Important Note: Remember to come to school tomorrow morning from 12 noon to collect a Care Package from Hastings Intermediate School. Please note the change of time!
This morning we met with the structural engineer to look at our buildings so that we could get an idea of a path to reopening. The structural engineer said that in his opinion:
- The staffroom and admin area can be made ready for use with a week and a half's work. (A lot better than was first thought!)
- That the resource room, library, and Rooms 3 & 4 can be repaired. He estimates that this is a big job that could take ten weeks of work.
- That Rooms 5-8 need to be demolished and replaced.
- That a week and a half's work will see the hall, Rooms 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 and the new Learning Studio ready for use.
(The structural engineer's opinion, particularly in regard to the staffroom to R4 block and the R5-8 block now has to be peer reviewed by the Insurer and agreed to by the Loss Adjuster. They could decide that it is too expensive to repair Rooms 3 & 4 and more economical to build new.)
From the structural engineer's feedback we have set Monday, March 21st as our likely opening date and will be working towards that.
We have four relocatable classrooms ordered for our school but they will take 20 days to be ready for occupation from the time they arrive.
A March 21st reopening means that we have three weeks and four days until the Easter Holidays. We expect that the relocatable classrooms will be ready when we return to school after the Easter break.
We have to be Freeville Flyers and be creative, caring and adaptable, particularly for the three weeks and four days of school up till Easter, to get school up and running. Our thinking at present is that:
- LT3 (Rooms 3, 4, 5) will all be in the hall for three weeks and four days.
- Room 6 will be in the Staffroom for three weeks and four days. Then they will move to a relocatable.
- Room 8 will be in Room 16.
- Room 7 will be in Room 13.
This means that we are able to keep all children whose classroom is not badly damaged in their own room, we keep all our children at our school, and we are not having to double shift any classroom spaces or reduce teaching time. While it is not ideal to have three classrooms in the hall it is the best option available to us at present, and is only until the relocatable classrooms are available.
LT3 Camp - This will not be going ahead at this time. We will look at options to provide a camp experience later in the year.
Care Package Collection and BBQ - I hope to see those who can make it, at school, from 12 noon tomorrow. It will be great to see you. Please note that children are not allowed to be in the school grounds. This is a Civil Defence rule. They can come in to the Learning Studio car park where the Care Packages will be given out but cannot go beyond there. It's just not safe.
School Bags etc - These will be available for you to collect from the Learning Studio Car Park between 11 am and 12 noon on Thursday. If you can't make it don't worry. We will look after them until you are able to get to school to collect them.
Look after yourselves.
Kind regards
John
Given that the kids have had a two week break from leaning as it is and we are set to loose another 2 weeks has there been consideration put to shortening or not having the Easter holidays?
ReplyDeleteA big thank you John and all the teachers and staff at Freeville for doing such a wonderful job of looking after our children during such an unsettling event. Thank you also for your commitment to the 'Freeville Family' to get our wonderful school up and running again.
ReplyDeleteBecky Prior (Anna and Aarons mum)
No. The school term dates and holidays are set nationally and, even if we wanted to we are not able to change them. Please remember too that although school is not open for learning teachers are still working. They are also many who are out of their homes or living in damaged homes, like everyone else. They are looking forward to getting school going again but I guarantee that the mental energy expired by staff and students will mean that they will need a break by the time Easter rolls around.
ReplyDeleteJohn, great news that we may have school going again on the 21st. Will water and sewage be an issue? Ie, do you know if water and sweage will be going again by the 21st? - Glen Richards
ReplyDeleteHi Glen
ReplyDeleteWater and sewage is an issue. Hopefully water will be on by then in the school. If drinking water is not safe we will have to get a supply of bottled water.
The Ministry are investigating a septic tank and pump set up in preference to port a loos.
Unfortunately these are issues that are largely out of our control.