Australia live news updates: NSW unveils school reopening plan with RATs as state records 34 Covid deaths and Victoria 14

Mitchell says that the NSW government will be providing rapid antigen testing kits for staff in early childhood services to use twice a week.

“It is about keeping those centres open for our families and children,” she says.

Mitchell reiterates that high school staff and students will need to wear masks indoors.

The minister adds that “we will recommend that our primary school students wear masks as well, and again, we have distributed more than 8 million surgical masks are two schools for this purpose”.

Mitchell says that many activities will be able to go ahead, such as music, sport, assemblies, excursions and camps, “in a COVID smart way, based on appropriate risk settings, parental consent and some of the measures, again, that our school communities and families are familiar with”.

She says that parents or family members will be allowed to come for the first day if Kindergarten.

NSW education minister Sarah Mitchell adds that they will no longer be closing schools when there is a positive Covid-19 case in the community.

The state will also no longer be conducting contact tracing in schools anymore.

We are really moving schools in line with what we see in community settings. But parents and carers and family members will be notified if there is COVID in your school community, so again you can monitor for symptoms and your children and make sure you are using those rapid antigen tests that we have provided twice a week.

NSW education minister Sarah Mitchell is giving more information about rapid antigen tests for students.

Mitchell says that more than 6 million RAT tests will be distributed to schools by Tuesday night, ahead of students’ return on 1 February.

She said that schools will be in touch with parents to organise the pick up of these tests.

All staff and students will be required to take a test before the first day back to school, and will then need to do twice-weekly surveillance tests for the first four weeks of term.

If students test positive, they will need to let their principal know, and also report the positive test via the NSW Health app.

Perrottet says that the state vaccination hubs are currently administering around 10,000 booster shots per day, but has the capacity to do around 250,000 per week.

Perrottet says the state government is currently distributing rapid antigen tests (RATs) to 3,000 schools across the state, as well as early childhood education and childhood centres.

Schools will be provided with two rapid antigen tests per student per week, as well as tests for teachers.

Masks will be mandated for secondary school teachers and students, and will be highly recommended for students in year 3 and above.

Perrottet says that “we will also be having the same provision such as class cohort and, in addition to that, limiting visits to the school, and also ensuring Covid-safe plans for excursions and music and the like.”

Perrottet starts by talking about why it’s so important to get kids back to the classroom, “not just from an educational perspective, but from a mental health and social outcome perspective”.

NSW premier Dominic Perrottet is speaking to reporters about the state’s back-to-school plan.

Last week, a prominent member of the Liberals’ right faction, Tim James, snared the safe New South Wales state seat of Willoughby replacing the former Liberal premier Gladys Berejiklian, a leading moderate, in the lower north shore Sydney.

No one saw it coming.

Anne Davies writes that James’s preselection shows the growing influence of the hard right in the state.

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Just a reminder that we expect to hear from NSW premier Dominic Perrottet at a press conference at 10am, where he will discuss the state’s return to school plan.

He will be joined by minister for education and early learning Sarah Mitchell and NSW chief health officer Dr Kerry Chant, among others.