Both Moorlands Infant School and Moorlands Junior School in Bath will be closed on Friday 28th February, as a member of the school community undergoes testing for the COVID-19 coronavirus.
The person, who has “been to a Category 2 area within the last 14 days”, has begun to develop symptoms related to the virus.
Category 2 areas include Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Italy (North), Japan, Laos, Macau, Malaysia, Myanmar, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
In a letter to parents, Acting Head Warrick Barton told parents: “I should stress that it remains unlikely that they will test positively for the virus, but all Public Health advice has been followed, and as a precaution the person is being tested this evening.
“I am grateful to this person for having correctly followed all the advice at every stage.”
Advice from Public Health England says no restrictions or control measures are required while test results are pending, however Mr Barton said he had to make a difficult decision in light of the advice.
He said: “While on the one hand it says “there is no need to close the setting”, on the other it says that action in terms of cleaning is necessary.
“Given the timing of me receiving the information, it will not be possible to adequately clean a site as large as Moorlands in time for the school to open in the morning.”
“I appreciate that this may well cause lots of you difficulties with childcare tomorrow. I hope that you will understand that I have taken this decision with children’s health as the first priority, as well as the health of the whole school community. This is very much a precautionary measure, but one that puts children first.
The letter continues: “I should stress again that the risk to our community remains very low. If you do have any concerns about yourself or a member of your family, please just follow the advice found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-information-for-the-public.
“We will be making arrangements for cleaning tomorrow, as a precaution, and in all likelihood will be able to open the schools again on Monday morning as normal.
“However, we will not know the results of the tests on the person concerned until Sunday evening, so please do check for further communication then, and if possible have standby arrangements in place for childcare on Monday.
“Please accept my apologies for the disruption this will cause you. I look forward to us getting back to normal as soon as possible.”
A spokesperson from Bath & North East Somerset Council told the Bath Echo: “We are aware that Moorlands Infant and Junior Schools are closed today.
“This has been carried out as a precautionary measure only, and we would like to reassure people that, should a case be confirmed anywhere in the country, Public Health England would contact all those who had come into contact with a case.
“Information and advice regarding the virus can be found at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/.”
