A Suffolk school has been forced to close after five members of teaching staff tested positive for Covid-19.
Two other members of staff at the Samuel Ward Academy in Haverhill are waiting to hear their coronavirus test results, with the academy being told to close on Monday on the advice of Public Health England.
The school said in a statement that the closure was a ‘precautionary measure’ and it hoped to reopen on Tuesday. A deep clean is to take place at the school, with hundreds of students set to miss lessons.
Headteacher Andy Hunter explained: ‘The safety of pupils and all those who work at the school is my biggest priority. Obviously this is a huge disappointment after working so hard to get the school back up and running.
‘I will be looking closely at the systems we put in place to try to understand how the transmission occurred and to make sure we do everything possible to limit the chances of the same thing happening again.’
Anyone who has been in close contact with infected staff has been contacted and asked to self-isolate for 14 days, the school said.
It comes amid concerns around growing case numbers in the UK and months of warnings that a return to school could trigger a spike in Covid-19.
Mr Hunter continued: ‘I am very disappointed by this disrupted start to the school term.
‘We have taken very extensive precautions.
‘We were delighted that term had started so well last week and were looking forward to the final two year groups starting (on Monday).
‘But I have had excellent support from Public Health England, Public Health Suffolk and Suffolk County Council.
‘We are determined to do all we can to stop the further spread of the virus and agree with the precautionary action to close the school (on Monday).’
Brexit talks may collapse in plan to 'rip up key parts of Withdrawal Agreement'
Further contact tracing will continue and additional pupils and staff may be asked to self-isolate.
Stuart Keeble, director of public health at Suffolk County Council, said: ‘Understandably, this news may worry parents across Suffolk, but it is important to remember that the risk of children contracting Covid-19 is still very small.
‘Evidence suggests that children are more likely to contract Covid-19 at home.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
MORE: Almost 90% of teachers say social distancing impossible when schools reopen