Guidance on the wearing of face coverings in schools has been updated by the Scottish Government to take account of public health advice and Scotland’s new approach to suppressing coronavirus. The guidance came into force on Monday 2 November.
Face coverings should now (unless exemptions apply) be worn throughout our secondary schools, by adults and pupils aged 12 years and above.
The current face covering guidance on the Scottish Government website recommends:
Across all levels, face coverings should be worn by adults at all times where they cannot keep two metres from other adults and/or children in primary schools (with some exceptions in P1-2).
Face coverings should be worn by parents and other visitors to all school sites (whether entering the building or otherwise), including parents at drop-off and pick-up.
The 2m distance rule should also be observed at all times.
The ELC guidance on face coverings was reviewed again by the Sub-Group on 9 February 2021 to support planning for return to ELC for all children. The Sub-Group concluded that no change was required but that the need for compliance with the existing guidance should be strongly reinforced.
Face coverings must be worn by adults wherever they cannot maintain a 2 m distance from other adults (eg in corridor and communal areas).
Coverings should also be worn by staff and visitors when not working directly with children, for example when in office and admin areas, canteens (except when dining), staff rooms and other confined communal areas, (including staff toilets), except where a person is exempt from wearing a covering.
We have updated our School Transport and Return to School FAQs and these may help to answer any further questions you have about this change.
If you have any specific queries relevant to individual schools, please contact them direct.
For all other Clackmannanshire wide queries please email education@clacks.gov.uk.