Don't put your masks away, because the NSW lockdown and Covid restrictions have been extended until Friday, 16 July.

The State Government announced today that the extension of restrictions by another week was due to the number of ongoing cases of community transmission in NSW.

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The same restrictions as currently exist across regional NSW will remain in place - as well as those in place for Greater Sydney including the Central Coast, Blue Mountains, Wollongong and Shellharbour.

Face-to-face learning will resume in regional NSW when school returns on Tuesday, 13 July.

Learning will be online for schools and students in Greater Sydney from Tuesday, 13 July for four days. Schools will remain open for students who need them and no child will be turned away from school.

All students will return to the classroom on Monday, 19 July. 

Delta strain

This decision is based on health advice from the Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant and will assist NSW Health’s efforts to contain the delta strain. 

"Our first and foremost priority is to protect the health and safety of the community," Dr Chant said.

"The delta strain requires a different response to previous outbreaks, and until the majority of our population is vaccinated, we cannot live as freely as we would like to.

"We would like to thank the community and businesses for their patience and understanding during this time. 

"Please continue to come forward for COVID-19 testing to help us find any unrecognised chains of transmission in the community.

"In coming days the NSW Government will detail a plan for exiting from restrictions to give the community and businesses certainty in the coming weeks and months."

Read the latest information about COVID-19 rules.

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