Advice for parents as UK schools close amid coronavirus fears - the symptoms to look for

Public Health England (PHE) said it is not advising schools in the UK to close in an effort to stem the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), despite recent outbreaks in Europe.

Around a dozen schools have sent staff and pupils home to self-isolate for 14 days after returning from half-term trips in northern Italy, where 323 people have tested positive for the virus and 11 have died.

However, PHE’s medical director Paul Cosford confirmed that the general advice is still “not to close schools.”

Self-isolation advised

Fourteen schools in the UK have now closed, while more than 20 others have sent pupils home for fear they may have been exposed to coronavirus during ski trips to northern Italy.

The schools that are currently closed are:

Lutton St Nicholas primary school, Lincolnshire

Gedney Church End primary school, Spalding

Shepeau Stow Primary School, Spalding

St Christopher's C of E high school, Accrington

Trinity Catholic College, Middlesbrough

Cransley School in Northwich, Cheshire

The Brine Leas Academy sixth form, Cheshire

William Martin Junior and Infant School, Essex

Tudor Grange Academy Kingshurst, Birmingham

The ContinU Plus Academy, Kidderminster

Lime Academy Watergall in Bretton, Peterborough

St Peter's Church of England Middle School, Old Windsor

Archbishop Temple School, Preston

Burford School, Oxfordshire

But despite concerns coronavirus could spread following the recent outbreak in Italy, Cosford told Radio 4’s Today programme that self-isolation, rather than school closures, is key.

He said: “Schools have to take difficult decisions given the complexity of issues that they are facing.

“What I would say is that our general advice is not to close schools.

“What we are clear about is if you have been in the area of northern Italy of concern and you have symptoms - it is a cough, shortness of breath or fever - then you do need to self-isolate, you need to phone NHS 111 and await advice for further assessment or testing.

“Of course if you’ve been to one of the specific towns that are identified by the Italian government and essentially closed down, then our advice and requirement is to self-isolate anyway.”

Cosford also added the PHE was available to talk to schools about their “specific circumstances” and “help them make the right decisions for them”.