Dear parent/carer

Educational Diversity will be closing for the Easter holidays on Friday the 26th March at normal finish time and will reopen on Tuesday 13th April at normal time.

COVID testing over the Easter holidays

As you know, in order to support our families, we have continued to conduct the lateral flow testing in school instead of home testing, which helps us detect cases of students who are COVID asymptomatic.

Over the Easter holidays the Government have requested that students continue to still be tested and so if you have already provided consent for your child to take part in the testing programme they will be sent home with a testing kit.  If you haven’t given consent and now wish for your child to take part, please complete and return the consent form which was sent home or you can access this on the school website www.eddiversity.com under the COVID 19 section –“what you need to know”.

The lateral flow testing needs to be carried out twice a week 3-5 days apart, if you child tests positive on a lateral flow test they will need to get a confirmatory PCR test at your local testing centre and follow national guidelines.

This does not replace testing for those with symptoms of COVID. If you have symptoms you must self-isolate immediately, book a PCR test and follow national guidelines.

After the Easter holidays the COVID testing will resume at school.

Reporting results

If the result is negative:

  • Record the result at NHS Test & Trace: http://www.gov.uk/report-covid19-result.
  • Please remember that a negative result does not guarantee a person is not carrying the virus. You should continue to follow social distancing and other measures to reduce transmission, such as wearing a face mask and regularly washing your hands.

If the result is positive:

  • The household and support bubble should self-isolate immediately.
  • Record the result at NHS Test & Trace: http://www.gov.uk/report-covid19-result.
  • Arrange a confirmatory PCR test as soon as possible through https://www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test.
  • If the result of the PCR test is negative, then the period of self-isolation may end.
  • If the PCR test is positive,  self-isolation must continue in line with national guidelines

If the result is void:

Results can also be reported via telephone by calling 119 (free from mobiles and landlines). Lines are open every day, 7am to 11pm.

Contact tracing

If your child tests positive for COVID within 48 hrs of their last day of attending Educational Diversity or tests positive for COVID having first experienced symptoms within 48 hours of their last day attending Educational Diversity. Please text 07786 201170 with your child’s name and the centre they attend so we can support with track & trace. If your child tests positive or experiences symptoms after these timescales you do not need to contact school, however please follow national guidelines.

Testing for parents, households and bubbles twice a week

A reminder that regular rapid testing is now also available for parents, their households and support or childcare bubbles. The government is encouraging all families to participate in twice weekly testing to help stop the spread.

Parents and other adults in the household can access tests by:

  • Ordering tests online gov.uk/order-school-household-tests
  • Getting an assisted test at work, if it is available
  • Attending a test site to get tested (where you will be able to see how to take the test) or pick up tests to do at home.

 To find out more on school household testing visit Households and bubbles of pupils, students and staff of schools and colleges: get rapid lateral flow tests – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

 Thank you

Yours sincerely

 

Wendy Casson

Headteacher

Educational Diversity