SIC reintroduce Covid precautions

Shetland Islands Council is reintroducing a number of Covid measures before the end of term next week as concerns over Omicron mount.

Staff and pupils are being reminded to adhere to a number of measures to limit the potential spread of Covid-19.

These include:

• Updating and regularly reviewing school risk assessments and individual risk assessments for staff, children and young people that require them;
• The two metre physical distancing requirements for all staff;
• The use of face coverings for school staff and secondary pupils;
• The use of hand sanitisers throughout the school day;
• Daily hand sanitisation for all children and young people on arrival at school;
• One way systems throughout schools;
• Enhanced daily cleaning during the school day and further cleaning undertaken daily at the end of each day;
• Parents/carers continuing to be advised to avoid contact with other parents, children and young people at the school entrance, on the way to school, and after school as well as wearing face coverings;
• Careful monitoring to ensure the appropriate level of ventilation and adequate air flow throughout the building with CO2 monitors deployed, monitoring the level of CO2, and temperature in classrooms; and
• Access to asymptomatic, lateral flow, testing kits for all school and early learning and childcare staff and secondary aged learners.

The school term ends on Tuesday, 21^st  December.

Additionally between Monday, 20^th December and Friday, 14^th January, SIC has decided to:

• Re-introduce the one setting per day principle for all school and early learning and childcare staff;
• Suspend face-to-face parents’ evenings planned between those dates;
• Revert to essential visitors to all schools and early learning and childcare settings.

Essential visitors, for example educational psychologists and outreach staff, allied health professionals, nurses, social workers, youth workers, Skills Development Scotland advisors and those providing therapeutic support, will be able to continue to visit schools for essential purposes only, and under the appropriate mitigations.