Covid-19: DfE Pausing of Serial Testing

Dear parents/carers

 

 

This morning the DfE has advised that schools should pause Serial COVID Testing i.e. the testing of close contacts, and should revert to the original practice of requiring these contacts to self-isolate for 10 days.  

 

Therefore, with immediate effect we will no longer be offering any serial testing to students or staff who had been identified as a close contact of a positive case of COVID and, instead, we will require them to self-isolate for the remaining period up to 10 days from the contact.  Similarly, any new positive cases identified will be required to follow our previous procedure of identification and isolation for close contacts.

 

We will be continuing to regularly test staff who are in the academy, along with any vulnerable or critical worker children who attend the academy and have given consent.  At present we understand that the mass testing of students on the full re-opening of schools will also go ahead, however, we hope to be able to communicate further on this once we are informed by the DfE of the arrangements for re-opening.

 

In the meantime, should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Jane Goldthorpe on 01226 717730.

 

Yours faithfully

 

 

Principal

File

Letter to parents 21.1.21 pausing of 7 day testing.pdf 359 KB