Herzlia closes its schools, awaits outcome of parent’s Covid-19 test

United Herzlia Schools decided to close its eight campuses in Cape Town in a proactive move after a parent of a learner, who returned from abroad, confirmed he had possibly been in contact with the virus and had started displaying symptoms.

The Jewish community schools, which includes Herzlia High School, Herzlia Middle School, three primary schools, as well as three pre-primary schools, will be closed until the outcome of the parent’s test results come back on Friday.

In a letter to parents, seen by News24, the school said it had taken the decision “to be as proactive as possible, without overreacting”.

“There is a parent in our community who recently returned to Cape Town after attending a function where there have been confirmed Covid-19 infected individuals present and he is currently showing signs of the illness,” the letter reads.

“His children have been in our schools over the last week. We have already begun deep-cleaning and will continue to do so over the next few days.”

United Herzlia Schools executive director Andries van Renssen issued a statement on Tuesday in which he said teachers would use this time to prepare for online learning, should the need arise.

“Given that the children of this parent attended school this week, we have taken the decision to proactively close our campuses for the remainder of this week.

“We believe that it is the responsible and prudent thing to do, especially given that our primary concern is – and always will be – the well-being of the children in our care,” he said.

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