Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect on the ability of sixth form colleges in Portsmouth to remain open of recent trends in the number of sixth from students in Portsmouth unable to obtain a covid-19 test and unable to return to their sixth form until they receive covid-19 test results.

It is vital that students and college staff only get a test if they develop COVID-19 symptoms. If a positive case is confirmed in a college, swift action is being taken to ask those who have been in close contact to self-isolate, and Public Health England’s local health protection teams continue to support and advise colleges in this situation.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) sent an initial supply of 10 test kits to all colleges including sixth form colleges, for those who develop symptoms on site and face significant personal barriers to accessing a test and so would not otherwise seek to get tested. Further education colleges can now place a monthly order for additional test kits, with order limits proportionate to their number of students. We are making this increase in the number of kits available so that colleges are able to prioritise testing for symptomatic staff who cannot access a test - so that if they test negative they can get back to work as quickly as possible and help keep their setting open.

We will work with DHSC to provide updates to our guidance with advice on how to distribute these kits safely. Relevant guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-home-test-kits-for-schools-and-fe-providers/coronavirus-covid-19-home-test-kits-for-schools-and-fe-providers.