COVID-19 Update

On 1^st April, all remaining domestic restrictions in England relating to COVID-19 were removed. There are still steps you can take to reduce the risk of catching and spreading COVID-19 and further information is available in this linked government guidance: Living safely with respiratory infections, including COVID-19.

In school, we will continue to manage the risk of transmission by ensuring classrooms and communal areas are well ventilated ventilation and encouraging the children to practice good respiratory hygiene by covering their noses and mouths when sneezing or coughing and washing their hands regularly.

The symptoms of COVID-19 in children has been updated by the NHS to include:

• a high temperature or shivering (chills) – a high temperature means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours
• a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
• shortness of breath
• feeling tired or exhausted
• an aching body
• a headache
• a sore throat
• a blocked or runny nose
• loss of appetite
• diarrhoea
• feeling sick or being sick

Guidance for adults and children with symptoms of a respiratory infection including COVID-19, or a positive test result for COVID-19 is available: People with symptoms of a respiratory infection including COVID-19

If your child is unwell with any of the above symptoms and has a high temperature, please keep them at home until their temperature is back to normal and they feel well enough to return. This will significantly help to minimise the risk of them passing their infection on to their teachers and classmates.

If your child has a positive COVID-19 test result, please keep them at home for 3 days after the day they took the test. After 3 days, if they feel well and do not have a high temperature, they can return to school. Please be aware that it is 5 days for adults, not 3, because the infectious period tends to be longer in adults than children.

If your child is unwell and will be absent from school, please inform us by 8:30 am on each day of absence. You can email the school office at: office@fernhill.rbksch.org or call them on 020 8247 0300. If the office is busy, you may be put through to the answerphone. Please do leave a message.