Best to take the virus test ‘The testing is having a direct impact on the spread of the virus’

REGULAR RAPID TESTING IS A VITAL STEP FOR STOPPING THE SPREAD OF COVID-19, PARTICULARLY AS PUPILS SETTLE BACK IN AT SCHOOL. HERE’S HOW THE TESTS CAN HELP PROTECT YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES Harry Owen, 41, from Twickenham has seen how tests are making life e

When you can’t work from home or you are a parent with children who are back at school or college, regular rapid testing can help to keep you and your loved ones safe.

One in three people with Covid-19 don’t show symptoms, so it’s vital to remain vigilant as lockdown restrictions begin to ease, and getting into the habit of taking rapid tests at home will help stop the spread of the virus. The impact of vaccination on transmission isn’t yet known, so even if you’ve had both doses you could still be able to give Covid to someone else.

You’re more likely to catch Covid from people you spend time with – so testing twice a week (and following self-isolation guidelines if the result is positive) will help to break the chain of transmission. Whether negative, positive or even void, you should report the result at gov.uk/report-covid19-result or call 119.

Testing and isolating play an important role alongside the vaccination programme and the ‘hands, face, space, air’ guidelines. (Wash your hands, cover your face, make space and open the windows to make sure rooms are well ventilated.)

Testing is free, quick and easy, and you can do it at home. Millions of people are already taking the tests – in the NHS, at workplaces and in secondary schools.

Tests are available to families and support bubbles of school children and people who have to be in a workplace.

Find out where you can pick up the test kits at gov.uk/ getting-tested-forcoronavirus.

“My wife Naomi is a teacher at a primary school, so we have been used to her getting lateral flow tests every week for some time now.

“I am also a governor at a different school. The response of the school to Covid in general has been to a large degree dependent on the availability of teachers – both for virtual lessons and in this she returned to school. As a family we now have two people tested regularly. More importantly, this testing tackles community spread and helps by making everyone feel more secure.

“Our community in Twickenham is relatively small – there is significant interaction between parents, teachers, children, siblings – but the testing is having a direct impact on community spread. Daily cases in the entire Borough of Richmond are now into single figures – that was also helped by a testing site in Twickenham stadium, which has been in place since the first wave.

“You get used to the tests and it’s really not that bad. Having had Covid myself in the first lockdown and then having gone on to have four tests for various reasons, I