Primary school sends class home after pupil tests positive for coronavirus in Dublin
A PRIMARY school has sent home a class of pupils after a child tested positive for coronavirus.
The headteacher confirmed a pupil at the school, in Dublin, Ireland, has tested positive.
The whole class has been sent home as a precautionary measure.
Speaking on Irish radio station RTÉ's Today with Claire Byrne, the principal confirmed that the school is following public health advice and the child did not contract Covid-19 through transmission in the school.
The school returned from their summer holidays last Wednesday.
The news comes as millions of kids across England and Wales went back to school today after nearly five months at home.
A whopping 97 per cent of schools are expected to reopen fully this week.
Four in ten schools in England welcomed back pupils for the autumn term today, with the rest reopening later this week.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has reassured parents that - with COVID-19 on the retreat - it was safe for schools to return.
The Prime Minister added that children returning to school was the “single most important thing on the agenda of our country in the next few days”.
And speaking to Sky News today, Schools Minister Nick Gibb warned the risk to children’s mental health and prospects if they don’t return to school can be “quite damaging”.
Mr Gibb said it was natural for some parents to be concerned about their kids going back to school - but said they should talk to headteachers for reassurance on the measures in place to keep students safe.
He said: "Schools are mandatory in this country.
"So all the rules about attendance will apply from today."
Schools across England and Wales have now been ordered to put all year groups in “protective bubbles” to minimise contact between classes and reduce the risk of transmission.
There will also be staggered start and end times to the school day with lunch and break times happening at different points for different year groups.
And face coverings will now be mandatory in communal areas and corridors for children in towns and cities that are subject to stricter coronavirus restrictions.
Pupils will not have to wear masks in classrooms.
In other parts of England, it will be up to individual headteachers to decide whether pupils should wear face masks.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson says this follows updated advice from the World Health Organisation.
Mr Williamson said: "At each stage we have listened to the latest medical and scientific advice."
This new guidance is only for children in Year 7 and above - meaning primary school children will not have to wear masks.
Parents who refuse to send their children back to school could face £120 fines.
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The news comes as a survey found the learning gap between rich and poor pupils grew by almost half between March and July.
And some kids could be nearly three months behind when they get back to class.
The authors of the National Foundation for Educational Research warned a quick catch-up is unlikely.
