Dear Parent / Carer

Thank you for everything you have done to keep your family and your community safe so far during the coronavirus pandemic and for your support for our local schools. Unfortunately the pandemic is not yet over and cases of COVID continue to be high in Plymouth.

In the last few weeks before half term, we have seen a significant rise in the number of children and young people testing positive for COVID and an increase in household transmission of the virus. We are now seeing extreme pressures starting to build on the NHS again. This will impact us all, from the ability to get a GP appointment or indeed have a routine operation.

We can see from our local data that Covid easily spreads in households, and so cases in children lead to rising infection rates in adults, and of course older adults tend to be more vulnerable to the effects of both COVID and flu.

As we move forward to winter and start looking forward to a festive season where we can hopefully see our friends and family, I need your help.

Over the weeks and months ahead, I ask all of you to remember that:

• Children and families should continue to regularly take lateral flow tests twice a week. Find out where to get tests here: www.plymouth.gov.uk/gettested
• Children who receive a positive result using a lateral flow test should stay home from school and book a PCR test to confirm their result, even if they do not have symptoms. You can book a test here: www.gov.uk/get-coronavirus-test
• Children who are unwell should stay at home. If the symptoms might be COVID, they should stay home and take a PCR test.

It is also important that we continue to regularly practice the other safety measures that we have all become so used to. Therefore, I ask you to remind your children:

• Of the importance of regular hand washing with soap and water or using hand sanitiser when soap and water are not readily available.
• “Catch it, Bin it, Kill it” messages to encourage children to catch coughs and sneezes in a tissue and dispose of it in the nearest waste bin.
• Encourage your child to wear a face covering if they attend secondary school both in communal areas of the school and when travelling by bus to and from school.

And of course, I urge all families to carefully consider the benefits to your children of being vaccinated against COVID and flu. The Flu vaccination programme will commence in schools shortly, and if your child is aged 12+ they are eligible for the COVID jab. Appointments can be booked at a local venue, including Home Park, go to: www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-vaccination

It is vitally important that you take care of yourselves as we move into winter. If you haven’t had your COVID-19 vaccine yet, or your booster / flu jab if eligible, please don’t delay. There are plenty of locations across the city to book an appointment or indeed just walk-in.

Thank you for everything you and all our schools have been doing, we need one last big push now to get through winter, protect the health of the most vulnerable in Plymouth and all look forward to a Christmas we can enjoy.

Stay Healthy

Ruth Harrell
Director of Public Health
Plymouth City Council