How pupils are being kept Covid-safe at school

Secondary school students are heading back to the classroom ready for a new year of learning, hopefully this time without a pandemic hiatus. Yet, a group of scientists at Sage – who are also part of the group advising the UK Government - believe the back-to-school period will cause an increase in COVID-19 cases across the UK.

So, what is being done to protect students and their families over the next weeks and months?

Increased pupil and staff testing

Schools in England will start testing students and teachers for COVID-19 twice every week using a lateral flow test. The schools will require parental consent to conduct testing on students. In Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, schools are not going to be conducting tests at school, but they will be encouraging students and staff to take two lateral flow tests at home or in the community.

A positive case – what now?

When a student or teacher tests positive for COVID-19, they will be contacted by NHS Test and Trace workers. They will be asked to self-isolate for a period of ten days at home. Schools plan on accommodating at-home learning for these students when appropriate. The child and their parents will also be asked to provide all details of close contacts.

Any children listed as a close contact of a positive case will be required to take a PCR COVID-19 test. If positive, the child will also be asked to isolate at home, and their close contacts will be asked to complete a test. However, the key difference from previous is that any close contact that does not have a positive test result will continue going to school. Previously they would have also been asked to self-isolate, causing more disruption to classes and their education.

Will schools keep socially distancing?

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, social distancing rules have been scrapped. However, headteachers may still keep some rules to prevent unnecessary contact, such as one-way systems and common-sense measures based on school layout and class sizes.

In Scotland however, social distancing will continue in schools until at least the end of September. All teachers and other staff are being asked to stay a minimum of one metre away from pupils.

Are masks still required?

The UK is split on the decision to ask children and staff to wear masks or not. English and Welsh schools are no longer enforcing these rules unless students are in crowded areas, such as the school bus.

On the other hand, Scotland is making masks mandatory until the end of September, and in Northern Ireland they will stay for the initial six weeks of the new school year.

Although schools in England and Wales will no longer require masks to be worn, more is being done to improve air ventilation. Scores of English schools are being handed carbon dioxide monitors to identify areas where airflow is poor, and the Welsh government has launched a £6 million project to improve air purity, including almost 2,000 disinfecting machines.

September 2021