Coronavirus: Auckland's Glendowie College closed after positive Covid-19 test

A student at Auckland's Glendowie College has been diagnosed with coronavirus.

Parents were told in a letter that the school would be closed for 72 hours, starting Monday, while close contacts were traced and put into self isolation. Casual contacts would also be advised about what to do if they became unwell.

It's the second Auckland school closure announced today after a staff member at Mt Albert's Marist College was confirmed to have Covid-19.

Both schools are closed for 72 hours and will be thoroughly cleaned before they are expected to reopen on Thursday.

A father of a Mt Roskill Grammar School student has also tested positive for the virus but the Ministry has not announced plans to close that school.

The letter to Glendowie parents says the student and their whole household are now in self-isolation.

"They are being supported at home and will only return to school after they have completed their isolation period and are well."

Close contacts will be required to self-isolate for 14 days, the letter says.

Principal Richard Dykes emailed parents to tell them of the confirmed case. He said contact tracing would start on Monday and he and the deputy principals would be at school from Monday to morning to work on this process. No other staff would be at work.

"Until then, I recommend that you keep your child(ren) at home until we confirm whether they have been in close contact with the student," Dykes wrote. "This will be the school's first priority."

"We will communicate with close contacts as soon as we have tracked and identified them. We will then contact all other students to advise that they have not been in close contact."

"Hopefully your child has some work to get on with tomorrow," Dykes wrote. "I will be in touch tomorrow with more information about the tracking and your child's learning. Thanks for your ongoing patience and support. This is serious and we're in it together."