Tenā koutou e te whānau
Kei aku nui, kei aku rahi, tēnā koutou katoa i roto i ngā āhuatanga o te wā.
My best wishes to you and your whānau for a very happy and rewarding year in 2022. I hope you have had a good break and have enjoyed quality time with whānau and friends. I’m sure we have all cherished the freedom we have enjoyed over the summer.
I am excited about the year ahead, especially as we will celebrate 150 years of delivering quality education for boys in Hawke’s Bay. I look forward to welcoming our students back next week, as we begin the academic year, and settle to what I hope very much will be a positive and successful year for your sons.
In regard to Covid-19, we have moved fully into the new traffic light framework for all our school and kura activities and events this year. You will be familiar with all the health measures we will have in place (Please read our Covid Readiness document) and it is good to know that at Red setting, we are able to support everyone learning onsite.
Events and activities
Large hui and gatherings especially when indoors continue to be one of the riskier activities we can undertake. We have therefore reviewed all our events and activities for the upcoming term to ensure we meet the health guidance for Red.
Ventilation
We have used the Ministry of Education self-assessment tool to review all our ventilation in readiness for the start of the year. Providing good old-fashioned fresh air remains the most important thing we can do in our learning spaces to minimise risk for ākonga and kaiako (and the same goes for you at home). We will also be receiving a CO2 monitor in the coming weeks to further support our ventilation plan.
Omicron and testing
We have all seen the very large numbers of cases overseas and we are now starting to see much larger numbers of cases in Aotearoa than we have previously experienced in the last two years. While Omicron is more transmissible than previous strains, most people who get Covid-19 will have a mild to moderate illness and will fully recover in their own home.
However, some of our community who are immune-compromised, are ill, or have other vulnerabilities, even when they are fully vaccinated, could be more affected by Omicron. So, we all need to continue to play our part to minimise the spread of the virus.
Face coverings
Staff and children in Years 4 – 13 must wear face coverings when inside at school when we are at Red.
Public health advice is that an appropriate face covering will fit snugly and seal well around facial contours. This can include single-use, disposable masks (medical masks) and re-usable fabric masks with three layers.
Managing cases in our school
We have a good contact tracing system in place so that if there is a confirmed case who has been at school while infectious, we can quickly identify who was a close contact of that person. We will then quickly advise those contacts of what they need to do.
Only if the Ministry of Health or the Ministry of Education advises to do so, would we consider closing our school site and moving to distance learning for everyone. At Red we will keep everyone learning onsite for as long as we can.
Please make sure your contact details currently on file for you are up to date, so we can get in touch with you if needed.
Students who attended the Soundsplash Music Festival
The Soundsplash Music Festival has been identified as a Covid-19 location of interest. If your son, or a member of your household, attended the event they must follow the advice from the Ministry of Health. Namely, it is expected that they self-monitor for Covid-19 symptoms for 10 days after exposure. If symptoms develop they are to be tested and stay home until they receive a negative test result. Please call Healthline 0800 358 5453 for further advice.
Start of School Programme – Updates
Following updates and advice provided by the Ministry of Education, we have amended the schedule for the first week. The updated programme is as follows.
Tuesday, 01 February – Y9 and Y13 students
9:00 am – our pōwhiri is integral to welcoming new students, staff, and whānau. However, based on recommendations, this will be restricted to students and staff, only. Parents / whānau must drop their son at the front of the school. Please ensure your son has / wears a mask when entering the school grounds. Prefects and senior staff will be at the front of the school to welcome new students.
12:10 pm – Y13 dismissed. Prefects to remain
2:40 pm – end of the school day for Y9s and Prefects
Wednesday, 02 February – Y9 and Prefects
9:00 am – students go to their Tutor class. The Y9s should bring their PE uniform on this day.
3:10 pm – end of the school day
Thursday, 03 February – Y10, 11 and 12
9:00 am – students go to House meeting
12:20 pm – end of the school day
Friday, 04 February – all school
8:30 am – students go to their tutor class
3:10 pm – end of the school day
Information Regarding Buses
If your child is new to catching the bus to Napier Boys’ High School, please call Graeme at Tranzit Napier on 021 745 636 and he will advise which bus and times for arrival and departure to and from school. Please see the linked newsletter to parents outlining how the school bus service will operate. –> Newsletter to parents from Tranzit
COVID-19 Readiness Document
Our Covid Readiness Document outlines the measures and practices that we are taking to ensure our students return safely to reconnect with their learning, teachers, and friends.
Our goal is to transition back to school as smoothly as possible so that students have every opportunity to begin their year well, positively, and with the usual sense of excitement and anticipation that the new year brings. We are also very conscious of the need to maintain a safe and healthy environment, which minimises risk for both students and staff. I appreciate your support in ensuring that your son follows all guidelines and that he is aware of the serious situation in which we could find ourselves.
Please read the Covid readiness document carefully and take time to discuss our situation with your son, before he begins the year with us. We know the landscape is constantly changing, so we will work to ensure you are kept informed. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the school.
Again, let’s begin the year with optimism, as we face the new challenges collectively, as a strong Napier Boys’ High School whānau.
We can do this working together
He waka eke noa
Ngā Mihi Nui
Jarred Williams
Headmaster
–> Link to Covid Readiness Document <–
