March 2021
Term 1 is now fully in swing for 2021, which makes it even more important for every Victorian to play their part to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. We all want Victoria to continue to stay safe and stay open and we want our children to continue to learn at their school, kindergarten or other early childhood education centre.
Recently, we’ve seen some cases of COVID-19 emerge. The Department of Health is doing everything it can to prevent spreading in the community through locating close contacts, continued testing and wastewater monitoring.
Early childhood centres and schools have comprehensive COVIDSafe plans in place. This means that schools and centres have embedded the behaviours we learned in 2020 and are well placed to act quickly and respond to any identified risks.
I am confident this is reassuring to families, children and staff.
However, the importance of all Victorians remaining vigilant cannot be stressed enough.
It is vital that we all continue to stay home when unwell, get tested, perform regular hand hygiene, and cough into your elbow if you have to. I remind all staff, students, parents and families to wear a face mask when required and stay at least 1.5m apart from others when practical.
I also encourage you to promote and ensure testing whenever a child or staff member has any symptoms, no matter how mild. Getting tested and staying home until results are known remains critical to limiting the spread of COVID-19.
It is also important to get tested when it is recommended, for example, if you have visited an exposure site.
Continued vigilance to prevent the spread of COVID-19 ensures that schools and early childhood education centres remain safe for students and staff.
Victorian Chief Health Officer
Return to School COVID19 Policy term 4 2020
Tips for talking to your child about coronavirus (COVID-19), including how to have a safe and reassuring conversation and links to resources to help you and your family.
Talking about Coronavirus: Arabic
Talking about Coronavirus: Chinese
Talking about Coronavirus: Dari
Talking about Coronavirus: Punjabi
Talking about Coronavirus: Vietnamese
Coronavirus Parent Information: Greek
Coronavirus Parent Information: Japanese
Coronavirus Parent Information: Italian
Coronavirus Parent Information: Persian (Farsi)
Coronavirus Parent Information: Spanish
