COVID-19: Mass Testing in Academies
The government has asked secondary school staff and students to take Covid-19 tests known as ‘lateral flow tests’ at home, twice a week. They have also asked students to take a test on returning to school in January 2022. Up to a third of people who have coronavirus experience no symptoms, so these tests improve our ability to stop the virus from spreading within school.
Every Oasis academy has implemented lots of protective measures at the school to reduce the risk (hand washing, year group bubbles, remote learning), and we encourage all staff and students to take these tests as an additional protective measure that will help keep everyone safe.
The tests are quick and safe and will help us to identify if anyone has the coronavirus as early as possible. Please see the leaflet online here to see how easy it is to take a test.
Home testing for students at secondary Oasis academies with parental permission (or students over 16 who have given their own consent) is beginning in March 2021.
Parent Questions and Answers
We have provided a short Q&A for parents, which is available here.
Permission, Consent, and Privacy
If your young person attends a secondary Oasis academy and they are 16 or under, then we will need your consent for them to take tests.
Please see below the information around testing, and the privacy notice.
After reading these, if you are happy for your young person to undergo testing at school, please send your consent to your academy (this may be by the MyChildAtSchool app, e-signature, or email, depending on what your academy has asked).
Please click here to visit the page on permission around testing.
Please click here to visit the page on privacy and data handling.
Government Resources
The Government has provided lots of additional resources.
- Please click here to access resources that help explain the impact of Covid-19 to primary and secondary aged children.
- Please click here for general materials on coronavirus including in different formats via Public Health England
- Please see the leaflet online here to see how easy it is for your young person to take the test.
Any further questions?
If you have read through the guidance on these pages, and you still have questions about how the testing will work, please contact your Academy using the Academy email address.