Getting our 'Safety' Layers On

Sanitising or washing hands has become second nature.  Social distancing, for the most part, is something we are better at and can remind each other about.  But the complexities of being conscious of what we touch, and cleaning what we touch to keep people safe is less straightforward.  Now we are learning about wearing masks.  Individually each precaution isn’t infallible, but there is something comforting about realising that collectively, each of these measures creates layers of safety that may help us all.

These layers have been part of what Clunes Neighbourhood House has been talking about at training sessions in Clunes, Daylesford and still to come, Creswick.  We’ve been collaborating with other Neighbourhood Houses to run workshops for community organisations about governance responsibility and coronavirus safe policies and procedures. 

“We have invested a lot of time and effort into identifying the risks that apply at Clunes Neighbourhood House,” said Lana de Kort, Manager.  “It makes sense to share these resources so others don’t need to re-invent the wheel and have the chance to talk about the challenges of operating in a COVID-19 environment.”

The resources, including policies, procedures and forms are listed on our website and are available for any group to replicate.  Our Safety Officer, Deb Bright is available to explain how these resources could be used in your organisation/group.

This poster is part of the resources Clunes Neighbourhood House has developed. It's a handy cheat sheet that keeps how we approach safety top of mind.

“Prior to COVID-19 we had 40+ groups active across Clunes,” said Lana, “It’s important to help those groups re-think how they can still remain active, even if active means doing it differently as restrictions go up or down."

"It's particularly important because, now more than ever, we realise this could go on for a long time."

“What we’ve learnt through the workshops is that talking about the challenges, and role playing how we’ll tackle difficult moments – like handling a suspected or confirmed case of COVID-19 – has been invaluable for us all,” said Deb Bright.  “It’s given us confidence in our procedures and our ability to implement them, helped us be transparent about what we are doing and allowed us to be as relaxed (as possible) about what we now have to do, all without actually relaxing the measures we are taking."

"That's important because it reminds us that we can keep safe, and still be welcoming and positive at the same time.”

AUTHOR: Lana de Kort