Covid Testing Advice

Dear Parents/Carers

School has received the following advice from Department of Education. We hope this will clarify any queries you have about if/when your child needs a covid test.

COVID-19 TESTING

PHA have asked us (Dept of Ed) to emphasise to schools that pupils and staff must only be advised to seek a COVID-19 test when they are symptomatic of the virus – that is a new continuous cough, a fever or a new loss of taste and/or smell. Early evidence from the Contact Tracing Service is that available testing capacity is being utilised to test many children and school staff who are showing no symptoms and in doing so make it more challenging for genuinely symptomatic individuals to access a test.

Tests must only be recommended for a staff member or pupil where they are clearly symptomatic or where PHA specifically recommend a test for any reason.

We (Dept of Ed) have worked closely with the Public Health Agency who lead on public heath advice to rectify the issue.  PHA has advised the correct position is that only when a positive case has been identified in a symptomatic child, young person or member of staff do schools need to consider self-isolating close contacts of that individual. Close contacts must stay in isolation for the full 14 day period.  They should not return to school before the 14 day isolation period as they may still be incubating the virus – regardless of a lack of symptoms.