A primary school has sent home their pupils and staff after almost half of them tested positive for Covid.
Forty per cent of pupils and half of all staff have caught the virus at Cradoc Primary School in Brecon over the last couple of weeks.
The term had started up again earlier this month, and with so many positive test results the local authority said left the school with no alternative but to close, Wales Online reports.
Lynette Lovell, interim chief executive of Powys County Council, said: “We can confirm that Cradoc Primary School has closed due to rising Covid cases.
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“Despite the school’s best efforts to mitigate the risk of infection among pupils and staff, including limited contact groups, daytime cleaning, handwashing, ventilation and outdoor learning, the number of positive cases within the school has increased significantly over the past couple of weeks with approximately 40% of pupils and 50% of staff currently testing positive.”
It comes as Year 9 at Cwmtawe Community High School 30 miles away near Pontardawe have also been sent home for a week because of the high number of cases.
A Neath Port Talbot council spokesman said: “Staff at the school have taken regular LFD tests. Staff have now taken every precaution to safeguard pupils and themselves. However, the impact of staff illness and self-isolation has made it impossible to operate the school safely for all year groups this week.
“The health and safety of our pupils and staff is of paramount importance, so, from Monday September 20 up to Friday September 24, Year 9 pupils will move to home learning.
“We will continue to closely monitor the situation throughout the week. All Year 9 pupils should log on to Microsoft Teams via Hwb and follow their usual timetable. Teachers will make every effort to ensure appropriate work is available and, where possible, live lessons will take place.”
The Welsh government announced their plan to move forward "business as usual" in schools where possible before the term started.
It adds that decisions would be made with local risk factors in mind.
First Minister Mark Drakeford told WalesOnline at the time: “What we want is a more flexible system where decisions are made closer to the ground and where we can avoid situations where whole classes of children are being sent home because one child might have tested positive.
"We’ve learned different techniques and different ways of doing things and we will have to manage the fact that there will be coronavirus in schools as there is everywhere else but to do it in a way that minimises disruption on teachers, parents and other staff in schools and particularly for children themselves."
It comes as deaths in England and Wales surged 25 per cent in a single week to a total of 11,035 amid a rise in Covid-related fatalities.
Of those deaths 7.8% were Covid-related, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.
Covid deaths were the highest since March 2021, ONS data today reveals.
In the week ending September 10, there were 2,238 more deaths compared to the previous week, while there were 1,853 more deaths than the five-year average for the same week.
In England, deaths involving Covid-19 increased to 786, up from 632 the previous week, while in Wales they rose to 36, up from 25.
