On Sunday NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet and Education Minister Sarah Mitchell announced that students will be returning to face to face learning ahead of the school year with teachers and students to take two Rapid Antigen Tests a week for at least the first four weeks of the term.

"As part of the new measures, every student and teacher in NSW government and non-government schools will be able to receive rapid antigen test (RAT) kits before school returns on February 1," Mr Perrottet said.

The COVID-Smart Plan to keep schools open and students safe includes:

However, parents have shared their concerns over children being required to be tested twice a week, especially those with special needs or sensory issues.

Mr Perrottet said supporting students to return safely to the classroom is vital after two years of disruption to their education.

"Students learn best at school, some students have spent a quarter of their schooling at home. We're committed to bringing students back safely," Mr Perrottet said.

"New COVID-smart measures will help make this happen, including surveillance testing both students and staff twice weekly with RATs.

"What is most important about this approach is that it allows students to enjoy all aspects of their schooling in a safe and sensible way.

"The government is distributing more than 12 million RATs to over 3150 government, non-government schools and early childhood centres to assist with surveillance testing of staff and students."

With the rapid spread of the Omicron variant parents are also concerned that schools will become a breeding ground for the spread of the virus, especially with the changes in the rules around positive cases in school environments.

Schools will no longer be required to close if a positive case is reported, instead schools will be changing the way they clean as well as other measures to try and mitigate the spread.

According to the NSW Government if there is a positive case in a class, year or other grouping, children without any symptoms and who return a negative RAT can continue to attend school in line with NSW Health advice.

If a student or staff member receives a positive RAT, they need to:

NSW Health have said negative results do not need to be reported to Service NSW or to the school.

Schools will inform their community when there is a positive case in the school and guide families on NSW Health advice, including monitoring for symptoms.

Parents should expect regular communication with details of any impacted year groups or cohorts.

Students and staff will also continue to be required to wear masks while at school.

All primary and secondary school staff are required to wear surgical masks indoors.

Vented or cloth masks should NOT be worn. If required, surgical masks will be available at schools if required.

Secondary school students will be provided with surgical masks as a backup when needed, which they must wear when indoors.

Masks are also strongly encouraged in outdoor settings where you cannot physically distance.

NSW Health said primary school students are strongly recommended to wear well-fitted masks indoors and in outdoor settings where they cannot physically distance.

Children can remove their mask when:

Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell said testing complements other COVID smart measures in schools, including mandatory vaccination for staff, increased vaccination coverage for students , mask-wearing, cleaning, cohorting and limited visitors on-site.

"We have worked closely with the Victorian Government to create plans that achieve the same important goals of seeing our students learning in their classrooms safely and with minimal disruption," Ms Mitchell said.

"Activities students love, such as music, school sport and assemblies, will continue with settings in place similar to late last year."

A number of staffing contingencies are in place including utilising retired and studying teachers.

NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant acknowledged there will be a rise in cases with the return to school, however is in support of a return to face-to-face learning.

"We are calling upon all parents to ensure that any children with symptoms are not sent to school," Dr Chant said.

"We are likely to see some transmission in schools, but the strategies that have been put in place by Education, in conjunction with Health, are strong."

Dr Chant is urging parents to minimise their children's activities in the first four weeks of schooling, such as sleepovers and "other activities that might drive infection" to ensure face-to-face learning can continue.

The Association of Independent Schools of New South Wales Dr Geoff Newcombe AM said all three school sectors worked closely together to develop the back to school arrangements.

"School communities should feel confident about returning for Term 1 under these arrangements, which allow a wide range of activities to proceed with appropriate risk-assessment and planning," Dr Newcombe said.

Catholic Schools NSW Chief Executive Officer Dallas McInerney said it is imperative that we have schools that are safe and that remain open.

"We need to keep our students, teachers and families safe and also provide stability.

"We know that our kids learn best when they're in the classroom with their teacher and peers," Mr McInerney said.

The NSW Government said families will be notified by their schools on how and when to collect the RAT kits for their children.

According to NSW Health in the 12 to 15-year-old age group, more than 80 per cent of children have had their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and 78 per cent are double-dosed.

In the 5 to 11-year-old age group, more than 24 per cent of children have had their first dose.

In the case of students needing to self-isolate or being required to stay home or anywhere face-to-face learning is not possible, learning from home options will be supported for short periods.