The Department of Education (DfE) has announced that secondary schools and colleges will stagger their return after Christmas and mass coronavirus testing will be rolled out.
Mass testing aims to identify people who have the virus but are not displaying symptoms. Asymptomatic students can then self-isolate before infecting others.
To reduce the number of students being sent home as part of their class or year group ‘bubbles’, any students who have been in contact with a positive case will be offered seven days of daily testing.
The DfE has confirmed that armed forces personnel will support the planning for testing in schools and Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said it will be a ‘milestone moment’ to keep schools safely open.
Ian Pryce, principal of Bedford College, responded to the news, saying: “The college is keen to ensure our staff and students can get mass testing, and to organise this on our campuses, so we welcome the announcement in principle.
“However, to announce it so late and expect it to work from 4 January (three working days later) is insulting.
“Our membership body (Association of Colleges) calculates that the sector needs 5,000 full time staff to make this work.
“On that basis Bedford College will need 50 new staff. They will need to be recruited and trained and supervised.
“We need to be given the money to do it, and the time to organise it, especially given the risks it will pose to health of the testers without medical PPE.
“There may also be insurance and safeguarding issues to address. It is important to get it right and we know that poor execution of these tests gives false results, which would be dangerous.”
Tests will be optional and require parental consent.
