I think DD has covid.... she has 'that cough'... GCSEs start Monday.....

@makingmiracles totally agree. DS is sitting GCSEs next week. The last three academic years of his education have been messed up. I'm not letting his exams be disrupted too.

Savers are doing tests for £1.75. Just get a test if you want to know for sure.

Our school has issued guidance today - don't test and don't keep them off unless they have a high temperature and feel properly unwell.

I'm sure she will be fine by Monday. I don't think I'd test. Don't get the moral BS. You're hearing a cough and assuming covid, it could easily be another bug. Or just a cough. Don't go making life difficult for no good reason.

You should be able to get LFT from the school, DS still brings a box of them home every week.

there is a really bad cold going around atm which has a nasty cough, we’ve all had it, I genuinely thought it was covid but we all tested daily and it wasn’t.
hopefully she just has that, if not you can speak to the school and see what they have in place for this situation.

The last government rules I read in relation to covid in secondaries and to do directly with exams was pupils should not test unless requested to do so by a health professional.

personally mine will be going in, covid or no covid. They’ve already said this cohort are likely to be the most screwed over in terms of the impact of lockdowns and gaps in learning and adjustments and I’d be likely to agree, covid has affected both their gcse years and they will get less adjustments than last years children, I think this years cohort overall will have lower results than last years.

Based on the following guidance from our school, if she feels well enough to do the exam, don't test her, just crack on:

"If your son/daughter has mild symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or slight cough, but is otherwise well, they should continue to attend school as normal. Testing is no longer recommended for most people.
Students who are unwell and/or have tested positive for some reason, however, and have a high temperature should stay at home and avoid contact with other people, where they can.
Three days is the recommended period of absence for young people.They should return to school and resume normal activities when they no longer have a high temperature and they are well enough to attend."

My children and I have all had covid in January. Two weeks ago we had a terrible cough that has only just gone and I was convinced we had covid, I got some tests from Tesco and all negative, get some tests, then you'll know for sure.

It might just be hayfever. Even if not, she'll probably be fine by Monday. If it was mine, I'd keep her off this week, though, to avoid spreading it to others.

All schools have guidance in place. Asking on mumsnet it not the answer. Follow school guidance. Covid has been thought about as previous posters said. All exams taken at least 10 days apart so grade based on the one sat.

I suspect a lot of people will go in without testing even if they feel unwell, and I know some schools have advised people not to test and only stay away if they're too ill to sit the test. You'd think they might have arranged smaller classrooms for those people to write the exams in etc, given that they know it will happen and it's probably better to have a process where they can at least say they feel unwell and be separated from the main body of students, rather than have to hide it a bit and potentially infect everyone. Or even try to split the whole year group over smaller rooms. Seems a more pragmatic solution given that people are going to be coming in with covid. But I guess cost of invigilators- and just finding them, and the spare rooms - would be a big hurdle. Government might have been able to help with the cost bit, if not the space issue.

My ds has a horrible cold and cough, it's not covid. There are plenty other bugs going round.

Difficult one.

Our school have advised that unless they have a high temperature or feel too unwell to attend then they should still go to school even if they have tested positive.

As a PP said throw all the vitamins, honey, lemon, Beechams etc etc at it and hope she is well enough!

And I would speak to school too and check their stance on it.

I'd go to a pharmacy or Tesco and buy an LFT. I know some younger people who have been really unwell with covid in recent weeks and I don't think it's fair to the other students to be sat in a room for hours with someone who has a cough who hasn't bothered testing.

@Lessofallthisunpleasantness if you want a test I could send you one in the post. I have some spare.

Buy a test?

You absolutely shouldn’t have to but realistically there is no moral option.
School may well have some if the cost is a significant factor.

Agreed.

Just crack on if she's well enough. Even if you tested her and she tested positive exclusion is only 3 days for kids now so she'd be back by Monday anyway. As it stands tho she's untested so you just return when you're feeling well.

Pop to the pharmacy for an LFT? Boots sell them in singles...

Have you not had any guidance from school? Ours states if you are unwell or have a high temp and you show up for an exam you will be sent home immediately . UKHSA (Uk Health Security Agency) guidance advises you to stay at home and avoid contact with others until you no longer have a high temperature and are well enough to attend your examinations.

Exams are spaced out this year to allow for the possibility of illness so that if they miss one set of exams they should be well enough for another paper. This is why Ds2's last exam is 27th June whereas Ds1 was finished by 15th June.

Vitamin C, Vitamin D, Zinc, Quercetin, NAC, bone broth, honey and lemon. Throw the kitchen sink at her and hope she is better by Monday.

(I have just had covid and it took a week but I was much improved after 3 days.)

Legally, you can send her in without testing but morally you can't.

The morality of the decision is placed firmly at the governments door.

Going against the grain, I would get a test and test her. She is going to be sitting in an exam hall with dozens of other children, and invigilators who are often retirement age.
Just because she isn't very ill doesn't mean that others won't be, and at the very least spreading it around her year group will mean lots of them then miss exams.
Our school has an arrangement that covid positive but well pupils sit the exam in a separate room. I don't agree with that really either because it puts the teacher invigilating at so much risk (we aren't allowed to say no), but it is better than having a super spreader exam and at least forewarned the staff can wear PPE.
The 3 day thing from the government is based on no scientific evidence. Most children and teens are infectious for a good week, they just thought people wouldn't test if they made the isolation too long now. Legally, you can send her in without testing but morally you can't.

The exams are 5 days away so she should be fine by then. They are only saying 3 days for school children now.