As we head towards September, schools in the UK are thinking about reopening to all their pupils in order to preserve education and the wellbeing of children.
Schools will be preparing to minimise the risk to staff and pupils and plan a course of action to make their premises Covid secure.
This will be a strange time for teachers and for the students. Our guide will hopefully make it easier for you to understand how schools and educational buildings can be (and kept) Covid secure through appropriate social distancing methods.
Keep on reading to find out more...
Government Guidelines for Schools
The government have provided an outline for all with the aim of helping to support schools both mainstream and alternative provision. With the expectation that independent schools follow the same measures.
Essential measures include:
- a requirement that people who are ill stay at home
- robust hand and respiratory hygiene
- enhanced cleaning arrangements
- active engagement with NHS Test and Trace
- formal consideration of how to reduce contacts and maximise distancing between those in school wherever possible and minimise potential for contamination so far as is reasonably practicable
How contacts are reduced will depend on the school’s circumstances and will (as much as possible) include:
- Grouping children together
- avoiding contact between groups
- arranging classrooms with forward facing desks
- staff maintaining distance from pupils and other staff as much as possible
Source: Gov.uk
With institutions having to do this within their existing budgets.
We have invested into ranges that will help you to achieve this regardless of your budget.
So how can we help you make your school Covid Secure? This page covers a slim proportion of our range that we think will help you.
Robust Hand Hygiene for Schools
What does this mean? It is always best if pupils can wash their hands with soap and water. This isn’t always practical especially when you also must consider the volume of students that need to wash their hands at very similar times.
We have a range of hand sanitising units which can be placed in relevant places such as at the door of a classroom, entry into school or at the entrance of the dining hall.
We can supply freestanding or wall mounted units. Both of which can be tailored to a design of your choice. We love the children specific designs, which in our opinion makes the hand sanitising process engaging and user friendly for the younger audiences.
Most of our units come with standard messaging, but they can also be personalised to suit your branding and requirements on request.
How to reduce contacts and maximise distancing between those in school
This can be achieved in several ways.
Floor stickers
Floor stickers are a simple application. Simply unpeel the backing and stick them to the floor. They can go on a range of surfaces, including short pile carpet. Floor stickers are printed on a non-slip, anti-scuff laminate. They can be made in a variety of shapes and sizes to suit your requirements.
One-way system in schools
A one-way system is the most effective measure you can put in place. We have seen retailers and councils putting in one-way systems, with 'walk to the left' as a common theme.
This can be done by putting in a series of directional floor stickers. These can be made to your design or you can select from a series of pre-made templates. Footprint stickers and arrows have been very popular.
We print as many feet as possible to ensure minimal wastage, and to gain a cost-effective price for you.
We also have a range of outdoor floor stickers that can be used in the playground or recreational areas.
No entry signs
Often when putting one-way systems in place you also need to make it clear that certain areas are for entry or exit only. You can do this with window stickers or free-standing notice boards if you are limited with room.
Stand here!
Floor markers can be used to direct pupils on where to stand or sit. This can be designed specifically for you or you can choose from a selection of off-the-shelf designs.
We have a range of floor stickers which tell people where to stand and wait. This can help when queuing or for indicating where younger pupils can sit. For a more flexible floor sign option with no installation needed, we have a range of washable floor mats.
Physical Barriers
Portable free-standing barriers
If you have larger rooms that you want to section down in order to keep your bubble separated, they can be used in classrooms or halls.
Freestanding barriers are portable which gives you the versatility to move them around.
Reception or desk barriers
We have a range of barriers that can be used on desks or reception areas to allow separation. These can be plain or printed to suit your needs.
Communicating to all within school
One of the key elements to ensure we reduce the spread of viruses is by informing teachers, pupils and parents about the measures put into place to ensure everyone in school is as safe as possible.
Using your standard notice boards to communicate these messages is perfect. What we have found is that often these messages aren’t read. We have introduced the free-standing poster snap frames, so you can strategically place key messages in key locations. These messages can be changed quickly and easily if needed thanks to its super simple snap action frame.
We hope that we have covered all eventualities for you but if you cannot find what you are looking for, or you need help and advice, please give us a call and we will be happy to advise.
