This week I met with AGPPA Presidents’ and we shared the return to school status in our jurisdictions. Interesting to look at the similarities as well as the differences.

Northern Territory

• Approximately 1% of student population tested positive for COVID last week. This week it’s 2%.
• Received a good supply of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) were received today
• Distributed to students who are close contacts. If a student is displaying symptoms, the student will need to go to the Department to get a RAT.
  All school staff have optional RAT supply of 3 per week.
• Close contact tracing not being carried out due to definition of ‘4 continuous hours’.
• Due to recent weather events, train line and Stuart Highway cut off. Remote communities cut off and suffering food shortage and are hit by Covid.
  Isolation in remote communities is very challenging due to over-crowding in houses.
• Communication struggle between the Department and remote community: positive cases not getting reported
• Families not sending their children to school in both urban and remote areas, particularly in the primary sector as they wait for their child/ren to receive the second dose.

Tasmania.

• Department Comms have been good: Twice weekly COVID updates for all school principals and school business managers, which is good to ensure that they all get the same message.
• RATs: At the end of last week there were still schools who had yet to receive their kits but most have now received them and remaining ones are being delivered today. The next shipment of RATs are unassembled and it’s up to schools to assemble them. It should not occur in following shipments but it’s a big ask for schools.
• Today ( 8 February ) is the deadline for all staff to enter their vaccination status.
• Close contacts: 4 hours of continuous contact and it is anticipated that the rate of infection will be higher in primary schools.
• Announced today: a COVID Contact Team for schools. A COVID contact person will be assigned to each school. It is anticipated that this role will help with the form filling, processes etc

South Australia

• Staggered start: Foundation, Years One, Seven and Eight and Twelve. All back next week. ( our Week 4 )
• RATs: also arrived unassembled. Confusion in schools as many of the boxes containing RAT kits were unmarked and got ‘lost’ amongst the many school supply boxes received at the start of the year. The next shipment should arrive assembled.
• If a teacher is identified as a close contact, they have access to RATs to test every morning to be able to go to school. A PCR test is required if they develop symptoms or get a positive RAT.
• Department put together a good Infographic that helped people to understand the process.
• Unvaccinated principals took 6 months leave. Some of them are waiting on Novavax.
• Remote communities cut off due to flooding, cut off for another 2 weeks. Also experiencing an increase in positive cases due to over-crowded housing.

Western Australia

• Department communication changes frequently. Meeting held weekly, sometimes multiple times per week but normally at very short notice.
• Ventilation Roll Out: due to the size of the State, it has been quite challenging. The weekend before school started, schools were on standby to receive HEPA filters. Confusion over old schools, windows open, air conditioners etc.
• Boosters: Staff are mandated to upload their booster status. Causing problems to those staff who had their second jab in advance as they were not allowed to be at school by February 5. The solution offered by the Department was for schools to use the PL day to get all staff to receive their booster shot.
  Families are keeping their children at home for now. Census audit is coming up next week and a large of percentage of children have not returned to school for now and no paperwork trail. This issue is currently being taken up with the Department.
• Relief payments: If a teacher has been deemed a close contact, be it asymptomatic but must isolate at home.

Victoria

• Relatively quiet start to the school year.
• Although relatively quiet, there is a lot going on underneath the surface!
• Infection rates are up. Dept has created a ‘Surge Workforce’ of over 30 recently retired principals go out to support new school leaders, replace COVID positive school principals etc.
• Part of the Surge Workforce are recently retired teachers and 4th year pre-service teachers to support schools if they cannot find sufficient staff.
• Work over the school holiday period due to being available for the filter audit and receiving filters etc. The issue is: what is the policy and science behind it? Who is responsible for cleaning the filters?
• RATs – there wasn’t enough supply and school leaders kept families informed.
• Vaccination & booster shots: good roll out now. Issue that staff were put on ‘stop pay’ as they were deemed to not having the correct vaccine certificate. Ongoing work to get this fixed.