Update from Sport For NSW.
Stay At Home Restrictions For Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour
Following the announcement of stay at home restrictions for Greater Sydney, the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour over the weekend, the Public Health (COVID-19 Temporary Movement and Gathering Restrictions) Order 2021 has been published. This Public Health Order replaces the previous Order and outlines restrictions across the state of NSW.
The stay at home restrictions apply to any person who lives in, usually works in, or usually attends a university or other tertiary education facility in Greater Sydney, including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.
Persons covered by the stay at home restrictions cannot leave their place of residence without a reasonable excuse to do so. Reasonable excuses include:
- Obtaining food or other goods and services in Greater Sydney;
- For the purposes of work or education where it is not possible to do so from home;
- Exercising in Greater Sydney;
- Medical or caring reasons, including obtaining a COVID-19 vaccination.
No community sport (either training or a match) can proceed in Greater Sydney including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.
To support the stay at home restrictions, certain premises in Greater Sydney are directed to be closed to the public. These include:
- Indoor recreation facilities, such as squash courts, indoor swimming pools, gyms,
table tennis centres, health studios, bowling alleys and ice rinks;
- Public swimming pools (except natural swimming pools which may open);
- Entertainment facilities, such as dance halls; and
- Amusement centres, such as places to play billiards or pool.
Persons covered by the stay at home restrictions are permitted to leave their place of residence to exercise. The following applies;
- No more than 10 people can gather in any group;
- Social distancing must be adhered to; and
- The 1 person per 4 square metres rule must be adhered to.
Please apply and adhere to these restrictions in the spirit they are meant, and do not try to stretch the limits. Where practical, we encourage all persons in Greater Sydney to limit the number of people they come into contact with (ie. go outdoors and exercise on your own or in groups of 2 – 3 people, rather than groups of 10 where possible).
Restrictions for community sport in all other areas of NSW (ie. Regional NSW):
Community sport and active recreation activities are still permitted in areas of NSW where the stay at home restrictions do not apply (ie. Regional NSW areas). The following restrictions apply:
Fitted face coverings:
The following rules and restrictions now apply regarding the wearing of fitted face coverings
(ie. face masks);
- A person must wear a fitted face covering over both their nose and mouth while in
any indoor area of non-residential premises; and
- A person must wear a fitted face covering over both their nose and mouth while attending a COVID-safe outdoor gathering or controlled outdoor public gathering.
- Removing fitted face coverings:
A person may remove a fitted face covering if the person is engaging in strenuous
physical activity.
- The person must resume wearing the fitted face covering as soon as practical after
the strenuous physical activity ends.
Capacity limits:
An occupier of a premises must ensure the number of persons on the premises does not
exceed the greater of;
a) 1 person per 4 square metres of space; / 4 sq m or
b) 25 persons. < / = 25
This clause does not apply to a recreation facility (major). See below.
For outdoor sport and recreation activities, the maximum capacity restrictions that were previously in place, remain in place.
This means, the maximum number of persons at an outdoor gathering must be calculated by applying the 1 person per 4 square metres rule, up to the maximum capacity restriction (as outlined below).
1. A non-controlled outdoor gathering – up to 200 people
Up to 200 people can gather in any outdoor public place, such as a park, reserve, beach or garden. These activities do not require a COVID-19 safety plan and are limited to 200 people.
2. A non-controlled outdoor gathering – up to 5,000 people
All outdoor gatherings of more than 200 people must be a COVID-19 safe outdoor gathering. To be deemed a COVID-19 safe outdoor gathering, the organiser must;
• Have and comply with the relevant COVID-19 safety plan.
3. A controlled outdoor gathering – up to 10,000 people
To organise a controlled outdoor gathering, the organiser must;
• Have and comply with the relevant COVID-19 safety plan;
• Ensure the event is enclosed or bounded by fencing or another form of
barrier;
• Ensure the event is ticketed;
• Ensure all persons participating in the gathering (other than employees) are
assigned to specific seats or to a seating area;
• Ensure the gathering does not last any longer than 5 hours
Recreation facilities (major):
The occupier of a recreation facility (major), must ensure the maximum number of persons
on the premises does not exceed the greater of;
a) The total of –
i. 50% of the fixed seating capacity of the facility; PLUS
ii. 1 person per 4 square metres of space of any unfixed seating areas / 4 sq
b) 1 person per 4 square metres of space / 4 sq m
If the occupier of a recreation facility (major), calculates the number of persons based on
fixed seating capacity, the occupier must ensure;
• Admission to the premises is by way of a ticket; and
• All persons (other than employees) are assigned to specific seats.
Note: recreation facility (major) means a building or place used for large-scale sporting or
recreation activities that are attended by large numbers of people whether regularly or
periodically, and includes theme parks, sports stadiums, showgrounds, racecourses and
motor racing tracks.
Gyms and indoor recreation facilities:
The occupier of a gymnasium, must ensure the maximum number of persons attending any individual class or activity does not exceed 20 persons.
The occupier of an indoor recreation facility, must ensure the maximum number of persons attending any individual dance class or activity at the facility does not exceed 20 persons.
For both gymnasiums and indoor recreation facilities, the occupier must ensure that persons attending individual classes or activities wear a fitted face covering over both their nose and mouth while participating in the class or activity.
Note: recreation facility (indoor) means a building or place used predominantly for indoor recreation, whether or not operated for the purposes of gain, including a squash court, indoor swimming pool, gymnasium, table tennis centre, health studio, bowling alley, ice rink or any other building or place of a like character used for indoor recreation, but does not include an entertainment facility, a recreation facility (major) or a registered club.
Sport and recreation organisations in Regional NSW are reminded to review their COVID-19 Safety Plans and ensure they are up to date. All organisations are also encouraged to review the Public Health Order and stay up to date with the latest changes on the NSW Government COVID-19 website.
