Schools saying pupils have to isolate for 10 days if close contact for positive PCR

[soredust]

My child's school is saying that if a pupil has a positive PCR test, then close contacts have to isolate for 10 days. I thought this rule was scrapped back in August? So if someone is named as close contact of someone who has a positive PCR test (even if the pupil named as a close contact is vaccinated or has had covid already and cannot test again because of the 90 days PCR rule) they will have to isolate. This is fucking ridiculous and so damaging to childrens education.

Our school have just sent out an email stating that if anyone in the household has a positive covid result then the entire family must isolate for 10days. Including any family members that test negative. No siblings to stay in school.

Before this the school stated it was just the positive cases that obviously had to stay home. Siblings could be in school under the double jabbed and under 18s rule not needed to isolate. I was under the impression that the new guidelines meant cases of new variant had to isolate but maybe schools are being given different advice from PHE

@Pinkstar28

Our school have just sent out an email stating that if anyone in the household has a positive covid result then the entire family must isolate for 10days. Including any family members that test negative. No siblings to stay in school.

Before this the school stated it was just the positive cases that obviously had to stay home. Siblings could be in school under the double jabbed and under 18s rule not needed to isolate. I was under the impression that the new guidelines meant cases of new variant had to isolate but maybe schools are being given different advice from PHE

That's similar to my local authority where since early October household contacts have had to stay home from school until day 5 when they can take a PCR test and return if it's negative.

A number of local authorities have said the same as has been observed up thread. The school doesn't have the right to decide this for itself but the local authority do. Has there been any correspondence from your local authority @soredust or is it the school alone at the moment?

The school should only be implementing that for the new varient as pointed out. Personally as another poster said, until we know more, I don't mind this rule.

To be honest, it seems reasonable for them to err on the side of caution till we have more information.

Poor SLTs, trying to balance the competing responsibilities for children and wishes of parents.

New guidance was issued to schools yesterday evening.

It’s new variant only, for our school anyway

Not sure if other schools have more individualised advice or not from PHE

If not then I don’t think it should be happening, as not guidance

Last Thursday 1 child in Year 11 phoned in as had tested + for Covid so whole year sent home and parents had to collect during Thursday. All children told they had to book a PCR test even if no symptoms. My child not in classes with child with Covid but still had to get PCR. Results not back until Friday evening. In meanwhile school email sent out children can only return if - Covid PCR test taken AND do LF text daily. I think staff are staying home and so not enough teachers to teach year group. I know one teacher stayed home for 10 days as her DH had Covid. Then a further 5 days as their DS had caught it. Another teacher for second time for 10 days as someone in her household had Covid. No word which variety of Covid as yet. That is 2 weeks in a row home for 2 days each week. I half expected school to call a snow day today but thankfully they did not.

They’ve properly updated the schools guidance doc now (instead of a blog on Education Hub!) but the wording on close contacts hasn’t changed at all as far as I can see.

Still T&T to trace close contacts - and will tell them to isolate for ten days if it’s
Omicron.

It does say
“Further actions for educational settings may be advised by a local Incident Management Team (IMT) investigating a suspected or confirmed case of the Omicron variant of COVID-19“

Caring

That is outrageous for one case

Ds is year 11 and had 45 out of 140 in ye 11 positive and year was still in.

What the hell are your school doing!!! That’s disgusting sending them home when mocks are round the corner - half the kids in our school have had covid recently so can’t even have covid tests - what did school do about them?

Jesus. Just call the school and find out why? Maybe PHE have told the school they must because of their rates? I love this ‘MY school dont’ or ‘its illegal’ etc. Every case is individual so ask why based on the rules you know. Everyone is bitching about it but the upshot is this - it's a pandemic and we are trying to muddle our way through it. We are trying to keep numbers down. There will be plenty of angry people if they place restrictions at.Christmas because not enough was done. People want no disruption and I get that, we are all fed up but why come here moaning....challenge the right people.

@soredust

My child's school is saying that if a pupil has a positive PCR test, then close contacts have to isolate for 10 days. I thought this rule was scrapped back in August? So if someone is named as close contact of someone who has a positive PCR test (even if the pupil named as a close contact is vaccinated or has had covid already and cannot test again because of the 90 days PCR rule) they will have to isolate. This is fucking ridiculous and so damaging to childrens education.

This is going to discourage testing.

Finally schools are doing something good!

They're going to test every single positive PCR for the variant now?

It’s not the school’s decision, it’s the governments and only for the new variant until more is known about it

Nope but they can tell from normal PCR results which show no S gene, then go on to sequence those.

Well they can in around 50% of labs, anyway….

@soredust

My child's school is saying that if a pupil has a positive PCR test, then close contacts have to isolate for 10 days. I thought this rule was scrapped back in August? So if someone is named as close contact of someone who has a positive PCR test (even if the pupil named as a close contact is vaccinated or has had covid already and cannot test again because of the 90 days PCR rule) they will have to isolate. This is fucking ridiculous and so damaging to childrens education.

We’ve been isolating as close contacts in our area since last term. That’s the guidance given by PHE. We are in an area where there’s lots of cases. Now it appears, all cases of the new variant will require close contacts to isolate too. In fact, I can even see the 10 day isolation returning for all close contacts through winter or at least until more is known of this new variant. The nhs is not coping with current delta cases, so if the new variants is much more transmissible, then makes sense that isolation will return to help keep pressure off nhs through winter.

I've sent her in today and really keeping my fingers crossed it was the right thing to do.

Other side of the story. A parent at my school sent her close contact child in to school without a PCR, and then while waiting for a PCR result. She had two household positive contacts. 4 days later all the children who sit near her were off sick, the TA in the classroom was off sick and there was one positive PCR. That was Friday. Three days later (today) we've got 12 positive cases in the year group with around 40 children in total affected - ie off waiting for test results. The TA is also positive, as is one of her children who is in another year group in the school.

But apparently it's one child's isolation that is...

fucking ridiculous and so damaging to childrens education.

I'm guessing they are following local advice from public health. Have you asked them why?

Schools can't tell you you have to isolate. They can say you can't send your child to school of they've been a close contact, even with a nagative PCR, but not that the child has to isolate.

It is still through schools that you'd know your child need a PCR as a close contact from someone at school isn't it? When I've been asked who my child's close contacts at school might be I've not been able to give names or contact details, just the name of the school.

2 boys

The nhs is coping

The nhs has 7000 approx cases of covid in hospital - from over 40,000 at the peak

It may be having issues but nothing to do with covid

People have died in waiting ambulances at hopsitals @Watapalava

That’s nhs in winter

Current capacity is lower than all other recent years

There is an issue with needing more space on wards and also separate wards / space for covid and non covid patients.

There is also a staffing issue with people off sick.

I would take the current reports of difficulties very seriously.