More schools hit by rising Covid cases in county
HUNDREDS OF PUPILS ISOLATING
AT least a dozen more coronavirus cases have been confirmed in schools across Leicester and Leicestershire.
Primary and secondary schools across the county have contacted parents to inform them of new infections among staff and pupils and asked hundreds more children to isolate for two weeks.
Hinckley Academy and the John Cleveland Sixth Form Centre revealed four students had tested positive for Covid-19 at the weekend, though the head teacher said the cases were in different year groups and the infected students had not been mixing.
Ellesmere College special school in Leicester said two members of staff had fallen ill with the virus.
Cosby Primary School reported a case to parents and carers and there was a single case at Ashby Hill Top Primary where all Year 5 and 6 classes have been closed and associated staff asked to isolate.
There were four primary schools in Leicester reporting virus cases.
Thurnby Mead Academy in Thurnby Lodge said one member of the school community has tested positive.
At Folville Primary School in Braunstone, a child has been confirmed to have coronavirus.
There were also single cases at Braunstone Frith Primary School and Holy Cross Primary School, off Saffron Lane, Leicester.
These are the cases the Mercury has been able to confirm from school communications but there have been other reports which have yet to be verified.
The cases are in addition to a dozen more reported on yesterday.
There have been calls for schools and universities to close as part of the current month-long national lockdown but the government has insisted they should remain open.
Local education bosses have said the measures put in place in schools to stop the spread of the virus mean they are the safest places for young people.
They said most of the cases affecting pupils and staff in Leicester and Leicestershire are because of infections picked up in the community and detected in schools.