City of Newcastle will continue to focus on the health and safety of our community as we take a staged approach to the safe reopening services and facilities from next week in line with NSW Government Public Health Orders (PHOs).
The NSW Government's PHO comes into effect on Monday 11 October, now that NSW has reached the 70 per cent double dose vaccination target.
The PHO requires visitors attending public swimming pools to have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. From Monday, proof of vaccination will be required as a condition of entry to all City of Newcastle pools.
All adults (over 16) will need to show their COVID-19 certificate to pool staff to gain entry. A person under 16 years of age attending a public swimming pool must be accompanied by a fully vaccinated adult member of their household.
Several other City of Newcastle services will resume on Monday. Blackbutt Reserve will reopen its wildlife boardwalk and shelters, while Newcastle Libraries will commence a Reserve & Collect service where members can place reservations online and pick up their items from a library branch.
Library return chutes have reopened this week, and the Library 2U delivery service is operating where members can borrow up to five items via home delivery or collection.
The City will continue to take a measured, safety-first approach to reopening our facilities, with most services to resume closer to or after NSW reaches the 80 per cent double dose vaccination target, noting that vaccination rates in the Hunter are behind the state average.
City of Newcastle is finalising COVID safe plans for all sites in accordance with the NSW Government's latest PHO to ensure we can adhere to the required safety measures, which include one person per four square metres, mandatory mask wearing, and proof of full vaccination upon entry.
We will continue to monitor information as it is released by the NSW Government and appreciate the community's patience and understanding as our staged reopening begins.
