Message from the Principal Team

Principals' Update

Thank you!

Whilst we work towards welcoming all students back onsite over the next three weeks we would like to acknowledge how extremely grateful we are for the support of our parents and carers during this extremely difficult time. We are aware that our families are finding these last few weeks extremely difficult. We are all over lockdown and looking forward to being able to return to some sort of normal life where we can visit family and friends and travel within the state. Thank you for your ongoing support and feedback. We appreciate families reaching out and sharing their challenges during remote learning.

As our students return to school in real life, we will be prioritising student safety and wellbeing. Any parents or carers that have concerns about your child or children returning onsite please contact your child’s teacher. We hope to be able to support all students return back to school and feel safe and secure in the playground and classroom. 

Northcote High Public Speaking Competition

Zoe Bove and Charlie Pettitt competed in the Northcote High School public speaking competition on Wednesday and represented the school magnificently. This is an event that we have been involved in for over a decade and these two students had to compete in class, then in the 5/6 unit to be chosen for this competition. Both students wrote amazing speeches and presented them clearly and confidently.

Congratulations to Charlie who placed third in the competition this year.

Welcoming Students Back Onsite

We are very excited to be welcoming our Foundation students back onsite next week from Monday to Wednesday. We are equally thrilled to see our Year 1/2 students on Thursday and Friday.

We have been doing a huge amount of preparation and planning for our students returning onsite and would like to share the COVIDSafe operations that we will be following to keep our staff and students safe. 

Please find attached two documents outlining the COVIDSafe Guidelines for CNPS and other logistics for the school.

The CNPS COVIDSafe Guidelines is a very detailed document highlighting the Department of Education requirements for schools as outlined with the Schools Operation Guide. 

The Being COVIDSafe at CNPS document is a shorter document outlining some frequently asked questions we have received from parents and carers.

Please note that the Department has been very specific with a number of these requirements and are not negotiable or permitted to be adjusted at the school level. We acknowledge that families with students in a number of different year levels may find the different attendance days and staggered start times frustrating. Unfortunately, this is a directive from DET that cannot be changed. We look forward to working with all of our families to support our students as they adjust to being back onsite and keeping safe whilst at school.

We will be conducting an information session for parents and carers of students in Foundation to Year 2 on Zoom tomorrow from 2:00 pm-2:45 pm. If you have any questions or queries please come along and we will address all concerns.

Rachel Corben (She/Her) is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. 

Join Zoom Meeting 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2816585328?pwd=ck9xZTdvVmk0WGRTMXhGeUxaWm41Zz09

Meeting ID: 281 658 5328 

Passcode: 1252

Effects of COVID-19 on children's physical health - Information Session for Parents and Carers - The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne

On Friday 10 September The Royal Children’s Hospital conducted a live information session for parents on the effects of COVID-19 on children’s physical health. Please see the Youtube link to view this session:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c7M7xawWxo

Vaccination

From 18 October 2021, all staff at CNPS working onsite will have had their first dose of COVID-19 or made an appointment to receive a dose before 25 October 2021. A number of staff are already fully vaccinated. By 29 November 2021 all staff onsite will be fully vaccinated.

Getting vaccinated is the best way to be protected from and prevent the spread of COVID-19. We encourage all students aged 12 years and over and their parents to get vaccinated as soon as possible. To book a vaccination appointment go to https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/

Disability Liaison Officers (DLOs) can help people with a disability access health services, including vaccinations. Contact a DLO by either

• completing this online form Request for Disability Liaison Officer support
• emailing DLOcoordinator@dhhs.vic.gov.au

Limited Access to Onsite Supervision Week 3

Next week, the following students will return onsite part-time:

Foundation - Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday

Year 1/2 - Thursday and Friday

The  Foundation and Year 1/2 students will continue to learn from home on the days that they are not attending onsite school.

Students in Years 3 to 6 will continue to learn from home. 

There are exemptions for students in the following categories:

Children where both parents and/or carers are considered authorised workers who cannot work from home, work for an essential provider, and where no other supervision arrangements can be made:

• Where there are two parents/carers, both must be authorised workers, working outside the home in order for their children to be eligible for on-site provision.
• For single parents/carers, the authorised worker must be working outside the home in order for their children to be eligible for on-site provision.

Children experiencing vulnerability, including:

• in out-of-home care
• deemed vulnerable by a government agency, funded family or family violence service, and assessed as requiring education and care outside the family home
• identified by a school or early childhood service as vulnerable, (including via referral from a government agency, or funded family or family violence service, homeless or youth justice service or mental health or other health service)

To apply for access to onsite supervision for next week please complete this online form:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfn_YcN9SGo957mvGtleVKUrjVeN4eGSq6na4LWbmkPxQm2KQ/viewform

Sending positive vibes from the Principal Team

Rachel Corben, Erin Brown & Jane Bilby