Covid 19 Delta outbreak: 130 Mount Albert Grammar students and staff undergo Covid tests following school case

Mount Albert Grammar School students went back to online learning when a student tested positive for the virus on Sunday. Photo / Michael Craig

About 130 students and staff at Mount Albert Grammar School in Auckland have required Covid testing after a student with the virus attended school last week.

There are also a number of students who may be required to isolate for 14 days following what is believed to be new guidance on contact classification, dictating any student deemed a casual-plus contact but isn't fully vaccinated could be upgraded to a close contact.

However, principal Patrick Drumm says he isn't aware of any further cases, the risk of transmission is low and he is optimistic senior students will be able to return to school on Monday.

The student, whose positive test result was known on Sunday, attended on-site classes on Wednesday November 3, and on Friday November 5, and was considered infectious during these times.

Student learning was then moved online this week, while some staff remained at school.

It comes after the school was closed to students early last week after another Covid-positive case was linked to the school, before it welcomed students back on Wednesday.

It is understood the two cases are not linked and that the latest case did everything right following their infection.

Drumm told the NZ Herald about 130 students and staff were considered casual-plus contacts - people likely to have been in the same place at the same time as the positive case.

Mt Albert Grammar School principal Patrick Drumm (centre), seen here with former staff Jenny Bates (left) and Steve Sharp (right). Photo / NZME

As such, those people had to be tested immediately and then again on day 5 after their last exposure.

By tomorrow, all casual-plus contacts should have been tested. Drumm said he would have been alerted if any further cases had been found, which he took as a strong indication no positive tests had been returned.

However, Drumm said there were a number of students who may have to isolate for two weeks after being upgraded to close contact status in what is understood to be new advice on contact classification from public health officials.

It is understood that casual-plus contacts who were not fully vaccinated - i.e. partially vaccinated or unvaccinated - could be upgraded to a close contact and require the 14-day isolation along with testing on day 5 and day 12.

A statement on this from the Ministry of Health was expected tomorrow.

Drumm said management of these students was being done by public health staff through the information the school held regarding student vaccination status. He was unaware how many could be considered close contacts.

As per national guidance, schools were expected to consider a student unvaccinated if their true status was unknown.

Schools across the country had been collecting information about their students' levels of vaccination, but without the ability to verify these details, schools operated under a high-trust model.

Drumm said public health staff considered the risk of transmission at the school to be "very low" and he said efforts were being made to ensure case contact identification processes were more efficient.

"We want our schools open safe as possible and they are safe," he said.

"When the inevitable things pop up like this, we just have to have a good system for addressing that, keeping the school running and moving forward."

He hoped to see senior students return to school on Monday where they would be attending tutorials ahead of their exams which begin the following week.

Today, Covid response minister Chris Hipkins - also the education minister - announced all students between Years 1-10 could return to Auckland and Waikato schools from Wednesday next week, as long as some public health measures were followed.

With 1800 senior students and 1200 juniors to look after, Drumm was planning to have juniors return on Monday, November 22 - when the seniors would be away doing their exams.

"We just don't want that double-up."

While today's announcement had been somewhat out of the blue, Drumm was glad his Year 9s and 10s would see some school before the term was out.

"We're really happy about that, that'll be a fantastic way to reorientate them before the beginning of next year."

MAGS wasn't the only Auckland school hit by Covid recently. Avondale College announced on Sunday that one of its students has tested positive for Covid-19 and has recommended that seniors return to online learning.

Last week, a cleaner at Howick College in Auckland's east also tested positive for Covid, but the school announced it would remain open as the risk was deemed low.

A student at Lynfield College also tested positive for Covid over the weekend and a staff member at Macleans College tested positive for the virus last week.