Schools determined to make mums and significant female figures feel special on Mother’s Day reinvented gift-giving in line with pandemic restrictions.

Mount Ousley Public School in Wollongong set up a drive-through stall with handmade locally sourced gifts.

“We think it’s really important to say thank you to our mums, grandmas, mother figures and carers now more than ever,” relieving principal Tiffany Sinton said.

“In our days of isolation, remote learning, working from home, having the kids at home and no shopping, our mums and loving adults are undertaking a super-human feat.”

The stall was accessed by checkpoints where families pulled over in their vehicles to select and pay for gifts, and then drove to a second checkpoint where they were handed the presents through a car window.

The students and their families appreciated the stall, particularly having an extra connection with the school and other parents.

“Parents told us they really appreciated the idea as it was really tricky to organise a special surprise for mothers during this time,” Ms Sinton said.

At Harrington Street Public School in south-western Sydney, the P&C wanted to go “the extra mile” for students and families to nurture a sense of belonging during difficult times.

The virtual Mother’s Day stall process started with online posters of the gifts available and orders taken via email.

When parents and students picked up gifts from the school the waiting space was marked out with tape on the floor and parent volunteers at the door supervised entry to keep a safe number of people in the room at any time.

Hand sanitiser was available at the door and all parent volunteers wore gloves to handle money.

“We feel that going the extra mile for our children and school community brings us together again, whilst reigniting our school spirit and sense of belonging during a significant but difficult time in history,” the P&C said in a statement.