Update 1: Information for Parents, Students and Community on the opening of AIS School Year 2021/2022

We are delighted to be welcoming our students back to school on Monday,16 August. Parental support will be critical in ensuring school life continues to be an exciting, safe and purposeful experience for our students.

Headlines for Parents:

• All AIS protocols and procedures remain unchanged (3 June 2021) and can be found on the AIS website on the Parent Portal https://afnorth-is.com/info-center/parent-support/. The password to access the Parents Portal is accessed through your national office. We ask that you take a moment to go through these with your child/children before the start of the new school year
• Pre-screening ‘Parental Support Acknowledgment Form’ must be completed by all parents before starting school – Annex A.
• Bus Transportation will operate as usual – Annex B. It is mandatory to wear a mask on transportation and sit in the allocated seat for every journey. New students will be assigned a seat on the first day. We ask that you read through the bus procedures, safety rules and expectations with your child/children.
• The designated ‘zoned’ areas and routes for students to enter and exit the school building remain unchanged and be found at Annex C.
• The protocol for wearing a mask remains unchanged. Masks are required to be worn on school buses and in public places (inside and outside) whilst on school premises – Annex D3.
• The practice of keeping a social distance of 1.5 m when moving around in a public space on the school campus is to be maintained alongside regular washing of hands and use of sanitiser. Inside the national class/bubble, national requirements may differ – Annex D.
• School Lunches will be available as usual to purchase with a hot meal available – Annex E.

General reminder:

We ask that you keep national sections informed of any situation where your child/family are a suspect/contact case for COVID 19 as it is critical information for contact tracing and tracking. All information is held sensitively and protected.

If your child is showing COVID-19 symptoms, they are considered a SUSPECT case and all people in their household are CONTACT cases automatically until the situation with the symptomatic person has been cleared – Annex F & J.

AIS Drop-off and Pick-up

There is a waiting area established just inside the pedestrian gate to assist in managing the drop-off and pick up of your child. To access this area where there is a MOD Guard on Duty, you will need: to wear a mask, show your ID card and maintain social distancing. Please remember that the parking directly outside the school gate is a ‘kiss and ride’ designated zone and is not used for parking. Extra vigilance is required when driving in this area.

Visitors to School

All visitors must first make an appointment with their national section. National sections will avoid making appointments before 0900am and at exit times for students. Visitors should come alone or should indicate how many people will be accompanying them. Visitors should pre-screen before coming to school and follow protocols found in Annex H. When you have any symptoms of feeling unwell, you cannot visit the school.

Travel

Travel restrictions remain for many countries. Host nation travel restrictions and quarantine rules are regularly updated and found on the links provided in Annex D4 and D5. Be alert to any updates following a return from abroad, as AIS will follow the host nation regulations. Self-quarantine rules apply to all students attending AIS, irrespective of age. Awareness to host nation requirements is an individual responsibility.

The Board of Governors will meet on 31 August 2021 to review the national and global context and make any adjustments from 6 September 2021. However, any change will depend on the current context at that time. The prime concern remains the safety of the children and staff in these times of uncertainty. National sections should be your first point of contact if you have any queries or concerns.

We wish all our families a healthy and successful school year.

The Directorate

See also: