Dear Parents/ Carer,

Please see below, the latest update from Public Health in respect of low risk contact. Thank you in advance for your continued support with Covid mitigations and we appreciate you adhering to the wearing of face masks and 2 metre distancing at our school gates.

Kind regards,

Deirdre Bolland

Head Teacher

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Dear Parent/Carer
Primary school
I write to confirm that your child may have had ‘low risk’ contact with a person who has COVID-19. This means they may have shared a classroom or had some other low risk contact in school.
There is no need for your child to isolate unless you are contacted separately by Test and Protect and asked to do so. Your child should continue to attend if they are well and do not have to self-isolate for any other reason. Whole classes are no longer asked to self-isolate if someone in the class tests positive for COVID-19. Your child will only be identified as a contact if they have had prolonged close contact with the case – e.g. same household, overnight stays.
Please be reassured that for most people coronavirus (COVID-19) will be a mild illness. Children are at particularly low risk of illness from coronavirus infection. For those people who are eligible, vaccination is highly effective at preventing severe disease.
What we are asking you to do;
• Please be vigilant for symptoms of COVID-19. If you or anyone in your household develops symptoms of COVID-19 then all household members must self-isolate. A PCR test should be booked as soon as possible for anyone who has symptoms. Your whole household should stay at home until the test result comes back.
• Wherever possible your child should take a lateral flow test before returning to school, and should continue to test regularly (twice-weekly) thereafter. Your child should not take a lateral flow test if they have tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 90 days. Testing can help to reduce the likelihood of spread in schools by catching infections early. If the test is positive your whole household should self-isolate and you should arrange a PCR test for your child. Please ensure that all lateral flow test results, whether positive, negative or void, are recorded on the online portal at: www.covidtest.scot or by phoning 119.
To help reduce the risk to your family and your school community, please also follow wider Scottish Government guidance;
• Arrange vaccination as soon as possible, if you or anyone eligible in your family have not yet been vaccinated. Further information is available at www.nhsinform.scot/covid-19-vaccine. Vaccination is our best defence against COVID-19 causing anyone to become seriously unwell.
• Wear a face covering in line with guidance, keep your distance, keep rooms ventilated, and wash your hands with soap and water regularly.
• You and the rest of your family, including primary school-aged children, can access free test kits through the Universally Accessible Testing programme, which is available to everyone in Scotland.
Department of Public Health
NHS Lanarkshire Headquarters
Kirklands Hospital
Public Health Department
Fallside Road
Bothwell
G71 8BB
2
How to arrange a COVID-19 test
Lateral flow tests: Free test kits are available to all secondary school children from the school. Please
contact the school directly if they have any problems accessing tests. Free at-home LFD test kits are
available for you and your primary-school aged children by collection from COVID test centres or
pharmacies, or delivery by ordering online. More information can be found at:
www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested/pages/no-covid-symptoms.
PCR tests: Book a test at NHS Inform for your nearest COVID-19 test site. There are drive-through,
walk-through, and mobile testing units across Scotland which are open from 8-am until 8pm, 7 days
a week. A full list of sites can be found at Gov.Scot. Or you can order a home PCR test kit online, or
by calling 119. A test will then be delivered to your home. To return you can either drop the test at
your nearest priority post box, or if you are unable to go out, you can also call 119 to book a courier
collection from your home.
Further Information
For general Coronavirus Frequently Asked Questions and information:
https://www.parentclub.scot/topics/coronavirus/coronavirus-faq?age=0 and
https://www.nhsinform.scot/illnesses-and-conditions/infections-and-poisoning/coronavirus-covid-19
Translations (nhsinform.scot) for accessible, easy read formats or other languages.
For local information and details of the services available in Lanarkshire:
https://www.nhslanarkshire.scot.nhs.uk/novel-corona-virus-covid-19/
Yours sincerely
Dr John Logan
Consultant in Public Health Medicine (Health Protection