As you will know the Ministry of Health’s Director-General announced the second confirmed case of COVID-19 in New Zealand.

We want to reassure you that we will continue to update you with the latest information.

Some people have been asking when a school might close. The answer is that we are a very long way from that situation. At this stage, there is no reason that children should not be going to school. A decision to close a school if that became necessary would be made by the local medical Officers of Health.

In the meantime, we can provide you some further facts from the World Health Organization.

• Evidence from China shows that only 1% of reported cases do not have symptoms, and most of those cases develop symptoms within 2 days.
• Young people 18 years and under represent less than 2.4 per cent of those who have contracted the virus.
• From the data we have so far, COVID-19 does not transmit as efficiently as influenza.

It continues to remain that the best thing to do is to practice good preventative measures, particularly good hygiene:

• Washing hands with soap and water for 20 seconds before and after eating as well as after attending the toilet
• Covering coughs and sneezes with clean tissues or with an elbow
• Putting used tissues in the bin
• Encouraging staff and students to stay home if they are unwell

For more information please refer to the Ministry of Education website http://www.education.govt.nz/novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov-3/