. We will be given ample time to ensure that the school has a deep-clean, that our planning for the term is completed and that we put in place any H&S regulations.

5. The Ministry has been VERY clear that we will NOT be moving out of Alert Level 4 early.

Chris Hipkins is, this week, working on guidelines for what Alert Level 3 could look like for schools. We look forward to his guidance on this matter.

If you have any questions, please do let me or your child's kaiako know. We look forward to reconnecting with you on our first day of Term 2, by distance, on Wednesday.

Ngā manaakitanga
Mel