This article has been brought to you by Slough Borough Council's COVID Schools Programme Officer, Heather Cook, for the attention of all schools.
Key national changes from 19th July are:
- Keeping children in consistent groups (bubbles) is no longer recommended.
- Education and childcare settings no longer need to carry out routine contact tracing/organising self-isolations as this will be undertaken by NHS Test and Trace.
- Face coverings are no longer advised for pupils, staff and visitors either in classrooms or in communal areas, but are recommended in enclosed and crowded spaces, including public transport and dedicated school/college transport.
- On return to school in the autumn term, all secondary school pupils should receive 2 on-site lateral flow device tests, 3 to 5 days apart. Pupils and staff should then test twice weekly at home until the end of September, when this will be reviewed.
- The Slough Education Contingency Framework remains in place for Slough schools (and supersedes any national guidance) until the end of the summer term.