5. Question No. 5—EducationJAN TINETTI (Labour) to the Minister of EducationQuestion No. 5—Education5. JAN TINETTI (Labour) to the Minister of Education: What action has the Government taken to support schools in responding to COVID-19? Hon CHRIS HIPKINS (Minister of Education): Yesterday we had a confirmed case of COVID-19 who is a school student in Dunedin. The protocol between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education that was communicated to all principals and school leaders earlier this week was implemented. A letter was sent out to parents yesterday evening and Logan Park High School was closed this morning. The protocol is for the school to close while close contacts are traced and put into self-isolation for 14 days. Parents will be kept regularly updated. The school undertakes a careful clean in accordance with guidance from the Ministry of Health so that all surfaces in classrooms door handles bathroom surfaces and so on will have been cleaned. This is a careful targeted approach that's being taken by authorities. I want to repeat that there is currently no community transmission and therefore no reason not to send young people to school across New Zealand. Jan Tinetti: What other guidance has the Ministry of Education provided to schools and early childhood education (ECE) centres across New Zealand to support them to make safe decisions for their communities? Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: The guidance being provided to schools is extensive and it is regular. I want to stress that personal hygiene and reducing unnecessary physical contact—for example hugs handshakes and hongi—are still amongst the most important things to do to stop the spread of the virus. Guidance has been provided to schools so that they know the risks for key activities like assemblies school camps and travel for sporting and cultural reasons and they can make changes as necessary. The Ministry of Education has been providing daily updates to schools and early learning centres so that they've got the latest information and guidance. This is of course an evolving situation. The latest information and guidance is provided to schools as soon as it is available. Jan Tinetti: Why is the Government not doing mass closures of schools as a preventative action? Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: While we're seeing widespread school shutdowns elsewhere in the world in New Zealand we do not yet have community transmission. Pre-emptive school closures can have unintended consequences—for example children may need to be cared for by vulnerable grandparents or they may be put into social settings that could make things worse. At this stage there is no public health reason for mass school closures. We are planning for temporary and targeted closures like what is happening at Logan Park High School where they are required. But as the World Health Organization has confirmed the risks to children remain low and parents should continue to send their kids to schools and early learning centres unless they are unwell. However as part of our wider planning for every scenario it is still important that schools and early learning services are ready to provide distance education not necessarily because of closure but in some cases for periods of self-isolation. Jan Tinetti: What planning is the Government doing to support schools and ECE centres if more targeted closures are required based on health authorities' advice? Hon CHRIS HIPKINS: As I've indicated before we're not currently expecting widespread school closures but we are planning a variety of responses for different situations. The health safety and wellbeing of New Zealanders is of utmost importance and we're taking actions as required to keep people safe. The Ministry of Education is talking with all of the major telecommunications companies on a cross-industry response so that we can support those students with limited or no connectivity at home if they are required to stay home. Again we have planned for this and we are ready to respond. Education are working closely with their health counterparts and other Government agencies to make sure that schools kura and early learning services have the most up-to-date information as soon as it comes to hand and we encourage parents and caregivers to listen to their school leaders and their early learning providers and follow their advice.