Coronavirus cases reported at Wandsworth schools

By Sian Bayley, Local Democracy Reporter

A “handful” of isolated cases of coronavirus have been reported in Wandsworth schools, according to a council statement issued yesterday.

However Wandsworth council insists these were “expected and prepared for.”

It is not yet known how many schools have seen cases, or which schools are involved.

The council has stressed that Covid-19 symptoms in children are usually mild and cases amongst under-16s have been low since the start of the pandemic.

The borough’s public health team is keeping “a close eye on the situation now that most of the borough’s school children have returned to the classroom.”

Cllr Melanie Hampton, cabinet member for adult social care and health, reassured parents that there was “no evidence of any outbreaks so far in our schools, and COVID-19 rates among this age group are stable.”

She added: “We would expect to hear of isolated cases and these are being swiftly dealt with.”

Cllr Will Sweet, the cabinet member for education and children’s services said: “We are in constant contact with schools and are working closely with them to ensure children are safe.

“The government, in consultation with Public Health England, has issued comprehensive guidance for schools to follow in the event of cases being identified and this may require children to self-isolate for a period of time whilst accessing remote learning”.

Schools have introduced measures such as class bubbles, one-way systems, staggered lunchtimes and hand sanitiser stations to protect staff and students.

The council said that when schools know someone has tested positive for coronavirus they will work with the local health protection on the actions they need to take.

Parents are reminded not to send their children to school if they display the following symptoms:

• High temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
• A new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot, for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
• A loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you’ve noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal

Most people with coronavirus have at least one of these symptoms.