A COVID outbreak thought to have infected dozens of children at the Scouts Victoria Jamboree held in regional Victoria, has been met with a mixed response from parents.
The 11-day event, held at Elmore north of Bendigo, finished last Friday and was attended by about 7,000 people.
It is now believed dozens of scouts and their close contacts have become infected with COVID after exposure to the virus during the jamboree, however the exact number is not yet known.
The outbreak has prompted criticism from some parents who say communication from Scouts Victoria about the situation has been lacking.
Some parents are reporting their children returned home infected with coronavirus despite having to show a negative rapid antigen test (RAT) before arrival at the event.
Parent Andrew (surname withheld) said his son took a RAT as soon as he got off the bus from the event and tested positive.
"His group leader sent a text saying there is some COVID at camp, recommending they get tested. We weren't contacted by Scouts Victoria directly," he said.
"The message from Scouts [Victoria] at the end of the camp was very 'we did a good job', there wasn't enough commentary about the COVID cases. I would have liked them to be more open about it.
"A lot of younger kids there weren't vaccinated."
The Melbourne-based family is now isolating, with Andrew and his wife, whose job is in the public health industry, unable to work.
'We knew the risk'
However, some parents whose children also tested positive said they understood the risk was there.
Tracey Cooke's two children and husband tested positive on their return home and the family is now isolating.
"My sons were diagnosed there and missed out on the last day of the camp, but they were exhausted from the camp anyway and they've bounced back now," she said.
"My kids came back with heaps of stories, made awesome new friends and it was fantastic to finally be able to do a true scouting event."
Scouts Victoria responds
In a statement, Scouts Victoria said it had a thorough COVID-safe plan approved by the Victorian health department.
Executive manager Jon McGregor said the event was visited by government officials and had 20 on-site healthcare workers.
"While we were unable to reduce the prevalence of COVID to zero, the protocols put in place helped us to respond quickly and manage the incidence of infection, which was considerably below that in the broader population."
