Surge testing rolled out following Manchester College outbreak
17 students in a single teaching group have tested positive for Covid-19 at the college's campus in Ardwick
Surge testing will take place at The Manchester College’s Nicholls Campus in Ardwick after a small and limited Covid-19 outbreak was reported within an isolated group of the student population.
17 students in a single teaching group have tested positive for Covid-19. These tests were confirmed as positive by Friday, 14 May. No new positive cases were detected prior to surge testing commencing on Tuesday 18 May.
These cases are being treated as possible variants of concern and have been sent for genomic sequencing to confirm if they are the Indian variant.
There is no evidence to suggest that other campuses at Manchester College have been affected, and no link has been established to cases of the Indian variant in Bolton.
As such the College’s nine other campuses across the city remain open, operating with the College’s robust safety measures in place and without the requirement for any additional testing at this stage. Nicholls Campus also remains open with this additional testing measure in place.
However, as a precaution roughly 1,300 students and 80 staff at the college are being encouraged to get a Covid-19 test to detect any additional asymptomatic cases and prevent any further spread within the college and wider community.
Two Mobile Testing Units will be deployed at the College’s Nicholls Campus from Tuesday, May 18.
Students in higher-risk categories will also be encouraged to get their vaccination.
Lisa O’Loughlin, Principal, The Manchester College said:
“Acting on the guidance for educational settings, we have been working in partnership with our colleagues at Public Health England and the public health team at Manchester City Council. While the additional PCR testing is a precautionary measure we have acted swiftly, and responsibly, to ensure that we play our part in protecting the community.
“I would like to reassure our students that both PHE and MCC have praised both our swift response and the measures that we had in place on campus to prevent the transmission of Covid-19 that have helped to keep the number of confirmed cases limited to date. As such our other nine campuses across Greater Manchester remain unaffected by this small and isolated incident and we are confident that the robust measures we have in place to protect our students and staff remain effective at limiting the spread of this virus on our campuses.”
David Regan, Director of Public Health for Manchester said:
“Manchester City Council is working with The Manchester College and our partners nationally to roll out a quick programme of testing on site.
“With the reopening of the economy as well as the return of students to educational settings we have anticipated a scenario like this. Testing units will be at The Manchester College for the next three days to ensure that any further spread of Covid is contained, and to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the student population and wider community.
“I would urge everyone contacted to get their test as soon as possible. It is quick, accurate and could prevent anyone else contracting the virus.
“We know that incidents like this will happen from time to time as we learn to live with the virus, but it is imperative that we remain vigilant and keep wearing our masks, maintain social distancing and wash our hands regularly.”