Dear parents and carers,
Our school has been impacted by Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred and as a result we will postpone commencing NAPLAN until Monday 17 March.
I am writing to inform you that Wishart State School will remain closed to all students and staff tomorrow, Tuesday March 11. Please keep your child at home.
Due to the effects of Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred being felt across our community, our school remains closed as a result of safety and risk assessments.
As part of our disaster management protocol, we follow the advice of emergency services. We always act in the interests of the safety of students, staff and the wider community. The decision to remain closed is based on an assessment of the current conditions and risks associated with movement in and around our community.
Safety assessments and reopening
It is critical that we act in the interests of safety of students, staff and the wider community. Before we receive clearance to re-open our school, there are a range of safety and risk assessments that need to be completed.
Damage at our school will be inspected by the government agency QBuild. When this assessment is complete, I will then complete a suitability assessment of our school before it can re-open.
Please be patient as we complete these assessments. I am sure you will appreciate that due to the effect of this weather event on many communities, this may take time – however I am as keen as you are to get our school back up and running.
We will provide updates and information to our families by 5:00pm on Tuesday 11 March, via email and the school website, regarding arrangements for Wednesday 12 March. In addition, up-to-date information on school closures is available from the school closures website (https://closures.qld.edu.au/). Early childhood service closures are available on the service and temporary closure information website (https://www.acecqa.gov.au/resources/national-registers/service-temp-closure-info).
Student absences
Absences due to emergencies and natural disasters and when a school is closed, will not be recorded on a student’s report card.
Monitoring the situation
Please continue to listen to our local ABC Radio service and monitor emergency services’ social media accounts for updates and advice. Information about current weather conditions can be found on the Bureau of Meteorology website at www.bom.gov.au. If you need immediate help, call Triple Zero (000) and remember, if it’s flooded, forget it.
Health and wellbeing
It is incredibly important that you take time to look after yourselves and your families. I encourage you to access the information available for parents and students to support health and wellbeing during these difficult circumstances.
Thank you for your ongoing support and I will continue to keep you informed about the status of our school.
Kind regards,
Dr Ray Bloxham
Principal