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The school has been advised by the NZEI Te Rui Roa that it is holding a Paid Union Meeting from 1.30pm on Wednesday 20th March. Accordingly, the majority of the school’s teaching staff will be unavailable after 12.30pm on this date. Parents may collect their children from school at 12.30pm or they may go home with your permission. If you are unable to make suitable alternative arrangements from 12.30pm then arrangements can be made for them to stay at school.
Please return the pink slip sent home to indicate whether your child will be at school after 12.30pm on this date.
This morning the principals of the local primary schools with swimming pools have agreed that it is appropriate to close our swimming pools from this Friday (8th March) due to the critical water shortage.
We normally close the pool towards the end of March (sometimes earlier).
The pool is usually open for about a 13 week season (3 weeks early December, 2 weeks January, 4 weeks in February and 3/4 weeks in March). With a key costing $45 for the season that equates to about $3.50 per week for a key.
So since we are closing the pool 3 weeks earlier than usual, parents may request a $10.50 refund (please ask the office for this).
I am sure parents will be fully understanding and supportive of this decision.
A copy of the letter sent home with children 12/2/19:
Hi parents of Senior syndicate children
After due consideration, I am informing parents of the senior syndicate children that we have decided to cancel the Lake Rotoiti camps (beginning next week, for 3 weeks).
This is due to the present state of emergency in the Tasman area. The extreme weather and environmental conditions remain of huge concern. The TDC and NCC have closed reserves, tracks and walkways.
Many parents are rightly very concerned about their families and worried about the possibility of changing environmental conditions at short notice and the anxiety levels of their children and themselves if their children attend camp.
Some staff members and their families are directly affected by the state of emergency. Similarly, some of the emergency services personnel involved are meant to be on the camps as camp parents and they are likely to be on emergency duty or so exhausted that it may not be feasible for them to attend camp – and some classes barely have enough parent help at present.
In summary, the present state of emergency remains of concern and the area’s future remains uncertain. So the decision has been made to cancel all 6 camps. Consideration will be given to future outdoor experiences once the present conditions have settled. Parents will in due course receive a refund.
I am confident parents will be understanding of this course of action and the need to consider environmental issues as well as pupil, family and staff welfare safety factors.
It’s not to late to register your child for the Weetbix Try-athlon on Sunday March 3rd at Tahuna. Follow the link and please link up to Richmond School, Nelson when prompted as we are aiming to get as many of our kids involved as possible this year.
