Local Member for Barwon Roy Butler has welcomed a government initiative to allow children in locked-down areas to visit each other under COVID-safe conditions.

The announcement which came into effect at midday today (Tuesday 21 September) allows children and teenagers under 18 to create a 'friends bubble' and allow home visits to homes where the adults are fully-vaccinated.

According to the government, each child is only allowed to have two designated friends come to their house who either must reside in the same LGA or within 5km of each other if they are in different LGAs.

The news has been welcomed by Member for Barwon and a parent himself Roy Butler, who called it "another step in the right direction of life in NSW returning to normal" under the current COVID-19 outbreak in NSW.

Mr Butler also said the announcement was well timed with the beginning of the school holidays.

"I know for many parents, including myself, today’s news came with a sense of relief that our young people would be able to do some all-important socialising with a group of friends over the coming weeks," Mr Butler said.

"The new friendship bubble will also be pivotal to our Year 12 students who are revising hard heading into their HSC.

"They’ll now be able study together in small groups which will provide a bit of morale support and assistance as they start exams."

At the same time, he said it was important to acknowledge the resilience shown by children in the face of the ongoing lockdowns.

" I know there are a few parents out there today cheering that they’ll get a little bit of peace and a break from hearing 'I’m bored' these school holidays," he said.

"Mentally lockdowns have been tough on all of us, but we cannot overstate how much pressure our kids have been under to adapt to online learning, and the social isolation that comes with schooling from home.

"We should be proud of how they’ve managed to adapt."

According to the government, parents and carers who drop off the children must not stay to interact with anyone else in the house to ensure they are still adhering to the current stay-at-home orders.

The specific health orders do not stipulate who will monitor and enforce the 'friend bubble' rule for children and young people.

Keep an eye on this link for further details in the coming days.