Rostering home will continue until Friday 12 August, and will be reviewed again next Wednesday 10 August. We have found that pressures around relief have been relieved, and this has had a positive impact on student and staff well-being. Students can access work during this time via Teams.
Week 3 rostering home schedule: Monday: Year 9 Tuesday: Year 10 Wednesday: Year 11 Thursday: Year 12 Friday: Year 13
Ngā mihi Maria Kerr Deputy Principal
25 July 2022
Kia ora whānau
Rostering Home of Year Levels
At the moment we are experiencing high staff absences due to illness, and we are struggling to cover all classes with our current pool of relief teachers.
In order to ensure that classes have a teacher in front of them we will be implementing rostering home for one year level per day for Period 5 only.
This rostering home will begin on Wed 27 July and continue until Fri 5 August.
Dates Year Levels are rostered home for Period 5: Wed 27 July - Yr 9 Thur 28 July - Yr 10 Fri 29 July - Yr 11
Mon 1 Aug - Yr 12 Tue 2 Aug - Yr 13 Wed 3 Aug - Yr 9 Thur 4 Aug - Yr 10 Fri 5 Aug - Yr 11
For the Year Level rostered home:
Students can leave school at 1.30pm (or 12.55pm on Tues)
Work will be available for students to complete at home via Teams
Buses will run from school at the usual time of 3.20pm, students can go to Queensgate to catch earlier buses
Supervision will be offered for those needing to remain at school, students need to sign in with SLT at 1.30pm (or 12.55pm if a Tuesday)
All after school activities will proceed as normal, at the normal time
Whilst this is not an ideal situation, it will allow us to have most students at school for most of the time.
Thank you for your ongoing support in these challenging times.
Ngā mihi nui Maria Potter Principal
Masking Up for the Start of Term 3
24 July 2022
Kia ora Sacred Heart Community
In previous years we have found there is an increase in winter illnesses in schools at the start of Term 3 as students bring back infections after travelling and socialising during the holidays. This year cases of COVID-19 are increasing in most parts of the country, and we are also seeing high numbers of other winter illnesses.
For the start of Term 3, 2022, the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health strongly recommend that all schools and kura amend their mask policy for the first four weeks of term to require mask wearing in all indoor settings (where it will not have a significant impact on teaching and learning – see below) for students in Years 4 and above.
This recommendation does not include any situation where mask wearing might not be practicable, such as while eating and drinking, playing certain musical instruments, indoor sport, where it will have a significant impact on teaching and learning (for example, students with particular learning needs), certain activities such as singing or drama performance on stage, and PE. In these situations, particular attention should be paid to ensuring there is good ventilation during the activity, and physical distancing where practicable.
Wearing masks can reduce new cases of the virus by as much as 53%. It works alongside other measures including vaccination, good ventilation, staying home when sick, and hand washing and other hygiene measures, to protect our students and staff.
We know that that some of our ākonga are exempt from wearing a mask. If they have an exemption card or a letter from their health provider, or we have agreed that mask wearing is not practicable for them, we will support them to not wear a mask.
Please make sure that ākonga come to school ready to wear masks. Students should bring masks from home, but if students cannot bring masks there will be a limited supply for use.
Thank you for your support in protecting our school community.
Following the Kaikoura earthquake in 2017, our beautiful chapel was deemed unsafe due to seismic risk. This leaves the College without a consecrated space for the celebration of liturgies and more intimate religious celebrations.
The College, alongside the Mission Colleges Lower Hutt Trust Board, would love to see the Chapel re-established as the "Heart" of the College and is currently launching a fundraising campaign to raise the necessary funds for the completion of this project. While we are lucky enough to have secured some seed funding from the Sisters of our Lady of the Missions, along with a private bequest, we have a long way to go. The current budgeted cost of the refurbishment project is $1.2m.
The benefit of our beloved Chapel refurbishment is twofold. The Sacred Heart College community will of course reap these benefits every day, but the rebuild will also benefit the wider community. We would love to see our modern new premises open to the public and in use for various events, such as weddings and functions. The Chapel will be an asset that would serve the Sacred Heart community, and Lower Hutt community for many years to come. Watch this space as we keep you updated with the progress.
(All images are draft concepts of the proposed chapel design)
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