COVID-19: Ops Guide

Operations Guide

The School Operations Guide (2nd October) has now been published. Click on the link to view online (login first or refresh). Alternatively you can download below:

Highlights & Reminders:

• Stay home when unwell and get tested
• In Metropolitan Melbourne and Restricted Areas, a permit is still required for permitted workers to attend a workplace and travel between their home and workplace. These will be issued to staff asap.
• School staff are authorised workers (working onsite or from home), and are able to continue to send their children to early childhood services, where no other supervision arrangements can be made.
• Staff must now wear face masks indoors and outdoors including while teaching wherever practicable, except where removal of a face mask is necessary for effective communication. Staff must carry a mask at all times.
• Students are also recommended to wear masks (both primary and secondary) but we cannot enforce this as our students are exempt due to the nature of their disability.
• Staff should obey the density limits (1x4sqm) in all staff and public areas (see signage) and continue to social distance (1.5m) from other adults and students where appropriate and feasible.
• Staff should continue to use both the main staffroom and Food Tech staffroom to reduce the amount of staff mixing and to reduce congestion. Staff are encouraged to eat outside where practicable.
• Staff and students should continue to maintain in their PLT bubbles and avoid mixing across cohorts. Please remind students about which zones they are allowed to be in at recess and lunch. Staff on Active Supervision Yard Duty should encourage students to stay in their correct zones for the duration of recess/lunch.
• All staff, students and visitors to schools should undertake regular hand hygiene, particularly on arrival to school, before and after eating, recess/lunch, after blowing their nose, coughing, sneezing or using the toilet. Age-appropriate education and reminders about hand hygiene should be provided.
• Sharing of food is not permitted.
• Use non-contact greetings (not shaking hands, hugging or kissing).
• Schools are required to increase fresh air flow into indoor spaces (including shared spaces, staff areas and thoroughfares) whenever possible. Staff and students should maximise the use of outdoor learning areas or environments wherever possible, including as an alternative to staff areas.
• Any staff and final year students  moving between of metropolitan Melbourne/ Restricted Areas or regional Victoria (excluding Restricted areas) will need to be double vaccinated or undertake COVID-19 testing within 72 hours after attending onsite (no more than twice in 7 days). Staff do not need to wait for a test result to work. This includes all workers, including direct employees, sub-contractors, volunteers and Casual Relief Staff. However, if any staff present symptoms of COVID-19 they should not attend on site but get tested and isolate immediately.
• Visitors to school grounds should be limited to essential school services and operations. Principals are best placed to make decisions regarding what visitors are essential to the operation of their school.
• Camps, excursions and incursions for Victorian schools cannot take place at this time.
• School events, gatherings, assemblies, and non-essential meetings should be deferred or held remotely.
• Students in their final year of schooling can participate in their VCE or VCAL classes, including VET studies, where these are held at TAFEs, RTOs, non-school senior secondary providers, or schools.
• Students undertaking School Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships (SBATs) including Head Start Apprenticeships and Traineeships (HSATs) may continue their employment if it is on the Authorised Providers and Authorised Workers list, and they have an Authorised Worker Permit.
• All SWL and work experience placements must continue to be deferred, or if that is not possible, cancelled. For SWL or work experience placements that count towards VCAL units, all efforts should be made to arrange suitable alternative arrangements for students so these can occur at a later time. Only students undertaking a School Based Apprenticeship or Traineeship are able to attend their place of employment, if on the Authorised Providers and Authorised Workers list.

To download the full DET COVID-19 Safety Management Plan (COVIDSafe Plan), click on the document below:

Vaccinations - Requirement for Work

As I communicated to you last week, the Victorian Chief Health Officer has determined that COVID-19 vaccination will be required for all staff who work in schools.

All staff who work in schools will be required to have a first dose of the vaccine by 18th October 2021 or be able to produce evidence of a vaccination booking within that week.

If you have not yet been fully vaccinated or made your vaccination booking, please know that Victorian pharmacists are now offering the Moderna vaccine for any Victorian under the age of 60. There are many appointments available. Please book your vaccination appointment today.

All staff are required to:

• have a first dose of the vaccine by 18th October 2021 or be able to produce evidence of a vaccination booking within that week; and
• be fully vaccinated by 29th November 2021 unless a medical exemption applies and will be required to show evidence of their vaccination status.

This includes principals, teachers, administration and education support staff, including casual relief teachers (CRTs) and pre-service teachers.

How to book an appointment

To book a vaccine appointment at a pharmacy, GP or community health service near you, use the Vaccine Clinic Finder or call your local pharmacy or GP.

You can book or change a vaccination appointment at a state vaccination centre through the Victorian Government’s COVID-19 vaccine online booking system. To find a state vaccination centre and opening times, visit Book your vaccine appointment.

For information on what to bring to a vaccine appointment, visit Checklist: before your COVID-19 vaccination.

The Victorian Government’s coronavirus website has information about COVID-19 vaccines in 63 community languages at Translated information about COVID-19 vaccines.

For further information about how staff will be supported to receive a COVID-19 vaccination, contact the Schools People Services general HR phone line: 1800 641 943. 

Ventilation Assessment Program & Air Purification Devices

Over the school holidays and early in Term 4, the Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) will perform a ventilation infrastructure assessment of 100 schools to identify infrastructure characteristics contributing to ventilation across various school building types and areas.

Further to this, once all staff and students return onsite, the VSBA will undertake CO2 monitoring to provide an indication of the type of spaces within schools that may require additional ventilation and/or filtration measures.

The Victorian Government has announced the beginning of a rollout of air purification devices to Victorian government schools from the beginning of Term 4.

Initially, 2000 air purification devices will be provided to schools identified through public health advice with a further 35,000 devices to be rolled out over the following weeks to government schools.14,000 devices will also be rolled out to low fee-paying non-government schools.