Kia ora koutou parents, students and friends of Waimea College.

Welcome to our first newsletter for Term 3. I hope that you managed to get some quality family time during the break and that your teen is ready for the term ahead. 

Every school term is busy and this term is shaping up to be no exception with a school calendar brimming with events. A copy of our upcoming events can be found on our website HERE. 

Acknowledging our Staff and Students

2022 is proving to be a very challenging year as schools and the wider community grapple with COVID-19 and other winter illnesses circulating and last term we saw the impact of these illnesses causing high levels of staff absences. Thank you for your understanding as we needed to roster year levels home at times during the term in order to manage staff shortages.

Student absences have also understandably been higher than usual during this period so I want to shout out to both our staff, who are working hard to ensure continuity of learning programmes and to our students, who have demonstrated great resilience during this time. 

I am really proud of our school community for ensuring opportunities continue to be available for our students both inside and outside the classroom during this challenging period. 

COVID-19 Update

• Masks - I recently shared an update about mask use at school. Please support your teen to come to school ready to wear masks. Students should bring masks from home. If students are unable to bring masks from home they can get one from the student office when they arrive at school.
• Student Absences - Please inform us immediately if your student tests positive for COVID-19. As always, if your teen is ill for any other reason e.g. a cold, an upset stomach etc, please keep them at home and contact our Attendance Office by emailing attendance@waimea.school.nz or by phoning 544 6099 and selecting option 1.  Let us know your teen's details, including the reason they are away.
• Rapid Antigen Tests (RATS) - Waimea College has a supply of RAT tests that are available for student and family use. These can be obtained for free from the main office. 
• COVID-19 Isolation Requirements - The Ministry of Health has recently updated the COVID-19 isolation requirements. Please check this out. 

The strategies above work alongside other measures including vaccination, good ventilation, staying home when sick, and hand washing and other hygiene measures, to protect our students and staff. 

Keeping our Students Safe - students off-site during the school day

Last term, we noticed an increase in occurrences of students leaving school grounds during school hours for reasons other than doctor/dentist or other appointments. 

The growing number of food outlets such as Burger King and Countdown nearby is further adding to the pressure. 

Waimea College is not gated or fenced, so we rely on our students to exercise caution around leaving the school without permission.

This term we will be reinforcing this with students and I would be grateful for parent support in working together with the College to remind your teens, if they do not have an external appointment, they should remain on site, within the school boundaries during school hours.

All the very best for a great term ahead. 

Noho ora mai,

Scott Haines

Principal