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Hairdressers and beauty salon operators are calling on the NSW Government to scrap a client limit to be imposed under the state's roadmap to freedom.

According to the guidelines announced by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian last week, hairdressers and beauty salons will join pubs, gyms and retail shops in being able to open up to the fully vaccinated in mid-October.

All venues will need to abide by a one person per four square metre rule. In addition to the restriction, hair and beauty salons have been told they can only see five clients at a time.

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But hairdressers say the client limit is impractical for larger salons and means they will actually lose money when they finally emerge from an already financially devastating lockdown.

An online petition started by Amy Campbell, who owns The Bridal Bar in Sydney's south – protesting the five-client limit – has already attracted more than 12,000 signatures.

It comes as Health Minister Brad Hazzard said he sympathised with the difficulty the client limit presented for larger salons and indicated the rule could be relaxed in future.

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Ms Campbell said the client limit did not make any sense and could be compared to a 30-minute time limit the government tried to impose on haircuts last year, which was ultimately scrapped.

"It shows that the person making these rules isn't in the industry or talking to anyone in the industry because a five-client limit is not really possible for most salons," she said.

"It wouldn't be worth us opening up."

The Bridal Bar is both a hair and beauty salon and, at 400 square metres, has several rooms which can be closed off.

"If you were going by the four square metre rule, I could technically have 100 bodies on my property and be fine," Ms Campbell said.

"We don't want 100 bodies but we want to be able to have at least 20 clients at a time to be able to function."

Under the five-client limit, the majority of Ms Campbell's 14 staff members would remain without work, she said.

Ms Campbell said the client limit appeared to be out of step when compared to the rules for gyms, which cap classes at 20 members.

"Why are we being discriminated against just because of the industry we're in?" she said.

"This is extremely unfair when gyms are allowed 20 per class and we believe hair and beauty should be treated the same."

Ayden Hawkins-Keen, who co-owns the Sutherland salon Kaine Vakai Hair Artistry with his partner Kaine, said he and other business owners were happy to abide by a one person per four metre square rule.

However, a five-client limit would be financially crippling, he said.

"It costs us at least $20,000 to keep our salon afloat each week. There is no way we are going to be able to sustain things with the money we would be making," he said.

"We would be better off staying locked down.

"We have 11 staff members and obviously can't bring back all of them back under those rules so they're the ones that are going to suffer, as well the business."

When asked about the client limit rules for salons at yesterday's NSW COVID-19 press conference, Mr Hazzard acknowledged the difficulties of trying to make rules which fit across whole industries.

"The requirements that have been put in place at the moment are broad scale … to give people a sense of where we're going," Mr Hazzard said.

"The limit of five in a hairdressers, some of them are very large premises, and it may well be that we can, as we move forward and get more people vaccinated, actually make that a much more flexible arrangement.

"I'm very sympathetic to that. I'd like to be able to convince our chief health officer and other senior epidemiologists that that's where we can get to."

However, Mr Hazzard pointed to the outbreak at the Joh Bailey hair salon in Sydney's eastern suburbs earlier this year, which saw almost 1000 people out in isolation, as an example of why health authorities needed to cautious.

"A lot of cases came out of that, a lot of cases, so we do need to actually be conscious of that, but also we need to get back to normality as quickly as we can," he said.

Contact reporter Emily McPherson at em********@******om.au.

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A beloved cockatoo stolen from a hardware store in regional Victoria on Saturday night has been mysteriously returned to his owners.

'Jacko' the cockatoo was stolen from his cage at Drysdale Home Timber and Hardware store on Murradoc Road in Drysdale, on the Bellarine Peninsula, just before 9pm on Saturday, September 11.

Police believe an unknown offender climbed the front fence of the hardware centre before raiding the cage.

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CCTV then captured the alleged offender running away from the store with Jacko almost tucked under his arm.

Police have released the footage in the hope of identifying the offender.

Jacko's distressed carers were handing out 'Missing cockatoo' pamphlets around Drysdale this morning in hope of finding their cherished pet.

The yellow-crested cockatoo has spent 23 of his 15 years at the store and has become a town celebrity.

Nursery manager Katrina Neocli, who looks after Jacko, said staff from the store had been trying to follow up leads to find Jacko all day.

Then at around 2.15pm an unknown person left Jacko in a box near the store.

Ms Neocli said it was a huge shock to find Jacko inside the box.

"I just couldn't believe it was our little man," she said.

"He just said 'Hello'."

Ms Neocli said everyone was "just ecstatic" to have him home.

Police are yet to determine who stole Jacko.

Anyone with information that could assist with the investigation is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 18000 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au

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The Yass Valley Council area in regional NSW is going back into lockdown for two weeks after a positive case of coronavirus was detected.

Stay-at-home orders across much of regional NSW, including Yass Valley, were lifted on Saturday if there had not been a case for 14 days.

NSW Health said today a coronavirus case had been detected in the region and urgent contact tracing is underway.

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"Following updated health advice from the Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant about the growing risk to the community, stay-at-home orders will apply to all people who live in the Yass Valley Council area or have been there on or after Thursday 9 September," a statement said.

"Everyone in these areas must stay at home unless it is for an essential reason."

The reasons residents may leave their home include:

• Shopping for food or other essential goods and services
• Medical care or compassionate needs (people can leave home to have a COVID-19 vaccination unless you have been identified as a close contact)
• If you are fully vaccinated, you can attend an outdoor gathering of up to five people for exercise or outdoor recreation so long as all those at the gathering aged 16 years or over are fully vaccinated
• Work, or tertiary education, where you cannot work or study from home;
• To attend a wedding or a funeral. A maximum of 11 people can attend a wedding service. This means a maximum of five guests, the two people being married, the two witnesses, the celebrant or officiant, and one person recording the service. A maximum of 10 people can attend a funeral

Residents in the affected area must wear a face mask in all indoor or outdoor areas, other than a place of residence.

This includes when you are on a street, in a park, at the shops or at work.

There are limited exceptions, such as where you are in a vehicle with members of your household or your nominated visitor in your singles bubble, when exercising, when eating or drinking, and in emergencies.

Yass Valley Council, in the NSW Southern Tablelands region, has a population of around 16,000.

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Three women who allege they were sexually abused by former Melbourne school principal Malka Leifer are giving evidence in court.

The former educator is facing 74 counts of child sexual abuse which allegedly happened between 2004 and 2008, when she was principal of the Adass Israel School in Elsternwick.

The committal hearing will remain a closed court for the rest of the day while sisters Dassi Erlich, Nicole Meyer and Elly Sapper give their evidence against Ms Leifer.

READ MORE: School denies encouraging students to attend during lockdown

The hearing before the Melbourne Magistrates' Court, which is set to run throughout the week and finish next Monday, will determine whether is enough evidence for Ms Leifer to stand trial.

Ms Leifer, 55, will be asked to enter a formal plea at the conclusion of the hearing.

The former educator watched the hearing via video link from custody today, wearing a blue top and a white head covering, and held her hand over her face.

Ms Leifer's charges include 11 counts of rape, 47 of indecent assault, 13 of committing an indecent act with a child, and three counts of sexual penetration of a child.

The abuse allegedly occurred in the Melbourne suburbs of Elsternwick, Elwood, Emerald and Frankston, as well as Rawson in west Gippsland and Blampied in the Central Highlands.

Ms Leifer has always maintained her innocence.

READ MORE: Victoria records 473 COVID-19 cases

In December last year, the Supreme Court of Israel signed the extradition order for Ms Leifer to return to Australia when it dismissed her final appeal.

Ms Leifer, along with her Jewish witnesses, has been excused from attending the hearing on Thursday because of the Yom Kippur holy day.

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