Our schools and preschools are preparing for the 2023 to 2024 fire danger season. Find out what you can do to get ready and what your child’s school will do if there’s a bushfire risk.

Check if your child goes to a high bushfire risk school or preschool.

Emergency hotline

Bushfire and Emergency Hotline: 1800 000 279

Families can phone the department’s hotline to find out about school and preschool closures and other emergency information.

This service is available during business hours. A monitored messaging service is available outside of these times.

Bushfires and your child’s school

Prepare for a bushfire

Families should follow these steps to prepare for the fire danger season:

• read the bushfires and your child’s school or preschool brochure (PDF 4 MB)
• talk to your children about what will happen if a bushfire occurs when they are at school or preschool
• read all bushfire information given to you by your child’s school or preschool
• make sure your emergency contact details are up-to-date and available to your school or preschool before the start of the fire danger season.

Your family also needs to understand the emergency management plan at your child’s school or preschool. Ask your child’s school or preschool for a copy of their plan.

Use the bushfire preparation checklist (PDF 484 KB) to make sure you’re prepared.

Communication with parents and caregivers

It’s important that you understand how your school or preschool will communicate closure information to you. They may contact you via phone, text message or through social media and smartphone applications.

Parents and caregivers should only take action in relation to official notifications from their school, preschool or the department’s official information sources (this includes the department’s Facebook page).

Bushfire survival plans and preparations at home

It’s important that your family has its own bushfire survival plan in place for days of catastrophic fire danger or in the event of a bushfire threat. Let your child’s school or preschool know if your plan will affect your child’s attendance

Make sure you and your family are prepared for the fire danger season by reviewing the CFS information about preparing yourself for bushfire.

School holidays

On forecast catastrophic fire days the department policy for school and preschool closures will still apply in the school holidays. See bushfire updates for a list of closures (if any), or call the emergency hotline on 1800 000 279.

Buses, taxis and excursions

On forecast catastrophic fire days these services will be cancelled in the affected fire ban district:

• bus services
• taxi services
• any excursions that need bus travel.

See the list of high bushfire risk school and preschools to see if your child’s services will be affected.