Dear Parents and Caregivers
I hope you are all safe and well. I know many have had a challenging time and that it has certainly been difficult. The Aranui community sustained significant damage and I know we have families who have lost their homes. Our thoughts are with them as they begin to rebuild their lives. I hope that our school can provide the support and stability for the students as we try to bring some normalcy to our lives!
I can report that all our staff and their families are safe and well. Some have sustained major damage to homes too and our thoughts are with them as they deal with this and also prepare to return to support our children back to school. We met today and I am amazed by their resilience and strength. We are lucky to have such a great staff in these difficult times. They will be critical to the smooth transition and support as the students return.
This message is to update parents of the process we are taking to reopen the school after the 22nd February earthquake. The school has been closed as directed by Civil Defence. This was in place until the end of last week. During this time we have had 3 site visits to ensure the safety of the buildings. I am pleased to say that all building have been declared safe as of today (Monday 7th March) and we can now begin the process of cleaning up the inside of the buildings. Below are the measures we must have addressed before we can reopen (as set out by the MOE)
- Rooms tidied and furniture secured (including office spaces and resource areas)
- Provisions for constant water supply and access to drinking water
- Sewerage and hand sanitizing provisions
- Removal of liquefaction and sanitizing of school grounds
- Isolating any potential hazards
- Safety checks of playgrounds
- Preparation for the return of students
As you can see, this is an enormous task. The two biggest issues are of course the sewerage and access to water. As you will be aware these are issues throughout the Aranui area. Below is our intended time frame moving towards reopening. However, we are dependant on outside contractors who are in high demand. I will update this each day to let you know about the progress we are making.
Happening NOW (as of Friday 11th March)
Criteria for Opening Status
School Cleanup (inside) Complete
Water supply to school Complete (today)
Sewage leaks fixed In progress
Preparation for students TOD held this Monday 14th March
Clean up of school site As soon as sewerage leaks are fixed
Provisions for clean drinking water Complete
Provisions for hand sanitising Complete
Possible start date: Wednesday 16th or Thursday 17th March
11:00am for pick-up of bags and BBQ with teachers
(Friday 18th March is a public holiday)
Supporting Learning at Home
We are conscious that parents and teachers alike want to see continuity of learning for children at this time. Put aside a regular time for your children to do some age appropriate reading, writing and spelling. Encourage your children to keep a diary and to write about their experience during this time and send this work with your child back to school when school resumes.
Have a look at the following websites for learning activities:
The Ministry of Education website (www.minedu.govt.nz) also has information regarding supporting learning at times like these.
Help Lines
ChCh Earthquake Helpline 0800 225 580
Govt Helpline 0800 779 917
Red Cross Inquiry line 0800 733 276
(responses between 7am – 7 pm daily)
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