During this challenging time, our duty of care focus and priority has centred around taking care of our volunteers and the community we serve by following government guidelines.
By protecting our volunteers, we are supporting our community by reducing spread. We are proud of our COVID-19 safe spaces introduced from the initial lockdown announcement and which continues to date.
Essential Service Workers
The Free Food Program is classed as an essential service, as such our volunteers are classified as Essential Service Workers (ESW).
Vaccinations
All our volunteers are vaccinated with two vaccinations. It remains our policy that only double vaccinated volunteers participate in our programs.
Community recipients: All recipients of care boxes collecting directly from our distribution points must be double vaccinated to qualify for a produce box. For those members not vaccinated special arrangements are made to either collect produce off site or have produce delivered.
Booster Vaccinations
All double vaccinated volunteers will be required to have a booster vaccination when the health advise requires us to do so.
Permits
Our authorised volunteer workers all carry certified permits when volunteering and when travelling to volunteer, collect produce and deliver produce to the community.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
All our volunteers are issued with adequate supplies of PPE whilst on duty to carry out volunteering functions. PPE is extended to community members.
Infield and Onsite Practice
Infield and onsite, we adhere to government guidelines for infection control around mandatory wearing of face masks, hand washing (hand sanitation), social distancing, gatherings, density, physical distancing, and square meter limit practice.
Face Masks
All our volunteers wear face masks which must be worn indoors and outdoors. This applies to all community recipients collecting care box produce and members of the community which receive delivered produce.
Hand Sanitization Hygiene
Our volunteers are all supplied with hand sanitizer for all infield activity, at collections points and on site at our distribution points.
Hand sanitizer is supplied regularly to all community care boxes.
Hand sanitization stations are present at our distribution points with access to community members collecting produce boxes at all times.
QR Codes and Registration Check-in
It remains mandatory for all volunteers and community recipients to QR code register at all our distribution collection points. Our QR codes remain in full view with easy access to register. Likewise, our hard copy registration check in register remains in full view with easy access. All pens are sanitized after single use with adequate numbers of pens supplied to replenish at point registration.
Contact Tracing Record
As an extra precautionary measure hard e-copy weekly schedules of all volunteers and community recipients entering the space are keep on file. Our recording keeping reflects actual numbers of who is entering the space, on what date and time as a back up data set. Any unexpected arrivals not reflected in the schedule are updated to the schedules.
Social Distancing
We practice social distancing at all our collection and distribution points both with volunteers and community recipients. Social distancing markers along with A3 colour signage form part of our collateral.
Feeling Unwell
The safety of our volunteers and community recipients remains our number one priority. We do not allow for anyone to be put at risk. Should anyone be feeling sick or un-well, they are not permitted to participate in our programs, must immediately get tested and remain is self-isolation until there test results come up negative.
