You will be aware that the number of positive Covid 19 cases across Cheshire East has been steadily increasing and on Monday the Prime Minister announced that Cheshire East was in the Tier 2 category.
Over the past ten days we have also experienced positive cases in school and have had to make very difficult decisions. Each case has been different; we have had to apply varying measures for each one due to the different circumstances. With each case we have worked with Cheshire East and PHE to determine the best course of action. Whilst we always have a duty to provide all students with an outstanding education, our priority and moral duty is to keep all students, their families and all members of our community safe. The guidance we are working to regarding self-isolation is listed below:
- a person who has had face-to-face contact (within one metre), with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, including:
- being coughed on
- having a face-to-face conversation within one metre
- having skin-to-skin physical contact, or
- contact within one metre for one minute or longer without face-to-face contact
- a person who has been within 2 metres of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 for more than 15 minutes
- a person who has travelled in a small vehicle with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 or in a large vehicle or plane near someone who has tested positive for COVID-19
Where we have had to make the decision to send a whole year group home, we have not been able to apply the above criteria confidently enough to ensure that only those meeting the criteria should self-isolate. Where possible we will try to avoid whole year group self-isolation periods.
If your child has been asked to self-isolate, it is really important that they do in order to reduce the risk of spreading the virus. Unfortunately, we have been informed that some students have not been doing this. We all have a duty to protect our community; we have vulnerable people amongst our community; we need to be thinking about them.
I know that recent events have given cause for concern. I want to reassure you that the safety of all our community remains our priority. We will never divulge the name of the affected child, can I ask that you avoid social media to try to ascertain the name of the child. It is unfair on the affected individual and unhelpful to the school. Please trust us that we will always communicate with everyone concerned should the need arise to self-isolate. Thank you for your understanding and support.
