Pandemic Plan

Minimise Risk of Infection

The school community is susceptible to a wide range of bacterial and viral infections throughout the year. When infections affect a high proportion of students they can have detrimental impacts on student and teacher health, educational achievement, and the wider community.

The spread of infections amongst students can be minimised by applying appropriate hygiene practices.

The policy of this school is to encourage basic hygiene practices amongst students and staff at all times, and to apply heightened hygiene practices when there is a known presence or risk of highly contagious and debilitating infections (e.g. norovirus or a pandemic influenza virus).

Gorge Road School will move to heightened alert status if public and education sector information suggests a reasonable likelihood of a pandemic virus reaching New Zealand.

Under heightened alert status, the school will:

• Implement heightened hygiene practices

• Inform parents of the change of status and potential implications

• Increase vigilance for symptomatic students and staff

• Isolate and report symptomatic students or staff

Plan Pandemic Staffing Arrangements

Based on advice from the Ministry of Health, in the event of any confirmed pandemic cases in our region, if Boards of Trustees have not already closed their schools, the Medical Officer of Health will enforce the closure of schools under Section 70 (m) of the Health Act (1956). Therefore, we do not anticipate running normal school activities at any point while the pandemic virus is present in our community.

We expect to send most staff home while the school is closed. Staff will continue to be paid and are expected to work at home on school-related tasks unless they are sick, caring for immediate family members, or on leave. This work may include:

• planning

• monitoring school-related emails and issues

• communicating with parents and students via the internet, and

• suggesting and monitoring internet and book-based research for children in year three and above.

The school has considered the essential functions that need to continue operating while the school is closed. Therefore:

• The school will be inspected each day, and any issues will be reported to the principal.

• The mail will be collected, opened, and actioned as required.

• Accounts will be paid.

• Payroll issues will be monitored and reported.

• Communication with absent staff will be maintained via email and phone.

• Any other school-specific issues will be resolved as part of the school's Pandemic Plan.

Plan Home-based Education Resources

The school may provide some specific direction for pupils staying at home (in small numbers or en-masse) during a pandemic alert.

It will include in its communications with parents information on education resources they can access or obtain for use in the home.

The decision about what (if any) school owned education resources will be made available to parents is recorded in the Pandemic Plan.

When a heightened alert is signalled, classroom teachers will compile an email distribution group for all their students in their laptop computer address books. If an email address is not available, this will be noted, and a phone number will be recorded instead.

Teachers will email class members with age and stage appropriate generic ideas for internet and book based research for students in year 3 and above.

Teachers will be expected to respond with comments to content sent by students in response to these ideas.

Pandemic plan for GRS, it's 11 pages, the pdf is being stubborn and probably won't open unless you ask permission. If you'd like to view please ask,

Gorge Road Pandemic Action Plan.pdf

Reviewed 31/10/2022