State health officials have issued new COVID-19 guidance for outdoor playgrounds and other outdoor recreational facilities.

Additionally, the State has updated the School Guidance FAQs, originally issued on Aug. 3, to include information on boarding schools.

“This new guidance helps provide more avenues for children and families to safely recreate outdoors,” said Dr. Penny Borenstein, County Health Officer. “We support the safe reopening of our outdoor playgrounds as we all continue our efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19 here in SLO County.”

The outdoor playground guidance provides direction on usage of outdoor playgrounds and recreational facilities located in parks, campgrounds, and other publicly accessible locations, and aims to support a safe environment for children and families.

Visitors to outdoor community playgrounds must wear face masks (required for everyone age 2 or older), may not eat or drink at the playground, stay six feet apart from adults and children from other households, wash or sanitize hands prior to and after visiting, consider visiting at different times or days to avoid wait times and crowds, and limit the visit to 30 minutes per day when others are present, among other health guidelines.

For Boarding Schools, the State announced that residential dorms are to remain closed regardless of tier status of their county until further State guidance is issued. The non-residential components of boarding schools (e.g., in-person instruction for day students) are governed by the same guidelines as other K-12 schools.

For updates on COVID-19 in SLO County, visit ReadySLO.org or call the recorded Public Health Information Line at 805-788-2903. A staffed phone assistance center at 805-543-2444 is available Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. to assist with COVID-19 questions.