The closures come as a "catastrophic" fire warning was extended to the Illawarra and Shoalhaven on Monday afternoon.

The NSW Rural Fire Service said conditions in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven were expected to be worse than first anticipated, with the regions now forecast to experience "catastrophic" fire danger on Tuesday.

Closed schools include:

**This list will be updated as more information comes through

Some Figtree High School students catching a bus were originally told the school would be closed but the executive team has since said the school would be open.

The following preschools run by Big Fat Smile will also close on Tuesday:

An Association of Independent Schools NSW spokesman said more schools were expected to confirm their closure in the next 24 hours.

"The safety and welfare of students and staff are every school's absolute highest priority," AISNSW chief executive Dr Geoff Newcombe said.

"We have been advised that there is a strong likelihood that the Illawarra/Shoalhaven area will also be declared 'catastrophic'.

"We are advising schools to make their decision to close early, to give them the best chance to communicate with parents and carers who need time to make arrangements for looking after their children.

The school safety information on the Department of Education website will be continually updated during the afternoon, tonight and tomorrow.

Parents are advised to keep checking for new updates.

An education department spokeswoman said all schools had a communication plan for emergency situations and would keep in contact with parents and carers in their school community according to that plan.

In addition the Department's School Website service will place messages on school websites and social media platforms where relevant.