- Published:
- Sunday 12 September 2021
The Victorian Government is bringing the vaccines to areas that need them most, by launching a massive community pop-up vaccination program targeting 100 priority postcodes across the state, with an immediate focus on the northern and western suburbs of Melbourne.
With new vaccination records being set every day and under 100,000 doses to go before we reach our 1 million doses in five weeks target, Victorians are well and truly rising to the challenge of getting vaccinated and we want to keep this momentum going.
Using already announced supply secured through agreements with Singapore and the United Kingdom, Victoria is launching a new program covering 100 postcodes that establishes community and school based pop ups in areas that need them most and where barriers to vaccination may exist. Five community-based pop-ups and eight school-based pop-ups will initially begin administering vaccinations over the next two weeks, with many more to open soon.
The five community pop-ups will be based in the Hume, Dandenong and Casey local government areas and will be hosted in council and religious settings to offer tailored support for local diverse communities, like we’ve done previously with the Greek Orthodox Church vaccination site in Thornbury, a Hindu temple site in Mill Park and a mosque in Newport.
The first eight school pop-up clinics will be at Dandenong High School, Point Cook Secondary College, Gladstone Park Secondary College, Roxburgh College, Brunswick Secondary College, Tarneit Senior College, Werribee Secondary College and Lakeview Senior College. These are aimed at school students.
The next round of secondary schools will provide access to COVID-19 vaccines for students and their families, staff and those in the local community. Those first schools will include Narre Warren South P-12 College, Mount Ridley P-12 College and Hazel Glen College.
The number of school-based pop-ups will expand rapidly, with approximately 70 school sites eventually earmarked for all members of the community.
Additional bookings will be available from Monday, 13 September at the Melton Drive Through Vaccination Hub, Wyndham City Council Civic Centre, Melbourne Showgrounds, Broadmeadows Town Hall, South Morang Plenty Ranges Arts and Convention Centre and the Ford Factory in Campbellfield. Several sites will also be extending opening hours until 8pm, and more Pfizer and AstraZeneca doses will be released this week across state sites.
The Government continues to make it easier for Victorians to get vaccinated as soon as possible, with 60 open access state-run centres currently operating across Victoria and additional sites opening every week.
Visit coronavirus.vic.gov.au/vaccination-centres for more information on Victoria’s vaccination centres, including locations and opening hours.
Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews
“Vaccinations keep families safe and together. This is a targeted and coordinated campaign to ensure we can get equitable vaccination coverage right across Victoria.”
“We are tailoring our vaccination rollout to remove any barriers that might otherwise stop someone from getting vaccinated. There are a million reasons to get vaccinated and vaccination is our only way out of this pandemic.”
Quote attributable to Minister for Health Martin Foley
“These new sites have been established in areas with identified vulnerabilities and barriers to access, and – together with the 70 school pop-up clinics – will ensure all VCE students can get vaccinated during the current blitz.”