A General Statement
At Macarthur, the health, safety and welfare of our students and staff are our greatest priority closely followed by our continuity of educational service to the students.
Macarthur now operates under Level 3 Plus restrictions (see below) on schools following the Premier's Announcements on Thursday 30 September 2021 where the staged return to school and Level 3 plus restrictions were brought forward.
There continues to be an exception for Year 12 students ONLY with face-to-face seminars taking place this term and into Spring Term.
With the extended restrictions in place, the online and at-home learning arrangements will remain as they are for all students other than Year 12 as stated above.
A summary of the levels are:
• Level 1: Students learning at school, with all activities occurring in a COVID-safe way
• Level 2: Students learning at school, with non-essential visitors restricted from school sites, and certain activities modified to be COVID-safe; masks recommended indoors for all staff, and all students in Year 7 and above (noting exemptions apply)
• Level 3: Students learning at school, with non-essential visitors restricted from school sites, reduced mingling between student and year cohorts and restrictions on activities; masks mandatory for all staff, and all students in Year 7 and above (noting exemptions apply)
• Level 3 plus: As per Level 3 and taking into account the staged return to face-to-face learning.
• Level 4: Students are encouraged to learn from home, but schools are open for students and their families who need it. For those on school sites, masks are mandatory for all staff, and all students in Year 7 and above (some minor exemptions apply).
Spring Term 2021 - return to face-to-face learning
As parents will know from recent Government announcements, the planned staged return to face-to-face learning has been brought forward for a second time for some cohorts from 1 November 2021 to 25 October 2021. An UPDATED07OCTOBER Information Sheet for Parents - Spring Term 2021 outlines the new schedule.
It is important to note that the PHO in place requires the School to manage a staged return to face-to-face learning in a COVID Safe way. As such, parents are encouraged to continue to adhere to the PHO which states that “Parents and carers must keep children – across primary and secondary school – at home unless they need to be at school. Schools are open for any child that needs it.” This general principle remains until a child’s cohort reaches the return to face-to-face date as listed.
For students in the secondary years, Spring Term is the start of a new Academic Year and so all cohorts will progress a year. The HSC cohort, as is Macarthur’s usual practice, is referred to as Year 13.
Given the high rates of community vaccination in the Camden and Campbelltown LGAs, the easing of school restrictions to Level 3 plus in Spring Term looks promising. However, it is important for parents to note that if NSW Health deems an LGA to have a concerning infection rate, that LGA (or perhaps even suburbs within the LGA) may stay, or return, to the current Level 4 restrictions.
