Coronavirus: What you need to know

Coronavirus: What you need to know

COVID-19 dominates headlines and we anticipate that it will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. While we don’t want to scaremonger, we know the value of getting reliable information, avoiding misinformation and mitigating risk. We have set out some reliable sources and ideas for you to consider below amongst the media frenzy:

This is the central point where the UK government posts information and updates. Here is where you will find the general Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance and the coronavirus action plan policy paper.

We suggest that you keep refreshing this page to find the latest information from the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England. This webpage will reflect the number of cases and the risk level generally based on the World Health Organization’s declarations concerning this public health emergency of international concern.

This guidance was developed to assist schools and other educational settings in providing advice for pupils, students, staff and parents or carers. For further information contact the DfE Established a Coronavirus Helpline on 0800 046 8687 open 08:00 to 18:00 (Monday to Friday) alternately you can email [email protected].

Ofqual has put together a toolkit to help you with exam planning; what to do in the event of a disruption and things to consider after the exam. Schools and colleges in England should also consider the following when drafting contingency plans – while this guidance may not mention the coronavirus (yet) the principles behind the guidance will give you a good steer:

• Emergency planning and response
• Opening and closing local-authority-maintained schools;
• Procedures for handling bomb threats

ACAS has produced fair and balanced guidance to give you a head start on implementing good practice as employers that highlights what to do:

• about issues around sick pay
• if employees do not want to go to work
• if someone becomes unwell at work
• if someone with coronavirus comes to work
• if you need to close the workplace

Remember to frame this within the guidance for educational settings for anything especially tricky our education and employment teams are here to help.

Worried about your School Contracts? Our experts in the Dispute Resolution Team have prepared an overview of how you can mitigate loss.

We encourage you to follow #MuckleEducation on Twitter and LinkedIn for updates and tips. If you want to chat about how COVID-19 affects your school, contact us at [email protected] or call 0191 211 7777.