Dear Parents,

As we enter the winter season we expect there to be a greater number of students and staff experiencing symptoms associated with the common cold, flu and Covid. Under current government guidelines, students and staff experiencing these symptoms are not to attend school. In the event that a person tests positive to Covid, the government guidelines recommend staying at home for 5 days and to not return until symptoms have resolved.

I would like to once again acknowledge the difficulty and inconvenience for families when trying to manage work commitments and care for their child when unwell. Our staff, particularly our administration staff, are very aware of this challenge and will only call when necessary. We have been fortunate that the majority of families have been understanding of our school position and seek to organise care for their child upon receipt of a phone call.

We have, at times, found it challenging to get in contact with parents and emergency contacts. Could I strongly encourage all families to review these details in Operoo and update where necessary. It can be distressing for a child to have to wait a considerable time in First Aid while we attempt to contact a listed emergency contact. Our administration staff are qualified and committed to providing appropriate first aid but it can be challenging when they are required to provide care for a long period of time. We would also like to avoid the potentially traumatic situation of being unable to contact someone in the event of a more serious emergency. We thank you in anticipation of your support.

Our staff are obviously not immune to becoming unwell, as I can personally attest to, so we will continue to manage staff replacement as best we can. At HT we are extremely fortunate to have a small number of regular casual relief teachers (CRTs) to step in with short notice. Not only are these staff readily available, they are experienced teachers with the knowledge of our school and students. This greatly assists with the continuity of teaching and learning at school. I will admit that in recent weeks it has become increasingly difficult to find a CRT, in which case we have needed to consider splitting classes for a portion of the day. While this is yet to occur, it is a distinct possibility. There are currently a number of schools in our local area already resorting to splitting classes due to the shortage of teachers available across the entire state. It is a concerning trend but we will do our absolute best to manage staffing in the best interests of our students.

End of School Term - 1 pm finish

The school day will finish at 1pm on the last day of each school term to provide Time in Lieu for staff, as communicated via the school newsletter. We acknowledge the early finish time does impact some families so we will therefore offer supervision of students until 3.30pm if required. Please indicate below if your child needs to remain at school following the 1pm finish time.

If you have more than one child please provide the name of each child below.

Please only complete this form if your child will not be collected from school at 1pm on Friday 23rd June.

Click here: Supervision required - Friday 23rd June

We will conclude the term with an assembly at 12.30pm to announce the TORCH Bearer of the Term Awards at 12.30pm. Parents are most welcome to attend.

School Closure Day - Friday 9th June

Just a reminder that we have a school closure day on Friday 9th June. Teaching and non-teaching staff will be onsite participating in professional learning. Supervision of students on this day is limited to booking through our out of hours school care provider, TheirCare.

PJ and Oodie Day - Wednesday 14th June

To support our Mini Vinnies Winter Appeal, students are invited to wear their PJs and / or Oodie and to donate a non-perishable food item. See the Mini Vinnies section of the newsletter for more details.

Sacrament of First Eucharist

Please keep our Year 4 students in your prayers as many of them are receiving the Sacrament of First Eucharist, also referred to as First Holy Communion, across the four weekends during the month of June.

School Blog

Our students are responsible for a lot of the School Blog content, so please take some time to appreciate their posts. It is also a great way to find out about school events such as Camp, Production, Sports Events, the Arts …. And much more!

http://blog.htws.catholic.edu.au/

Warm Regards,

Adrian Scutt

Principal

Time to eXcel

Parents' Association