Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what guidance his Department has issued to teachers and headteachers on the rules on self-isolating in response to an alert from the covid-19 app during school term time.

It is possible that whilst in their nursery, school or college, pupils or staff could receive a notification via the NHS COVID-19 app that they have been in close contact with a confirmed case and should self-isolate. Close contacts are likely to have taken place at least 1-2 days previously. The app uses the minimum amount of personal data possible, which means it will not know if that contact took place in a nursery, school or college.

The Department recommends that schools advise all of their pupils, in particular those who are under 18, to inform a member of staff if they receive a notification during the day that they had been in contact with a positive case. The notification will advise them that if they are under the age of 18, they should show the message to a trusted adult and self-isolate. The staff member should then follow the school’s agreed process for handling individuals identified as a close contact, including making appropriate arrangements for the pupil to leave the school at the earliest opportunity to begin self-isolation.

If a staff member receives this notification, they should also follow the usual process of informing an appropriate person at the school before self-isolating. Schools will want to consider what action they would need to take if a number of staff members were informed at the same time that they had been in close contact with a positive case, to ensure continuity of education or childcare.