Information updated as at Monday 24 July, 12:30PM (AEST)
As part of The Pyjama Foundation’s commitment to our community’s health and safety we are monitoring the situation closely and following all the relevant advice from government bodies and global organisations and updating our policy as required.
We recognise that information surrounding COVID-19 can and likely will be changing by the day. During this time, the way we operate our service may also look different but despite this, what we do and our reason why we do it will always remain the same. Our mission is to create positive relationships for every Australian child in care and in doing so empower them with learning, life skills and confidence. Together with our volunteers we are continuing to ensure that is possible, and these vital relationships remain long into the future.
This page provides advice and information about support available to The Pyjama Foundation’s volunteers, foster carers, children and other stakeholders. The page will be updated as needed.
Key measures adopted by The Pyjama Foundation
- As of 15 June, Queensland Pyjama Angels have been given approval by the QLD Department of Child Safety to begin visiting again.
- As of 22 June, New South Wales Pyjama Angels have been given approval from the NSW Department of Communities and Justice to begin visiting again. NOTE: All Pyjama Angels and families within the Campbelltown, Liverpool, and Fairfield Council areas have been asked to immediately cease visits until otherwise advised.
Before recommencing visits, all Pyjama Angels were asked to consider:
- Visit the home only if you are well and feel comfortable to do so.
- Before visiting the home, you must check with the foster parent to confirm that they are happy to have you in their home.
- Hygiene: Wash your hands for 20 – 30 seconds before your visit
– Cough or sneeze into your arm
– Use a tissue
-Take hand sanitiser with you and use during your visit if possible - Practise government-directed measures for physical distancing where possible
- Don’t shake hands or exchange physical greetings
- If possible, find a spacious, well-ventilated area to have your visit that is still in a communal part of the home
- Until advised otherwise VIC Pyjama Angels must continue to follow the below measures:
- We ask all volunteers to cease visiting their Pyjama Child until further notice. All foster carers will be informed of this decision but we ask all Pyjama Angels to please ensure every carer is aware of this decision. During this time we still want you to remain connected to your child as much as reasonably possible and hope this can occur through letter writing, sending a video or skype calling. More suggestions are available below.
- Effective Monday 23 March, The Pyjama Foundation is asking the majority of staff to work from home until further notice. During this time, the Head Office Team will be running on skeleton staff. While some staff may remain onsite, we are limiting the total number of people in offices and leveraging our remote working technology to stay connected. The administration team will always be available during usual office hours and can be contacted via 07 3256 8802 or via admin@thepyjamafoundation.com.
- The Pyjama Foundation has placed restrictions on all non-essential business travel and has put in place a suspension of Trainings, Interviews, Spread Your Wings Events, Meet and Mingle Events and Fundraising Events. Further information and cancellation notifications will be sent to all parties individually with further instructions.
We are committed to keeping you as up to date as possible during this time, and as such will be sending a weekly email with further information as it comes available from government and relevant health authorities. Above all, we want to ensure you are able to continue connecting with your Pyjama Child during this time and as such will be sending new relevant activities every week.
Please be assured that while working remotely, we are committed to maintaining our high-quality support and can be contacted via phone and email during all business hours. We wish to reiterate that our volunteers, staff and foster families have been, and always will be, our number one priority.
Other Key Measures we are enforcing:
- Sending a letter in the mail appears to be safe as per the advice on the WHO website and the Australia Post website. In this advice, it states that the virus can live on a soft surface for up to nine hours. Before handling the mail, wash your hands for at least 20 seconds and take all precautions. If delivering any mail directly to the letter box of the family, make sure you also wash your hands for 20 seconds before handling the papers or books, and suggest that the children do the same.
- Please ensure you have approval of the carer and any virtual FaceTime calls are being conducted in a safe environment where the child is still in view of their carer or another responsible adult. For more information, please read our Cyber Safety Protocol.
Take a look at our report to find out how our Pyjama Angels have been adapting and thriving during these unusual circumstances:
The connection continues: Stories from our volunteers
“Despite not being able to visit C*, we had our first non-contact visit yesterday evening. I dropped off a bag with his “pen pal pack”: Notebooks, pens and pencils, envelopes and a letter from me, plus a book and a little kit to build a toy.
Having chatted to his carer, I knew he liked writing so I asked him some questions in the letter and I’ll drop by next week to pick up his letter back.
I’ve also told his carer that if he’s not keen to write something back, to let me know and we can come up with a new plan for next week but hopefully he can write me a few lines back!
It’s been great to see how many other Pyjama Angels are finding their way around no face-to-face contact at the moment.”
“I just finished my first “virtual” visit with A*. I organised a FaceTime call with C*, his carer for 8:30 this morning. A* is only two years old and I haven’t seen him in six weeks (we were away on a cruise for two weeks then self-imposed isolation before visits were cancelled. So I was worried that A* wouldn’t remember me.
How wrong was I! When C* answered the call A* was very happy to see me. We chatted for a few minutes, then the screen went black and C* said “oh that’s so cute, he’s cuddling the phone”. I got several more virtual cuddles, then C* told me he was “playing” with my hair and touching my face. I introduced him to my two dogs and chatted for a few minutes before he started to get restless.
C* had warned me that even though A* loves FaceTime, his attention span is about five minutes. Our call lasted nearly fifteen minutes!
I’m on such a high after our call, I can’t wait for our next one. “
Downloadable Resources for our Pyjama Angels and Foster Families
