Parents in Glasgow will be preparing for the return of their children to school tomorrow for the first time since lockdown began in Scotland nearly five months ago.
Naturally, many if not all will be worried about the return to classes and what schools and nurseries are and will be doing to keep children safe.
Speaking at the Scottish Government's coronavirus briefing, Professor Jason Leitch, National Clinical Director confirmed that "schools will be doing everything they can to maintain physical distancing while making sure everyone can return to school full-time".
He also said that all schools have in place plans to deal with positive cases or an outbreak, with Health Protection Scotland managing any school outbreak through the Test and Protect system.
As for what to do if your child shows coronavirus symptoms after going back to school, here's everything parents need to know:
- Parents should continue to look out for symptoms of the virus - ie a new continuous cough, a fever or high temperature (37.8C or greater) or a loss of or change in taste or smell.
- A new continuous cough is where you a) have a new cough that’s lasted for an hour, b) have had 3 or more episodes of coughing in 24 hours or c) are coughing more than usual.
- A high temperature is feeling hot to the touch on your chest or back (you don’t need to measure your temperature). You may feel warm, cold or shivery.
- Any person or child with symptoms or who has had contact with someone with symptoms should not attend school. They will be asked to return home and parents should contact NHS Inform to arrange a test. The person or child should remain at home and everyone in the household should self-isolate until the child receives their test results.
- If the test if negative, everyone in the household can stop isolating and the children and young people can return to school.
- If the test is positive, the person or child with the symptoms must isolate for 10 days, and everyone else in the household for 14 days.
- Where children of young people need to self-isolate, the school will have plans in place to allow their learning to continue if they are well enough to do so.
For further info, visit the Parent Club Scotland page HERE
