School closes after almost half of pupils and teachers test positive for Covid

A whole primary school has been sent home in Powys after almost half the school tested positive for Covid.40% of pupils and half of staff have tested positive at Cradoc Primary School in Brecon over the last few weeks.

The local authority said the school was left with no alternative but to close.Lynette Lovell, interim chief executive of Powys County Council, said: “We can confirm that Cradoc Primary School has closed due to rising Covid cases.“Despite the school’s best efforts to mitigate the risk of infection among pupils and staff, including limited contact groups, daytime cleaning, handwashing, ventilation and outdoor learning, the number of positive cases within the school has increased significantly over the past couple of weeks with approximately 40% of pupils and 50% of staff currently testing positive.”

Year 9 at Cwmtawe Community High School near Pontardawe have also been sent home for a week due to high cases.A Neath Port Talbot council spokesman said: “Staff at the school have taken regular LFD tests. Staff have now taken every precaution to safeguard pupils and themselves. However, the impact of staff illness and self-isolation has made it impossible to operate the school safely for all year groups this week.“The health and safety of our pupils and staff is of paramount importance, so, from Monday September 20 up to Friday September 24, Year 9 pupils will move to home learning.“We will continue to closely monitor the situation throughout the week. All Year 9 pupils should log on to Microsoft Teams via Hwb and follow their usual timetable. Teachers will make every effort to ensure appropriate work is available and, where possible, live lessons will take place.”Ahead of the new term a Welsh government plan said it should be "business as usual" in schools where possible, and that decisions would be taken with local risk factors in mind.