Doncaster Council Open Letter to Parents 4th January 2022

Dear parents and carers,

As we begin a new year and a new school term I wanted to thank you for your ongoing support in keeping our early years and schools settings safe for our children and staff.

We are still facing difficult challenges caused by Covid-19 and I met with head teachers yesterday to discuss the plans we have in place and going forward. We are all firmly committed to keeping our schools open, but unfortunately, many are having a difficult start with staff shortages. We are working closely with them to monitor this and support wherever possible.

We can all play our part in helping to safely keep our early years and schools open by reducing transmission as much as possible. I know that it’s not ideal for secondary school students to be wearing face masks but they help keep the environments safe.

Lateral Flow Device (LFD) testing continues to be vitally important. Secondary school pupils and household members of any school age child should continue with twice weekly home testing, as it is most effective at identifying people with the virus when they are at their most infectious period. We know there have been issues accessing LFTs but we are working with schools to ensure they have all the stock they need to support testing programmes.

Further guidance about self-isolation advice is below:

If someone has tested positive for Covid-19 it is now possible to end self-isolation after 7 days, following 2 negative LFD tests taken 24 hours apart. The first LFD test should not be taken before the sixth day. Pupils who have 2 consecutive negative tests on day 6 and 7 can return to school.

For anyone who is a close contact, or shares a home, with someone who has tested positive the guidance is:

Vaccinated adults and children: Any fully vaccinated adults (2 doses) and children are strongly advised to take an LFD test every day for 7 days. This daily test should be completed before the person leaves home for the first time that day. If any of these test results are positive, the person should self isolate and arrange a PCR test.

Adults who are not fully vaccinated: Any adults not fully vaccinated and living in the same household as someone with COVID-19 are legally required to stay at home and self-isolate.

If you have any questions about your child attending school then please get in touch with your school who will be able to support you.

Kind regards,
Riana Nelson
Director of Learning, Opportunities and Skills, Learning and Opportunities