Covid-19: Jersey schools to reopen from 11 January

Children in Jersey will return to school from 11 January as the first phase of lifting Covid-19 restrictions, the Government of Jersey has announced.

Non-essential shops and close contact services, like barbers and beauticians, could reopen from 25 January.

A decision on the reopening is subject to a review on 20 January, the government said.

School reopening will be accompanied by weekly rapid testing of year 11 to 13 students and all staff.

Jersey currently has 302 cases of coronavirus, down from a peak of more than 1,000 in late December.

However, public health officials said they were "cautious" about the fall in the numbers, as the full extent of Christmas mixing was not reflected in the data.

No date has been given for the return of the hospitality industry or lifting of gathering limits, but it will not be until at least two weeks after the second phase of reducing restrictions, the government confirmed.

Reopening indoor recreation services, like museums, will be considered at the same time as non-essential shops.

Schools will use lateral flow tests for coronavirus, which can return results within 20 to 30 minutes of being taken, the government said.

The tests will be self-administered under supervision in schools and any positive cases will self-isolate and then take an urgent PCR test.

The need for a second test is due to the higher rate of false positives from rapid tests and a formal contact tracing process will not begin until after a positive result from a PCR test.

Jersey has 65,000 of them available for use in schools, which will last until at least February half term.

Chief Minister John Le Fondre said "putting children first" remains the "top priority" of his government.

He said: "We need to give students the time to settle comfortably back into school and have the best possible protections in place for them."