Loddon Shire Mayoral Column 19 October
Published on 19 October 2021
Updated Roadmap announced
With Victoria set to hit its 70 per cent double dose vaccination target early, the Victorian Premier has announced an updated Roadmap, which will see the easing of some restrictions from 11.59pm this Thursday 21 October.
From this date, 10 people (including dependents) per day will be able to visit homes. To ensure this is done safely, it’s highly recommended that Victorians only permit people aged 12 years and over who are fully vaccinated to visit them at home.
Up to 20 people can gather outdoors, including dependents. Again, vaccination is strongly recommended.
Pubs, clubs and entertainment venues will open indoors to 30 fully vaccinated people.
All school students will return onsite full time from this Friday.
Movement between regional Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne will only be allowed for permitted reasons, and masks will still be required both indoors and outdoors for all Victorians.
The next milestone in the Roadmap will be when Victoria hits the 80 per cent double dose vaccination target, which is predicted to be the first week of November
More information is available from the Roadmap webpage.
Australia Day nominations close 29 October
A reminder that nominations for the 2022 Australia Day awards close at 5pm Friday, 29 October.
Nomination forms for Citizen of the Year, Young Citizen of the Year, Community Service Award, Community Group of the Year, and Community Event of the Year are available on the Loddon Shire website.
The forms are now fillable online and can be sent via email to australiaday@loddon.vic.gov.au
If you prefer to print the form and complete it manually, it can be sent to PO Box 21 Wedderburn VIC 3518.
Nomination forms and further information is available from Council's website or by emailing australiaday@loddon.vic.gov.au
Entries for Australia Day competitions close 29 October
A reminder that entries for Australia Day competitions close at 4pm Friday 29 October 2021.
There are competitions for colouring (Prep to Grade 2), photography (Junior, Senior and Open categories) and literature (for Prep to Year 12).
The competitions are free to enter. For more information, visit Council's Australia Day competitions page.
Healthy Minds Network 2021 Art Competition winners
I’d like to congratulate all the winners of this year’s Loddon Healthy Minds Network Art Competition.
The 2021 Best in Show was awarded to Wedderburn P-12 Year 11 student Samantha Arnup for the theme It's OK not to be OK – Stay Connected. Samantha’s message depicted "There is always someone to lend a helping hand".
Samantha's artwork involved the imaginative use of UV paint that glowed in the dark when illuminated under a black light UV lamp.
I’d like to thank everyone who provided entries for this year’s competition. A full list of the section winners is available from the Loddon Healthy Minds Network website.
As mentioned in last week’s column, this year’s art competition saw a total of 104 artwork entries, all from Loddon’s regional schools – the largest number ever received.
Community Sport Sector COVID-19 Survival Package applications
Applications are now open for the fourth round of the Community Sport Sector COVID-19 Survival Package.
Funding can be used for ongoing fixed costs, essential salary costs and any other costs that keep organisations viable and to purchase equipment and cleaning supplies necessary to function in a COVIDSafe manner once restrictions ease.
Clubs who have not previously received funding from this program can apply for $1,500 and associations and leagues can apply for $2,500.
Clubs who have received funding in previous rounds will be considered for an automatic top-up payment and do not need to submit a new application. Sport and Recreation Victoria will email organisations that are eligible for a top-up payment by the end of October 2021.
You can also check if your organisation has previously received a grant by visiting the Sport and Recreation Victoria website.
Applications close at 5pm, 29 October 2021 (or until all available funding has been exhausted). For more information or to submit an application, visit the Sport and Recreation Victoria website.