LEDBURY’S John Masefield High School will continue with tougher Covid rules following a recent rise in positive cases.

Headteacher Andrew Evans said there had been a rise in cases before half-term — which began on October 25 – with students still off after catching Covid.

As a result of the rise — which Mr Evans said followed low cases after the school year began in September — new rules were put in place.

Now, despite a falling number of positive laboratory-confirmed PCR tests, the rules are set to continue.

In a letter to parents on Tuesday, November 9, he said there were 13 current cases, or 1.5 per cent of the school population.

Mr Evans said the school needed to “remain cautious” and it was “closely monitoring cases on a daily basis”.

Precautions set to continue are to “strongly encourage” students to wear face coverings in the classroom and indoor communal areas.

Doors and windows will kept open at all times to maximise ventilation and students are asked to sanitise their hands on entering and leaving classrooms. The school is also continuing its “no physical contact rule” and increased cleaning of “touch points”.

Mr Evans said it was also vital that students continued with twice-weekly lateral flow testing at home. "If a positive result is received for a lateral flow test, the student will need to self-isolate, take a PCR test and follow the advice of NHS Test and Trace. You should also immediately inform the school,” he said.

He also confirmed that NHS vaccination teams had been at the school on Thursday and Friday last week to administer vaccines to students aged 12 to 15. “We are delighted that 75 per cent of eligible students in these year groups had their vaccines and we are aware that additionally a high number of students have had their vaccines at other settings including at local surgeries,” he said. “The students who have had vaccinations are making an excellent contribution to keeping themselves, their families and our community safe.”

Previously — before half term — Queen Elizabeth High School in Bromyard had taken similar precautions to protect against rising cases. 

However, in a letter to parents last Friday, headteacher Martin Farmer said students would no longer have to wear face masks from Monday this week.

He said the week-long break at the end of October had acted as a "firebreak" to stop the virus spreading. 

Despite this, he warned that rules could be strengthened again at short notice if cases began to rise again.