Preventative action for Hull schools to help reduce spread of coronavirus

The Hull Learning Partnership, in conjunction with Hull City Council is taking preventative action against coronavirus by agreeing that school staff, and secondary pupils across the city are expected to wear face coverings in certain situations from Monday 21 September.

The decision has been made because of the rising number of cases.

Helen Christmas, public health lead for children and young people said: “Whilst the number of people with coronavirus in Hull remains much lower than the national and regional averages, we are now seeing a rise, and therefore taking this action to help prevent spread of the virus in schools.

Secondary school staff, visitors and pupils will be expected to wear face coverings in indoor communal spaces where two metre distancing is challenging, not including classrooms and when eating or drinking.

Primary school staff and visitors will also wear be expected to wear face coverings in indoor communal spaces, such as staff rooms, where two metre distancing is difficult. Again, with the exception of classrooms and when eating and drinking. This may not apply in all specialist settings.

Helen Christmas continued: “Face coverings reduce the likelihood of the wearer transmitting the virus to others, if they have it. They are particularly useful when moving around a building where two metre distancing is difficult to maintain and people are mixing outside of their normal groups.”

Face coverings remain a requirement on public transport for people aged 11 and over, and are recommended on home to school transport for secondary age students.

Some staff and students will be exempt from wearing face coverings, for example due to medical conditions, or where a face covering would cause extreme distress. A medical certificate is not needed to prove this.

Students are also reminded to social distance outside of school and follow the rule of six – where social gatherings should not include more than six people.

A temporary dedicated text service has been established to address any questions or concerns from parents or carers which cannot be answered by a child’s school. Text CovidEdPublic to: 07795 563 000, followed by the question.