We have pulled together a short blog article giving some clarity over the current covid testing status for nursery staff and people within a childcare bubble of an early years child.
Per the latest government guidance on who is eligible for free rapid lateral flow tests, certain categories of people are eligible for twice weekly testing, including the households of those with children in nurseries.
The options for access listed on the site are:
- Through your employer if they offer testing to employees
- At a local test site
- By collecting a home test kit from a test site
- By ordering a home test kit online
Who is eligible?
Amongst other eligible people, the following are relevant to us as a nursery:
- Nursery Staff i.e. our team
- Members of households, childcare or support bubbles of pupils of nurseries i.e. parents of our children
How to source the tests?
From Employers
If sourcing through an employer, contact them directly
At a local test centre
You can take an assisted rapid lateral flow test at a local site. Expect to swab yourself under the supervision of a trained operator.
Find your nearest rapid lateral flow test site
Collecting home test kits
Packets of 7 tests can be collected from a test site. They indicate that you will be given 2 packets at a time and don’t need to make an appointment (but do check opening times before turning up)
Find your nearest home test kit collection point.
Order home test kits online
You can order a packet of 7 home test kits online using this link:
Order rapid lateral flow home test kits
What’s expected of you?
Along with being asked to take twice weekly tests, roughly 3-4 days apart, you will be required to report all test results to NHS Track and Trace on the same day you take the test.
Report your test result online or by calling 119.
If anyone tests positive, then you must self-isolate while you wait for a PCR test result to confirm that it wasn’t a false positive.
In addition, you should follow the stay at home guidance for households with possible coronavirus infection
