This week’s Covid Community Champions Briefing focused on education settings, especially schools.  Key messages and reminders: 

  • Many of the cases found in schools are due to household mixing outside of school hours especially birthday parties and playdates
  • Schools are open because they are Covid-secure; most private homes do not have the same rigorous processes for removing or reducing risk of transmission, therefore the ban on households socially mixing indoors is in force. 
  • Birmingham Public Health team recommend the Germdefence tool, developed by universities to help reduce viral infections https://www.germdefence.org/
  • If a parent tests positive, all other household members must self-isolate for 14 days.  The 14 day period starts from the day you experience your first symptoms OR the day you take a test if you are asymptomatic.   Children must not be sent to school even if they appear well as they may carry the virus.
  • You should only book a test if you have any of the 3 major symptoms: fever; new persistent cough; loss of smell or taste.
  • The free NHS test is only available if you have symptoms.  If you have no symptoms, you will have to pay for a private test if you need one. 
  • If you test positive, you are legally required to self-isolate.  You must also self-isolate if instructed to do so by NHS Test & Trace.  You can be fined for failure to do so, with fines starting at £1k. 
  • Schools have put in a range of measures to make their premises Covid-secure including 
    • Staggered start and finish times
    • Different entrances and exits
    • Keeping children and teachers in bubbles
    • Keeping seating plans so they can quickly identify close contacts
  • If schools cannot identify close contacts, the whole bubble is required to isolate if there a positive case
  • Public Health Birmingham (PHB) has provided schools with a template checklist to work through 
  • PHB is not recommending whole school closures. They advise that bubbles should isolate if close contacts cannot be identified. Where whole schools close, this will be due to decisions made by governing bodies

The Council’s Coronavirus page signposts parents to organisations that can provide support to children and young people who may be feeling anxious https://bit.ly/3lP7Pr6

 

 

News 

Vaccine trials 

Since last week, several other pharmaceutical companies around the world have reported trials showing high success rates. The British Government has purchased large quantities of some of these, but it is still the case that vaccines will only be used if they pass UK safety standards. The Government has said older care home residents and care home staff will be given priority, followed by health workers then people over-80. However, who actually gets the jab depends on who benefits most from any particular vaccine. The Government has said vaccination will not be compulsory. 

Tax relief for people working from home – update

Money saving expert Martin Lewis reports that HMRC have confirmed anyone who has been required to work from home will be able to claim tax relief regardless of the amount of time doing so. The relief is given in the form of a reduction in your PAYE tax bill, not as cash in your hand. It’s worth £62 to basic rate taxpayers, £124 to higher rate taxpayers.

Survey

Councils in the West Midlands have issued a survey to test opinion on testing and vaccination.

https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/L37ZXT/

The R number in Birmingham is currently 1.3 

To check case and death rates http://ukcovid19.nw.r.appspot.com/

 

每周疫情快讯: 20201120

本周新冠疫情社区讯息员简介会重点介绍了教育系统的疫情状况,尤其是学校。以下是重点信息和需要注意的事项
  • 在学校发现的多数新冠确诊病例是学生在课外时间的参加家庭聚会时被感染,特别是生日聚会和娱乐活动。
  • 学校继续开放是因为教育部门采取了各种新冠防疫措施;大多数家庭或私人住宅没有像学校一样,可以采取严格的防护措施来消除或降低病毒的传播,因此政府实施禁令,禁止在家庭住宅内聚集。
  • 伯明翰公共卫生团队推荐由几所大学共同开发的Germdefence信息平台,以帮助减少新冠病毒的传播。http://cht.germdefence.org/ -TC http://chs.germdefence.org/ -SC
  • 如果父母新冠测试呈阳性,则所有其他家庭成员必须自我隔离14天。 14天的时间从您首次出现症状的那一天开始计算,如果您测试呈阳性,但无明显症状,则从您进行新冠测试的那一天开始算起。对于青少年儿童,他们即便看起来很好,也不可以让他们去上学,因为他们可能携带新冠病毒。
  • 仅当您有以下三种主要症状中的任何一种时,才应当预约新冠测试:发烧;新的持续咳嗽;嗅觉或味觉丧失
  • 只有当您出现症状时,才可以使用NHS免费新冠测试。如果您没有任何症状,想做测试,则需使用私人付费新冠测试。
  • 如果您新冠测试呈阳性,根据法律要求,您必须进行自我隔离。如果NHS 测试与追踪部门通知您需要自我隔离,您必须执行,否则将会被罚款1,000英镑。
  • 学校采取了一系列的防护措施使校园成为安全场所,包括
    • 各年级实施不同的上学和放学时间
    • 使用不同的出入口
    • 学生和老师被划分为不同的社交泡泡
    • 制定座位计划,以便快速识别密切接触者
  • 如果学校无法确定密切接触者,出现确诊病例时,整个社交泡泡需要隔离
  • 伯明翰公共卫生部门为学校提供了疫情防护检查表,以帮助学校做好防护 
  • 伯明翰公共卫生部门不建议关闭整个学校。他们建议,如果无法确定紧密接触,则应隔离社交泡泡。整个学校是否关闭需要由政府相关部门决定

市政府新冠疫情网页中有为家长提供转介服务,这些机构可以为感到焦虑的儿童和年轻人提供支持 https://bit.ly/3lP7Pr6

 

新闻

疫苗试验

自上周以来,全球几家制药公司都发布了新冠疫苗临床试验的结果,报告显示疫苗都具有较高的有效性。英国政府已经从这些公司中购买了大量疫苗,但疫苗必须通过英国的安全标准后才能使用。政府表示,养老院居民和养老院工作人员将被优先考虑,其次是医护工作者,然后是80岁以上的长者,但最终决定哪些人群接种疫苗取决于特定疫苗在哪一类人群中有效性最大。政府表示不会强制民众接种疫苗。

在家工作人士税收减税更新

理财专家马丁·刘易斯(Martin Lewis)报告,英国税务局HMRC已经确认,在家工作的人士无论工作时间长短,都可以申请个人所得税减税。减税形式是在PAYE纳税系统中减少您的应纳税额,而不是支付现金。普通税率纳税人减税额度为62英镑,较高税率纳税人减税额度为124英镑。

问卷调查

West Midlands议会发布了一项问卷调查,以听取大众对新冠测试和疫苗接种的意见。https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/L37ZXT/

伯明翰目前的传染率R值为1.3

点击链接查看确诊病例数和死亡数 http://ukcovid19.nw.r.appspot.com/