For ease of future reference, I hope the below information is useful and answers some of your questions:

Will Wesley College remain open?

It is our intention to continue to remain open for teaching and learning, alongside the provision of boarding services, unless we are directed to close by the Ministry of Education and/or if our ability to safely supervise students onsite is compromised due to a significant number of staff (boarding or school) being in self-isolation. 

Does the School have contingency plans for potential staffing shortages?

Yes, we have asked staff onsite and outside relievers to provide additional capacity. Furthermore, our teaching staff will be able to continue delivering lessons online from home should they be required to self-isolate. 

How will the school communicate with parents regarding positive cases?

Principal’s updates will notify parents of any additional positive cases within our school community. 

All parents can rest assured knowing they will receive direct communication from the school should their child be deemed a Close Contact due to a potential exposure event at school. 

What do parents need to do if their child is deemed a Close Contact?

The school will contact the parents of each student who is identified as a Close Contact. This informs affected parents of the dates for testing their child needs to undertake to meet Public Health requirements.  

How are Close Contacts determined?

The school is required to use a matrix provided by Public Health to identify and inform all members of our community who meet the conditions of ‘Close Contact’. You may also be contacted directly by Public Health services informing you your son/daughter is a Close Contact. In this instance, please let the school know immediately.  

What is the school doing to minimise the chances of students being classified as Close Contacts?

The school has employed a large number of measures to mitigate against the spread of Omicron within our community. These include: 

• Regular messages in Class/Assemblies and parent communication focused particularly on reminding all members of our community on wearing masks, social distancing, to not enter our campuses, and to report to the Health Clinic if feeling unwell.
• Requiring students who are symptomatic during the school day (or in the hostel) to immediately report to the Health Clinic, where parents are contacted and subsequently students are picked up to return home for self-isolation and testing purposes.
• The compulsory wearing of masks by all students in all indoor setting across the school day, including when lining up for classes and meal services. (Please note that in our boarding hostels mask use is determined by a separate protocol).
• Any larger gatherings such as morning Chapel are held outside.
• Our Support Staff teams (for example our catering, cleaning, property, and laundry teams) are working very hard to ensure their processes are all as safe as possible.
• We clean down all surfaces around the school every day, alongside our normal regular daily cleans. 
• There are hand sanitizers across the school.  

Can boarders classified as Close Contacts remain in the Hostel or be accommodated somewhere else at School?

Unfortunately, no, the school does not have the facilities or services to provide self-isolation care and support onsite. Respective house parents will work with boarding families regarding timelines for collection should a student be deemed a Close Contact and consequently be required to leave the school site. 

If one student in the Hostel tests positive for COVID-19 does the Hostel immediately close?

So far due to the nature of the layout of our hostels we have acted in the interest of safety and closed the Hostel. 

However, some of the Hostels have smaller spaces, so we will endeavor to, for future cases, work to identify and assess the potential exposure risk to all students before closing the Hostel.  

The new settings for a Positive case and a Close Contact:

• Positive cases isolate for 10 days and test on day 3 and 8.
• Close contacts: Isolate for 7 days and test on day 5. 

In all cases, please provide a negative test prior to returning to the school:

• Boarders provide negative result to the hostel
• Day students provide negative result to the office 

I hope the above information addresses many of the queries’ parents have at this time of great uncertainty in our region.  

In closing, I wish to again emphasis that all members of our community are asked to continue to watch for symptoms of COVID-19, following Public Health advice as applicable, and not entering our school unless it is essential. 

As always, we look forward to seeing the vast majority of our students at school for face-to-face teaching and learning.

Ngā mihi nui

Dr Brian Evans
ONZM
BA, Dip Tch, MEd, PhD
Principal