Four pupils at school attended by young Royals are kept at home

FOUR children at Prince George and Princess Charlotte’s school have been put in self-isolation amid fears they have been exposed to the virus.

The pupils at Thomas’s Battersea, the private London prep school attended by the young royals, are being kept at home while they await test results.

Two of the youngsters are said to have returned recently from a trip to Northern Italy, where there has been a major outbreak of the disease. One reportedly has a cough and the other has a fever.

The other two children have not visited any areas seriously affected by coronavirus, but have displayed similar symptoms, according to Spanish media.

There is no suggestion that George, six, or Charlotte, four, have been exposed to the disease. The children have been put in self-isolation as a precautionary measure and it is expected that the tests will come back negative

A spokesman for the school told Spanish news site El Confidencial: ‘‘We currently have a very small number of pupils who have been tested and these individuals are currently, as per Government advice, remaining at home pending the receipt of their test results. All parents have been informed and we have maintained regular communication with our school community to ensure that important information is circulated.

‘We will of course preserve staff and pupil confidentiality and will not be commenting on specific cases.’ Kensington Palace declined to comment.

The situation came as it emerged up to 30 schools are shutting over infection fears, despite official advice that insists it is not necessary.

At least six schools around the UK have said they will remain shut until next week – in many cases after pupils returned from skiing trips to Northern Italy.

Another three will not reopen until tomorrow at the earliest, and more than 20 have sent groups of pupils home as a precaution. Meanwhile, Facebook is banning all advertisements that promise to cure coronavirus, or incite panic around the outbreak, in its latest attempt to prevent misinformation.

Elsewhere, 300 staff were ordered by oil giant Chevron to go home yesterday after an employee, who had returned from a coronavirus-hit country, reported a flu-like illness.

The US firm emptied its HQ in London’s Canary Wharf as a precaution to prevent the spread of the deadly disease.