Change of Rules for rapid Antigen Testing

Dear parents, carers and guardians.

There will be changes to the provision of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) in our school for the remainder of Term 2.

RATs will continue to be distributed to you as they have been throughout this school year for the remainder of this term.

However, from Monday 23 May 2022, students will no longer be required to undertake them 5 days a week in specialist schools.

RATs however will continue to be required by students who are household contacts to attend school (5 negative tests over a 7 day period) or who have symptoms.

The ongoing supply of RATs to families in our school will ensure that parents and carers will have them should they need them if their child is a household contact or has symptoms.

Families must continue to notify the Department of Health and the school if their child returns a positive RAT result. Additionally, you should inform us if any of your children are household contacts.

Thank you also to all families who has got their child vaccinated. Vaccination continues to remain the best way to protect students and staff in our school.

Getting vaccinated is easy and bookings can be done via the coronavirus website. If you have any questions about the vaccines, I encourage you to speak to your GP or a health practitioner.

Thank you again for your ongoing cooperation and support during this time.

VRS Beanies

VRS Beanies are available again at the school office. Beanies are $15 each. Perfect for the cold weather!

School Council

Our School Council met on Monday night. They passed a number of policies that will be available to read on our website or can be picked up from the office. We always welcome your comments on any of these: Attendance, Bullying prevention, Complaints and Student Wellbeing and Engagement .

We also discussed the new Child Safe guidelines and subsequent policy, which is also available. This is an issue that we take very seriously. Verney Road School understands the important role our school plays in protecting children from abuse. We have a range of policies and measures in place to prevent child abuse from occurring at our school or during school activities. Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any concerns or questions about this.

Education Week

From 22nd to the 28th May we have a range of activities planned for Education Week. Now in it's 78th year, Education Week celebrates the strengths and achievements of Victoria's government education sector. This year's theme is 150 Years of Public Education, to coincide with this milestone anniversary for Victoria.

At VRS we are using this opportunity to commemorate the past, celebrate the present and imagine the future of education in Victoria. We have invited members of our families to come in and share stories of their time at school and compared it to ours, learnt about the history of Verney Road and looked at how uniforms, games and classrooms have changed over the years.

During Education Week we will also participate in National Simultaneous Storytime which is an event aimed to bring students around the country together to read and celebrate Australian authors. This year we are reading Family Tree by Josh Pyke and Ronojoy Ghosh which is a story of heartfelt celebration of a family and community who are united through the growth of a tree.

Drop Off Times in the Mornings

Please remember that no student should be at school before 8.30 am. If needed we do have limited capacity to have some students arrive at 8.30 am. They will be able to go to the 'Early Room' in each Unit. Please send all requests to classroom teachers.

Angela Buxton Jesse Whittaker Carolyn West

Principal Assistant Principal Assistant Principal

Banmira Specialist School Newsletter

Issue 7 · 20 May 2022

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