Schools are urged to beat swine flu (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Schools are urged to beat swine flu

6:46pm Thursday 30th April 2009 in News By Ben Barnett

Council chiefs have sent letters to all head teachers urging them to reinforce basic hygiene messages to pupils in the wake of the swine flu outbreak.

Sue Colman, Bradford Council’s assistant director for services to children and young people, warned schools to remain alert but reassured head teachers that there was no call for panic.

In line with advice from the West Yorkshire Health Protection Agency, pupils and staff who have recently returned from an affected area but are not displaying flu-like symptoms are advised to return to school as normal.

Anyone returning from an affected area who becomes ill with flu-like symptoms within seven days of their return should stay at home and contact their GP by phone for advice or ring NHS Direct on 0845 4647.

The letter advises schools that they can play a positive role by encouraging pupils to cover their nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing; using tissues when possible and disposing of them promptly and carefully, and maintaining good basic hygiene by washing hands frequently with soap and water.

Staff are asked to clean hard surfaces, such as door handles, frequently using a normal cleaning product.

Jim Hughes, the Council’s educational visits advisor, said: “Doing nothing was not an option.

“Parents were already making inquiries about what we were doing and schools were asking for appropriate advice so we constructed a letter which we thought gave the message not to panic. The idea is to try to avoid a rush of rumour or misinformation.

“It’s that time of the year when a number of schools plan and prepare trips abroad so we thought it was necessary to advise schools to seek further advice before committing to any overseas visits.”

Mr Hughes said the letter had been approved by the Health Protection Agency which recommended it should be replicated and sent to all schools in West Yorkshire.

He added: “We are beginning to receive inquiries from schools about returnees from Mexico and I’m particularly aware that we have got schools planning to go.

“It’s not a huge problem for Bradford at the moment but we thought it was prudent to prepare and have advice to hand.”

Last night, a spokesman for the Department of Health said there were now eight confirmed cases in the UK, after two more cases were confirmed in London and one in the North East.

The Health Protection Agency said 230 possible cases were also under investigation.

Health secretary Alan Johnson said a Government information line had been launched on 0800 151 3513.