ATTENTION

							        Southern Adelaide Region

                               Preschool and School Closure
                                      Pupil-free Day
Attention:       Regional Director/Assistant Regional Director

Site Name:       ………………………………………………………………………………………………………...…..………..

                 Phone No: ……………………….……………….                                 Fax No: ……………..………….……………..

                                  Complete the appropriate Section
                  and fax to Southern Adelaide Regional Office Fax No: 8207.3752

1. PreSchool and School Closure

The PreSchool/School seeks approval for a closure day, with the recommendation of the Governing/School
Council, on …………………………………………. as a day of local significance which is of a particular interest to a
majority of parents and students.
The local significance is …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

         Signed ………………………………………………………………………                                       Date ………………………………………
                        Director/Principal


         Approved      Signed: ………………………………………………….                               Date ………………………………………
                                  Regional Director/Assistant Regional Director




2. Pupil–free Day

The PreSchool/School seeks endorsement for a pupil-free day on ………………………………………………………

for the following purpose …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

The above date is the first day or last day of a school term                      Yes        No

         Signed ………………………………………………………………………                                       Date ………………………………...……
                        Director/Principal


         Approved/Endorsed        Signed: …………………………………………………. Date ……………….……………
                                           Regional Director/Assistant Regional Director



This form is compliant with the guidelines outlined in the DECS documents “Preschool Pupil Free and Closure Days”
and “School terms, vacations, closures and celebrations”.
For reference, both documents accompany this form (Pages 2 & 3) with the relevant websites to view the documents in
full.


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                               Preschool and School Closure
                                      Pupil-free Day
Sections from the DECS documents . . .
                      “Preschool Pupil Free and Closure Days”
                                      http://www.decs.sa.gov.au/docs/documents/1/PreschoolPupilFreeandClos.pdf
                         “School terms, vacations, closures and celebrations”
                                     http://www.decs.sa.gov.au/docs/documents/1/SchoolTermsVacationsClosu.doc




Preschool Pupil Free and Closure Days
       Preschool staff are entitled to access the equivalent of two pupil free days per school
       year. Staff are to remain on duty to undertake staff development programs related to
       core business (eg curriculum) on these days.
       It is recommended that, after a pupil free day, that preschool staff provide a report to
       the district director and the governing council outlining the aims and the outcomes of
       the staff development program undertaken on the pupil free day.
       A pupil free day must be approved by the district director.
       Families are to be provided with at least one month’s notice of a pupil free day.
       Where possible, services are encouraged to provide alternative sessions or
       arrangements for affected families.
       Closure days, (days where teaching staff are not required to attend for duty) as
       detailed in policy “School terms, vacations, closures and celebrations”,
       refer:-www.decs.sa.gov.au/docs/documents/1/SchoolTermsVacationsClosu.doc
       are not applicable to preschool staff (ie preschool staff are not entitled to days of
       local significance, show day etc.)



School closures and early dismissals
       Official visit by members of the Royal Family and other dignitaries.
       Schools may close for a half day following an official visit of members of the Royal
       Family, the Governor-General, the Governor, the Premier or the Minister for
       Education, Children's Services and Training. The closure must be endorsed by the
       governing/school council.

         School closures recommended by the school council
         • Governing/School councils may recommend to the District Director the
         closure of a school for a maximum of one school day or two half days
         each school year for events of local significance which are primarily, but
         not necessarily, restricted to the district and which are of particular
         interest to a majority of parents and students, e.g. agricultural and
         horticultural shows, including the Royal Adelaide Show.

         • Principals and teachers are not required to remain on duty when a
         school closure is authorised. Non-teaching staff are normally required
         to work on all occasions when the school is closed on a
         recommendation of the school council. However, recreation leave may
         be used if an entitlement exists or the principal may grant leave without
         pay or, by rearranging timetables, authorise such employees to work
         their normal total number of hours within the pay period. Part-time
         school assistants who have accumulated additional hours within the
         terms of the "Time Bank" provisions of their Award may, with the
         principal's permission, utilise these hours as time off in lieu.



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         • If the school office is to be closed, the Manager, Distribution Centre
         (telephone 8234.0410) should be notified for metropolitan schools, in
         order to cancel the courier drop.

         • Themes such as conservation and/or parents' visiting day may be
         celebrated from within the quota of school closure days if it is the
         council's wish to preserve these traditions.

         • Closures will not be approved if this would constitute a de facto
         extension of a school vacation.


         Pupil-free days approved by the school council
         • Governing/School councils, at their discretion, may authorise up to a
         maximum of three pupil-free days in each school year (reduced to two if
         a school closure occurs as provided above) to mark particular activities
         which could include (not necessarily exclusively) school management
         and planning meetings or staff development programs. One or two
         teacher schools may have up to four pupil- free days each school year,
         including a maximum of one day for school closure.

         • The quota of approved pupil-free days and school closures, including
         any closure as a result of an official visit by members of the Royal
         Family and other dignitaries (as listed above), shall not include the two
         days that teachers are required to be on duty before the
         commencement of the students' school year, or the days allowed as
         teachers' travel time which applies at certain schools because of the
         distance of those schools from Adelaide.

         • Principals, teachers and non-teaching staff must remain on duty on
         pupil-free days.

         • The Chief Executive (or his/her delegate), parents and, where
         appropriate, providers of services such as cleaners, transport, food and
         general school supplies must be notified at least one week in advance
         of the approved date of decisions to close a school or have a pupil-free
         day.

         • Decisions on pupil-free days and school closures should take into
         account the interests of students and local circumstances, e.g. coordination
         of school bus services.

         • The Minister may, if it is considered to be in the best interests of the
         community, direct that one pupil-free day within the quota be held in
         specified schools on the same date.

         • Schools wishing to hold pupil free days on the first day of Term 2, 3 or 4
         or the last day of a term will be able to do so with the approval of the
         District Director. School closures will not be permitted. Requests which
         include school council approval must be forwarded to the District
         Director to be received by the end of week 6 of each term.




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