COVID-19 in WA: Confirmed cases at St Columba’s School in Bayswater and Halls Head Primary School

An entire class of Year 6 students has been sent into quarantine after a Catholic primary school in Bayswater became the latest WA school to report a COVID-19 infection.

Dozens of children from Halls Head Primary School in Mandurah will also be forced to isolate after cases were detected in a Year 6 class and a Pre-primary class.

Parents of children at St Columba’s School were notified on Tuesday afternoon of the confirmed case.

Principal Sandro Coniglio, father of Perth-born GWS co-captain Stephen Coniglio, said in the email the positive case had attended Year 6 Green — one of two Year 6 classes at the school — on Friday while infectious.

“If your child was in Year 6 Green at the same time as the case, then your child is a close contact,” the email said.

“You should get your child tested immediately. They should quarantine for seven days from exposure.”

The notice spelled out key dates, with affected children able to have their final PCR test on Thursday, ending their quarantine on Friday at 3pm.

The students would be able to return to school on Monday.

Halls Head principal Peter Beckingham said in his notice to parents that students and staff in two classrooms had been deemed close contacts requiring quarantine.

“WA Health will contact families from those rooms as soon as practicable and inform families of any steps or practices needed,” he wrote. “Our school will continue to operate as per normal, with some alterations to play areas and lunch areas.”

Australian Islamic College in Kewdale also reported a positive case on Tuesday and Newman College in Churchlands revealed there were multiple cases at that school’s secondary campus after just one last week.

“Following my communication to parents and guardians on Friday 11 February, I am writing to advise that there have been additional confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 identified at the Marcellin Campus (Secondary),” principal John Finneran wrote on Tuesday.

“We continue to work closely with WA Health to identify staff and students who were possibly in close contact with the confirmed positive cases.”

“We recognise that some members in our community may be concerned with the perceived lack of timely information from the college regarding confirmed positive cases. However, WA Health is responsible for initial communication with individuals identified as close contacts ... with the privacy of the individuals maintained by WA Health and the college throughout this process.”

As of Tuesday night, 32 schools across Perth and one in the south-west had been struck with COVID cases, two weeks and two days into the new school year.

Children in primary schools have been the most affected by learning disruptions because they are not required to wear masks, leading to whole classes being forced into isolation.