Halloween you either love it or hate it. Each year it gets bigger and bigger in NSW and in Lane Cove, there are some well-known treat streets. What will Halloween be like in 2020 with COVID19?
Dr Jan from NSW Health has confirmed it is still okay to trick or treat but you must do it differently (this, of course, could change if community transmission rates rise between now and October 31st)
NSW Health Guidelines
NSW Health supports individuals participating in COVID-safe Halloween celebrations, providing levels of community transmission remain low and participants follow current rules when gathering together. Help us stop the spread this Halloween and always remember to:
- Keep 1.5 metres apart
- Practise good hand hygiene
- Stay home and get tested immediately if unwell
- Wear a face mask if unable to physically distance
COVID-safe tips if you plan to hand out treats
NSW Health recommends:
- If you have any symptoms of COVID-19 over Halloween, stay home, don’t receive Halloween visitors and get tested immediately
- If you are self-isolating, don’t answer the door to trick-or-treaters
- Make it a front-yard event, not at the front-door of your house. Keep your celebrations outdoors and get creative in decorating the front yard
- Only hand out individually wrapped treats
- Don’t use communal lolly bowls. Consider other ways of distributing treats such as hanging them individually on your fence, front gate or up your driveway
- Offer hand sanitiser at your front gate or fence
- You may wish to avoid people knocking on your door by putting up a sign that says “We are home but due to COVID-19, we are distancing. Please take one, Happy Halloween”
- Remember, you can only have 20 people on your property at one time.
COVID-safe tips if you plan to trick-or-treat
NSW Health recommends:
- If you have any symptoms of COVID-19 this Halloween, stay home and give trick-or-treating a miss this year. Get tested immediately
- Keep it local by staying in your suburb rather than going to well-known “treat streets” that attract crowds
- Celebrate outside, don’t go to people’s front door
- Stay in small household groups (for example a supervising adult and children from the same household) rather than groups of young people together. Remember, no more than 30 people can gather outside in a public place
- Stay 1.5 meters away from people you don’t live with
- Only take treats that are individually wrapped
- Use a disposable bag to collect your treats, and dispose of it appropriately afterwards
- Don’t share your treats with others from different households
- Don’t share costumes or costume face masks
- Carry hand sanitiser with you and use it often, especially after touching common surfaces.
Pumpkin Carving and Decorating Comp
ITC wants to get the whole family involved with a Pumpkin Carving or Decorating Comp. Decorate or Carve a Pumpkin put it out the front of your house. Entry is now open and will finish at midnight on 31st October 2020.
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