Information about COVID-19 symptoms

Dear parents/carers,

It’s great to have all our pupils back in their classrooms and to hear the sound of learning throughout the school.

As usual, when children come back to school after a long break, for example after the summer holidays, we expect them to catch the odd cough or cold, as they start mixing with other children again.

However, if a child has any of the following:

• a high temperature – this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back

• a new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 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

  Then they might have COVID-19.
  
  Notes:

• an individual does not need to show all of these symptoms, it is any one of these i.e. a temperature OR a cough OR the lack of smell/taste.

• It does not need to be continuous - if they have a temperature and it returns to normal, then this still counts as a symptom.

  The temperature measure is over 37.8c

If children show a symptom then parents must do one of the following actions:

• book a COVID test - this could be a LFD test (30 min turn around) or a full PCR test. (Information about this is below)

• if you are unable to get a test, please contact your doctor for advice and notify us of their feedback. The only other option is for the whole family, including the child, to self-isolate for 10 days.

We thank all parents for working with the school to keep our whole community safe.

Lateral Flow Device testing programme

These tests are rapid tests, which help to detect asymptomatic cases of COVID-19.

Staff who work in primary schools have access to home testing kits that allow for tests to be completed twice a week. Families can also now access free LFD testing, for adult use, by either attending a lateral flow test site or collecting home-testing kits at a collection point.

Greenwich lateral flow test sites are as follows:
• Daniel Defoe Hall, University of Greenwich, SE10 9FY

• David Fussey Building, University of Greenwich, SE9 2ET

• Charlton Athletic Football Ground, SE7 8BL

• Waterfront Leisure Centre, SE18 6DL

• The Princess Alice, SE28 0JS

  To book a lateral flow test appointment at one of the above sites,
  visit this website.
  

  Lewisham lateral flow test sites are as follows:

• the Civic Suite, Catford Rd, Catford, London SE6 4RX

• the Green Man in Downham, 355 Bromley Rd, London SE6 2RP

• Deptford Lounge, 9 Giffin St, Deptford, London SE8 4RJ

• Ignition Brewery at the Sydenham Centre, SE26 5QX

To book a lateral flow test appointment at one of the above sites,
visit this website.

If you wish to collect home testing kits, please visit here to find your local collection point. This video provides guidance on how to complete an LFD test at home.

If a positive result is received from a lateral flow test, you must inform the school immediately, self-isolate and book a full PCR test as soon as possible. 

Please note - this testing is voluntary, but strongly recommended to all who are eligible.

We must also stress that primary school children are not being tested using LFD tests at this time.

The LFD test programme is one measure that is helping us minimise community transmission of COVID-19. We all need to continue to follow the other rules that are keeping us all safe at this time including:

• No indoor household mixing

• Social distancing

• Wearing face coverings

• Remaining at home if we have symptoms of COVID-19