Covid-19 Update

Macquarie College is looking forward to welcome young people across our K-12 program back to full time, onsite learning per the NSW return-to-school roadmap.

• from Monday 18 October – Kindergarten and Year 1
• from Monday 25 October – All remaining year levels

This email is intended as a summary of the Level 3 Plus guidelines that MC will be operating under from Monday 18 October. Please accept my apology in advance for the length and level of detail that is included here, however, it is critical that each member of our school community – staff, students and parents and carers, understands the part that they will need to play in supporting MC to reopen in a COVID-Safe manner.

MC Cloud and Offsite Learning

Per the schedule of dates above, online learning via MC Cloud will no longer be available for students as they return to full-time, onsite learning at MC.

MC understands that, for a variety of reasons, there may be young people who are unable to return to onsite learning per the above dates. As applicable, please feel welcome to contact either Tonia Bentley (Deputy Principal – Junior School) or Marvin Anderson (Deputy Principal – Senior School) so that we can plan to continue to support your young person’s learning.

COVID-Safe at MC – Level 3 Plus Guidelines

From Monday 18 October, MC will be operating as a Level 3 Plus school as per the NSW Government’s COVID-Safe guidelines.

The Level 3 Plus guidelines include expectations which may vary from the more generalised NSW Health expectations that apply in the broader community. Notwithstanding, the Level 3 Plus guidelines must be observed by staff, students, and parents/carers to assist in ensuring that MC is able to resume onsite learning in a COVID-Safe manner.

Please take the time to read the following outline of the Level 3 Plus guidelines as your understanding and support of these guidelines helps to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all members of our school community.

Staff Vaccination

All MC staff working onsite from Monday 18 October will be vaccinated.

Mask Wearing

All MC staff and Year 7-12 students must wear a mask at all times, both indoors and outside, while onsite at MC. (Only staff and students who provide a valid medical exemption are excluded from this requirement).

Year 7-12 students must ensure that they have a spare mask when attending school. While an emergency supply of masks will be available from the Student Services Office ($3 per disposable mask), the purchase of masks from MC should be understood as a last option. Year 7-12 students who fail to wear masks which are appropriately covering their nose and mouth may be required to be picked up by parents/carers.

QR Codes

All MC staff and adult visitors to the MC site must use the school’s QR code system to sign in and out of the site.

Visitors to the MC Site

All non-essential visitors are excluded from accessing the MC site. This requirement includes all parents and carers. If attendance by a parent/carer or other visitor to the MC site is required, such visitors must attend at the main administration office to have their visit approved and recorded.

Cleaning

MC continues to undertake comprehensive cleaning of the school site daily, together with scheduled fogging of all learning and office spaces. This scheduled fogging process ensures that no COVID or similar virus can survive on surfaces throughout the school’s facilities.

Ventilation 

Learning and office spaces throughout MC will operate with windows, fans and air-conditioning operating in such a manner as to ensure that adequate ventilation takes place. A recent audit of office spaces at MC has indicated a small number of areas requiring additional windows and a contractor has now been engaged to resolve those issues. Where possible and appropriate, student learning may occur in an outdoor setting.

Uniform Store

All uniform orders will now be made via the Munch Monitor online process which can be accessed via the MC website. There will be no physical access to the Uniform Store for parents/carers during school hours. Collection of orders will be via the following processes:

• Year K-6 orders may be dropped off to the student’s classroom during school hours
• Year 7-12 orders may be picked up from the Uniform Store during school hours by the student
• Between the hours of 4 – 6pm Tuesdays and Thursdays by parents and by appointment only.  This includes exchanges.  (NB Appointments can be made from Thursday 14 October via the School Online Booking System also accessible via the Uniform Store section of our website.  Upon arrival, parents must QR code in, wear a mask, and maintain appropriate social distance at all times).

Canteen

The canteen will be open for online orders only (via Munch Monitor which can be accessed via the MC website). No walk-up service will be provided for students by the canteen. Pre-ordered lunches will be delivered to the designated lunch area for each year level.

Student Drop-off and Pick-up Procedures

NSW Health advise that student drop-off and pick-up times present potential risks when parents/carer leave their cars or mingle with students whilst unmasked.

Student Drop-off

Student drop-off procedures for the start of each school day will remain unchanged due to the naturally dispersed nature of student arrivals.

Student Pick-up

While operating under the Level 3 Plus guidelines, all parents/carers must remain in their cars throughout the pick-up process with all students being grouped according to year level and dispersed between the regular pick-up bay and around the left side of the campus ring road.

Parents/carers will no longer be able to park in Carpark 2 (in front of the Preschool) and then exit their cars and wait opposite the pedestrian crossing. Parents/carers parking in any carpark will now need to remain in their cars and wait for their young people to arrive at their car. If that is not practicable, parents/carers will need to make use of the pick-up procedures outlined below.

MC appreciates that this is a significant change to past practice, but these arrangements are currently required to allow us to reopen in accordance with the current Level 3 Plus guidelines. Hence, pick-up of all students by parents/carers in cars will now apply per the following outline:

K-2 students:

• The regular Junior School pick-up area (the covered area opposite the Preschool) will now be used for K-2 students only. Parents/carers picking a child up from this area will need to remain in their car throughout the pick-up process. MC staff will be present to assist students into cars as required.

Years 3-6 students:

• Parents/carers picking up students from these year levels will need to turn left at the roundabout onto the campus ring road. Students will be located, in year levels, on the left side of the road. Signage indicating the location of each year level will be used and MC staff will be present to assist in the pick-up process. Parents/carers picking a child up from this area will need to remain in their car throughout the pick-up process.

Senior School Students:

• Parents/carers picking up Senior School students will also need to turn left at the roundabout onto the campus ring road. Senior School (SS) student pick-up will be located outside the Senior School office, where SS students will be grouped according to Year level. Signage and MC staff will also present to assist in this process. Parents/carers picking a child up from this area will need to remain in their car throughout the pick-up process.

Please ensure when driving on the ring road that careful observance of the campus speed limit of 10 km/h, the movement of pedestrians and common road rules and courtesy is maintained. 

As this car pick-up process is new to MC, it may be that adjustments are required. Likewise, as the Level 1-4 guidelines schools are changed by the government, further adjustments may be required. In either case, we will update you ahead of changes being made to the above pick-up processes.

K-12 Bus Pick-up

• Students using the ongoing bus services to and from school will be grouped according to the bus service they are travelling on.

Junior School Learning

• Students across K-6 will remain within their year-level cohorts for all learning and play time.
• The canteen will be open for online orders only (via Munch Monitor which can be accessed via the MC website). No walk-up service will be provided for students by the canteen. Pre-ordered lunches will be delivered to the designated lunch area for each year level.
• Students will be encouraged to maintain strict personal hygiene and physical distancing wherever possible.
• Masks for K-6 students at all times, indoors and outdoors, is recommended but not mandatory.

Senior School Learning

• Students across Years 7-12 will remain within their year-level cohorts for all learning and break times.
• The canteen will be open for online orders only (via Munch Monitor which can be accessed via the MC website). No walk-up service will be provided for students by the canteen. Pre-ordered lunches will be delivered to the designated lunch area for each year level.
• Students with sport/PDHPE lessons where their sport uniform would normally be worn should now wear their sport uniform for that entire school day, including travel to and from school. Where a practical lessons, such as TAS or Science, is also scheduled for the same day, regular, black leather school shoes must be worn for those lessons.
• Students will be encouraged to maintain strict personal hygiene and physical distancing wherever possible.
• Masks for 7-12 students are now required at all times, both indoors and outdoors.
• The HSC exams will commence onsite at MC for Year 12 students from Tuesday 9 November as per the updated NESA HSC Exam Timetable.

Activities that are not permitted

For the duration of MC’s operation as a Level 3 Plus school the following activities will be ceased during school hours or within the school grounds:

• Singing and choirs (except for HSC preparation and assessment purposes)
• Sport (except for sport within existing PDHPE classes)
• Bands and ensembles
• Emergency drills
• Interschool activities and events including interschool sport, gala days, carnivals etc.
• Assemblies
• School performances, productions, concerts, speech nights and award presentations (at this time the NSW Government continue to advise that schools should continue to plan for programs scheduled for late November and December)
• Excursions, camps and field trips
• Community events on the school campus
• All external providers and specialist programs not directly related to educational outcomes and support (this includes community use of school facilities for after school events).

As mentioned above, MC appreciates that these changes are not insignificant and will require adjustment to regular routines for many students, families and staff. Notwithstanding, our shared committed to supporting these guidelines will help to ensure the safety and wellbeing of each student and staff member on the MC site.

As always, please feel welcome to contact me at [email protected] if you would like clarification on any of the matters outlined above.

Kind regards,

Rohan Deanshaw