No images? Click here Dear parents and guardians, Further to the WA Premier’s announcement that lockdown restrictions will ease from tonight at 6.00 pm, I am very pleased to confirm that we are looking forward to welcoming our boarders back to the PLC Boarding House this Sunday and that school will resume on Monday morning. This past week has been a very trying and difficult time for many families, especially those who have been impacted by the bushfires in Perth’s north-east. Please know our thoughts and prayers have been, and remain, with you as you continue to respond to these extremely challenging circumstances. Our thoughts are also with families in the Gascoyne where there has been heavy rain and flooding. I would like to thank all members of our community, in particular our staff, who have responded so quickly and positively in the past few days to enable students to transition to Remote Learning as quickly and efficiently as they did. I am very grateful and proud to be a part of this strong community. As part of his announcement last night, the Premier outlined the following ongoing restrictions would apply to schools:
Please see below for further information about the return to the Boarding House and the start of school on Monday 8 February. This information is relevant as of 4.00 pm today and we remain conscious that the restrictions put in place today could easily change tomorrow. Please be assured, should restrictions or conditions change, we will endeavor to communicate with parents in a prompt and timely manner. What time can I drop my daughter back to the Boarding House? Students will be able to return to the Boarding House from 12.00 noon on Sunday 7 February 2021. For those families who need to catch flights or return to their homes earlier, I will be in Scorgie House from 9.00 am on Sunday. Girls are welcome to wait with me in Scorgie House until staff open the Boarding House. We appreciate a number of families who remained in Perth last week are needing to return home. Please email me if you need to drop your daughter off early. Do I need to complete an Application to Return to Boarding? Yes. It is extremely important that ALL families complete an Application for Return to Boarding Form for EACH child who is a boarder. This will provide the School with details of a Perth-based guardian who is able to pick up each boarder within two hours of another lockdown, should it occur. Girls will not be permitted back into the Boarding House until this form has been completed. Will my daughter need to wear a mask while she is in the Boarding House? Will staff be wearing masks in the Boarding House? Will family members need to sign in via the SafeWA App when we arrive at the Boarding House? Will I need to wear a mask when I return my daughter to the Boarding House. Will I be able to go to my daughter’s room and help her unpack? What is the School doing to promote effective personal hygiene practices among staff and students? What will happen if we go back into lockdown? My daughter is in the south-west. Does she need a G2G Pass to return to school?
Will classes resume as normal on Monday? Will cross-campus classes be run from Monday? Will cross campus buses be operating from Monday? My daughter is new to school in Year 8 or 9. Where should she go when she gets to School on Monday? My daughter is new to school in Year 10. Where should she go when she gets to School on Monday? No. Unfortunately It is not possible for staff to provide both face-to-face and Remote Learning to their classes. What if my daughter is unable to return to school next week? Please advise your daughter’s Pastoral and Academic Care Co-ordinator if she is not able to return to school on Monday. We do appreciate that there may be some students, in fire affected areas in particular, who are not able to return to school next week. Teachers will be uploading materials onto SEQTA and can communicate via email with any students who may not be able to return to school. Will students need to wear masks while at School? Yes. All Senior School students are required to wear a mask. We are seeking clarification about whether Year 7 students who have not yet turned 12 are required to wear them. At this stage we request that all Year 7 students do wear masks. What happens if my daughter loses her mask or it is broken during the school day? Staff and students are required to supply their own masks, however, Reception staff and the Boarding House will have limited supplies of masks should they be required. What if my daughter doesn’t want to wear a mask? All Senior School students are required to wear a mask. The only exceptions are when a person has an illness, condition or disability which makes wearing a face mask unsuitable. In this instance, a request for exemption must be supported by a letter from a treating medical practitioner to confirm the exemption is required. Should my daughter wear her school name badge? Yes. The name badges are provided to all students to help her peers and teachers get to know your daughter’s name. With students in the Senior School wearing face masks and a number of new students commencing, we ask that all students please wear their badges. Will the School ensure that laboratory coats, aprons, and protective eye wear is not shared between students? To allow practical classes to continue this week, we ask that students bring with them to school an older long-sleeved collared shirt to use instead of school-loaned lab coats or aprons. All protective eyewear provided by the School will be disinfected and cleaned after each use. Can parents come onto campus? The current advice is that parents are permitted on campus as long as they are not in a group of more than 150 people, are wearing a mask, hand sanitise, social distance (4 sq metres) and sign in or scan the QR Code on the SafeWA App at Reception. However, we do ask parents to limit their visits to school and only attend campus if it is absolutely necessary. Will the Cafeteria and Bev’s Café be open from Monday? Yes. Both Bev’s Café and the Cafeteria will be in full operation from Monday. Both will also accept cash from our new students in order to give them more time to receive their SmartRider cards and to set up FlexiSchool accounts. Boarders will return to the Boarding House dining room to collect their lunch each day. Bev’s Café will be open from 7.00 am to 4.00 pm Monday to Friday. CO-CURRICULAR AND SPORT Will co-curricular classes commence from Monday 8 February? It is our intention that most co-curricular classes will commence from next week as per the timetable. However, Senior School Lighthouse Co-Curricular classes will not start until the week commencing 15 February. Will Year 7 and 8 sport training on Monday afternoon commence as scheduled? Will Chorale and Senior Vocal Ensemble practice take place? The Music Department will communicate directly with members of both Chorale and the Vocal Ensemble regarding practice arrangements for this week. Will the Lighthouse Fitness Centre be open next week? The Fitness Centre will be open to all inducted staff and students in Years 10-12 from Monday afternoon 3.30 pm – 5.30 pm. Please note, masks must be worn at all times. What are the requirements for wearing a mask if my daughter is undertaking rowing training?
Will there be a SafeWA QR code and sign in sheet at the Rowing Shed? Yes. All coaches, parents and visitors will be required to sign in before entering the shed. Will Year 9 rowing training start on Monday morning? Yes it will. What are the requirement for wearing masks for Physical Education and Sport?
Will Year 7 and 8 sport training start on Monday afternoon as scheduled? Yes. Will swimming training commence Monday morning as scheduled? Yes. Girls are not required to wear masks for swimming training. Will the Inter-House and IGSSA Swimming Carnival go ahead? At this stage it is anticipated both the Inter-House and IGSSA swimming carnivals are scheduled to proceed. EVENTS Will the Support Your Daughter Evenings continue as planned? All Support Your Daughter Evenings have been postponed. We will advise parents and guardians of all new dates as soon as possible. Will school photographs take place next week? No. School photographs will be rescheduled for later this term. Parents will be advised of the new dates as soon as they are known. When will the Year 12 Ball be held? We are very pleased to be able to advise that the Year 12 Ball will now be held on Saturday 6 March 2021 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre at the same time as previously promoted. I understand the uncertainty around the Ball has been upsetting for some of our Year 12 cohort and I thank you all for understanding and cooperation as we have worked through the process to identify another date. Will the Welcome Sundowner be held on another date? With the Government restrictions, unfortunately the 12 February Welcome Sundowner cannot proceed as planned. Families will be advised of a new date for this event as soon as it has been rescheduled. HYGIENE AND CLEANING What extra cleaning regimes have been put in place in the Boarding House and around the School? Both Junior and Senior School campuses and the Boarding House have had intensive cleaning as well as Zoono treatments ahead of the girls returning to school on Monday. We will also have day cleaners on campus cleaning high-touch surfaces throughout the school day. Does the school have hand sanitiser available for staff and students? Yes. Hand sanitiser stations will be located in classrooms, at all entrances and at various locations around the school. I apologise for the disruption to the start of our school year. Thank you again for your patience during the last week and we look forward to seeing as many girls back in boarding from Sunday as possible. Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any queries at all and stay safe. Kind regards, |