Covid-19 cases found at Middlesbrough and Eston schools

A MIDDLESBROUGH secondary school is closing for the rest of the week as a precaution.

Kings Academy in Coulby Newham will provide online learning from Tuesday to Friday following a small number of positive Covid cases.

The decision has been taken in consultation with Middlesbrough Council due to the fact the cases are spread across different year groups.

The Council is working with the Department of Health and Social Care to arrange for a mobile testing unit to be positioned at the school.

All students and staff who have not already tested positive will be encouraged to come forward for a PCR test.

Details of the mobile testing unit will be confirmed by the school and communicated to parents.

Close contacts of the positive cases will be legally required to self-isolate for 10 days. The remainder of students are also advised to stay at home as a precaution until they receive a negative test result.

Principal David Dawes said: "I acknowledge the inconvenience this will cause and I would like to thank parents and carers for their cooperation.

"Throughout the pandemic the safety of students and staff has been our main priority. We've acted quickly in response to a small number of cases. We will always put the safety of the wider community first."

Esther Mireku, Consultant in Public Health, said the school had acted promptly and in line with Department for Education and Public Health England guidelines.

"This is a precautionary measure for a short period of time and the extra testing will help us understand more about the spread of infection in the local community," she said.

"I would continue to urge everyone in the local community to follow the current restrictions and to remember the rules around hands, face, space and fresh air."

Cllr Mieka Smiles, Executive Member for Communities and Education, said: "I'd like to thank the school for acting so quickly. I know a programme of online learning is in place for the remainder of the week and students will return to school after the half-term break."

Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston said: "We're supporting the school as they work hard to keep everyone safe. It's vital that education continues and as a Council we committed £350,000 last year to ensure all students have access to a device."

As of Monday, Middlesbrough's infection rate was 28 per 100,000 of the population.

Meanwhile, in a statement from Redcar and Cleveland council and Whale Hill Primary school in Eston, we were told some children must be kept in isolation as well.

SOME children and teachers at Whale Hill Primary School in the Eston area have been sent home after Covid-19 was detected in a number of staff.

The school remains open as normal for nursery, reception and most of the Year 5 children.

However, many of the children in the other year groups must now isolate for ten days as a legal requirement after Covid testing showed some positive results. That means the children have to stay at home for the full ten days.

Headteacher Melanie Mellor said: “The last thing we want to do is send our children home, but the safety and health of all our children and our colleagues must always come first.

“We’ve been in direct contact with parents and carers to offer clear guidance on isolating. We know it can be hard but we’ve had a good response overall and the vast majority know we all have to keep working together to keep Covid under control.

“We’re taking all the rules extremely seriously here and have rigorous risk assessments in place which is what our parents would expect. We’ll continue to be vigilant so we can get our children back, safe and healthy at school as soon as possible.”

It is important that parents and carers of all schoolchildren test regularly. Government guidance stresses the importance of hand washing, maintaining social distance and wearing a mask when required to keep the virus under control.