November 17

On  November 17, 2020, the approved industry COVID Safe Plan for Outdoor Recreation Activity Providers and the COVID Safe Plan for Outdoor Education Providers were updated on the Queensland government website  to ensure that these plans align with the changes announced by the Chief Health Officer in the latest Restrictions on Businesses, Activities and Undertakings Direction (No. 9).

Sport and Recreation have advised as follows regarding the most recent changes set out in the new CHO direction:

These changes will have an impact on the sport, recreation and fitness industry, therefore updates will be made to the Industry COVID Safe Plans, the Return to Play Guide and other supporting information to reflect the below:

  • Indoor premises: Increase from one per person per 4m2 to one per person per 2m2
  • Indoor events: Seated, ticketed venues to increase from 50% to 100% capacity.
  • Outdoor events: Increase outdoor events from 1000 to 1500 with a COVID Safe Event Checklist.
  • Indoor and outdoor events: When attending events you are strongly encouraged to wear a mask when you are not sitting in your allocated seat and it is not possible to physically distance. This could include entering or exiting the venue,  leaving your seat to go to the bathroom or purchasing food or drinks.
  • Open air stadiums: Increase seated capacity from 75% to 100% (with a COVID Safe Plan).
COVID Safe Plans

Outdoor Education Providers 

Please note:

Queensland Health has clarified the following base occupant densities for short term accommodation:

  • No more than one person per 4 square metres for sleeping areas.
  • One person per 2 square metres for common areas open to or used by guests.

People sharing sleeping quarters will be sleeping on average for six to eight hours a night in an enclosed space without a mask. This creates an increased risk of spreading the virus.

Under the COVID Safe Plan for Outdoor Education Providers, there is a change to the density requirements for sleeping arrangements for school-aged children (Page 9), but the 1 person per 4 square metres rule still applies to adults in sleeping areas.

COVID Safe PLans

Both plans are accessible through our COVID Safe Plans web page and downloadable from the Queensland Government’s Approved COVID Industry Plans page and accessible for all organisations in the Queensland outdoor sector (regardless of membership of an industry peak body such as Outdoors Queensland / QORF).

Implementation
We recommend that all providers review the updated plans against their operational plans to ensure ongoing compliance. See Implementation for information on how best to implement your COVID Safe Operational Plan for your organisation, and Support for links to FAQ. Email SR_Covid19@npsr.qld.gov.au with any questions.

Feedback
Please advise us of any protocols in either updated plan that are causing angst for operators, particularly issues restricting the ability to provide services, or any impacts on employing staff or engaging volunteers? Feedback from industry will be used to assist QORF with future submissions to Queensland Health when seeking changes.

For more COVID-19 news and updates go to COVID-19 Information & Resources – our online support resources for the outdoor sector. These include:

 

Have a story to tell or news to share

Let us know by submitting a news story, an article, a review, a white paper and more …

Submit