Harrogate’s Dragon Road coronavirus testing site is set to be replaced with mobile units after it closes on June 1.
The Dragon Road site is currently used to supply lateral flow tests as well as provide testing.
Dr Victoria Turner, public health consultant at North Yorkshire County Council, told a North Yorkshire Local Resilience Forum press briefing today that people would still be able to get lateral flow tests from 25 pharmacies in the district.
The county council already runs mobile testing sites across North Yorkshire during the week in areas such as Ripon, Scarborough and Selby from 9am until 3pm. Harrogate will adopt a similar approach.
Dr Turner said:
“The current site will close at the beginning of June.
“The plan for this and for any other local test site that need to close is to replace the PCR testing element with mobile testing units, with the pharmacies and online portal providing a really good supply of lateral flow tests.”
Meanwhile, a further two covid cases have been confirmed in the Harrogate district, according to latest Public Health England figures.
It takes the total number of infections since the start of the pandemic to 7,642.
The district’s seven-day covid rate is currently 24 infections per 100,000 people.
In North Yorkshire the average is 26 and the England rate is 24.
No further deaths from patients who tested positive for covid have been reported at Harrogate District Hospital, according to NHS England statistics.
The death toll at the hospital remains 179 since last March. Currently, four patients with covid are being treated at the hospital.
In the past week, North Yorkshire Police have issued seven fines for breaches of covid rules.
Four of those fixed penalty notices were handed out in Ripon for indoor gatherings.
Just two more covid cases in districtThe daily number of people testing positive for covid-19 in the district has stayed low at just two cases in the past 24 hours. There have been no reported deaths of patients who tested positive for covid at Harrogate District Hospital.
In total 7,592 people have tested positive for the virus in the Harrogate district since the start of the pandemic.
The 7 day daily rate of infections per 100,000 population is 11.2 in the Harrogate district – recent data up to April 1. The average rate in North Yorkshire is 31.6.
From April 12 (a week tomorrow) restrictions ease further:
Pupils ready for return to classrooms across Harrogate district
Pupils across the Harrogate district will be returning to classrooms this week after online learning since the start of term.
While teachers have remained on site to support children of key workers and provide virtual lessons, for many families it is the first time children have been in school since before Christmas.
As well as readjusting to classroom life, including wearing masks, secondary school students will be expected to begin a covid testing regime as the government aims to reduce the number of cases in schools. However, schools are keen to make the return to classroom teaching as normal and positive as possible.
For Harrogate Grammar School, one of the key aims over the remaining weeks of the school year is to ensure students do not become “the covid generation”. Headteacher Neil Renton said they had shown their resilience through all the challenges of the last 12 months:
“They have gone through so much in the last year, they have been used to adapting and changing. They have been at home, then brought back, then had periods of isolation – there have been lots of different scenarios.
“That’s why we should call them ‘generation remarkable’ because they’re more independent and they’re more resilient.”
Mr Renton said the government’s announcement about the way exam grades will be awarded this summer had given reassurance to students, and the school had organised online sessions to give more information about how teacher assessments will be completed.
With all the grammar school’s students having access to an iPad for home learning, and now being back in the classroom, he said teachers had had regular contact throughout the year to inform their assessments. However, any further lockdown before the summer could pose new challenges.
“Year 11 and year 13 have got three weeks when they get back, then seven weeks after Easter, and in that time we have got to do some assessments so we can come up with teacher-assessed grades.
“If we have to close again, it means doing assessments remotely and that’s much more difficult to achieve. It’s a critical period for schools.”
At Ripon Grammar School, students will return to in-person lessons from Thursday. Sixth form student Hannah Burfield said she and her fellow pupils were nervous but excited about returning to the classroom.
“Despite my positive attitude throughout this lockdown, I admit there have been moments when my motivation has wavered.
“To help cope with stress I made a promise to myself that I would go outside at least once every day, and I feel that this has really helped to keep me grounded and improved my mental health.”
She said many students have enjoyed the additional time with their families, as well as having enough time to complete extra projects or begin planning their university applications. However, they know a more normal routine has to return and hope to adjust quickly to life in school again.
Ripon Grammar School sixth form student Hannah Burfield
Hannah added:
“Despite my initial anxiety about returning back to school I recognise that it is time for things to finally move back to normality and I hope our routines won’t be disrupted by any more lockdowns.
“It will be challenging for all students to return to school and many will find it difficult to motivate themselves and may feel overwhelmed by their work at first. That’s why it is so important, now more than ever, to check in with your friends and to make sure you speak up if you ever need any help.”
It is not only the students preparing for an adjustment this week. Jonathan Webb, headmaster of Ripon Grammar School, said the return to classrooms is important for everyone in schools:
“One thing is clear – that there is no substitute for school when it comes to the social and emotional benefits we all get from interacting and learning together. This applies, I am sure, as much for staff as it does for students.
“We all miss being be able to read on our students’ faces those expressions of joy and confusion, enlightenment and frustration, grumpiness and happiness; in essence, all the things that make us human.”
At St Aidan’s High School in Harrogate, staff are also looking forward to seeing all pupils in school again. A spokesperson said:
Twelve new covid cases confirmed in Harrogate district“Over the past few months we have been delighted with the way that students have adapted to learning at home and over the last year have been hugely impressed by their resilience and ability to manage the challenges that have been put in front of them.
“We very much look forward to the corridors being filled with happiness and laughter once again and, crucially, face to face personal interactions becoming an integral part of students’ everyday lives again.”
A further 12 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the Harrogate district in today’s data from the Office for National Statistics.
It brings the total number of confirmed cases in the district to 7,366 since the pandemic began last year.
Meanwhile, the seven-day infection rate for the district remains at 59.7 cases per 100,000 people, having dropped this week to the lowest it has been since September.
It is above the average for North Yorkshire, which is 47.2. Only Richmondshire has a higher rate, at 63.3, with all other districts in the county having a lower rate.
At Harrogate District Hospital, no further deaths have been reported in patients who tested positive for coronavirus. The total number of people who have died at the hospital since the beginning of the pandemic remains 165.
Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust confirmed this week it had 42 in-patients who had tested positive for covid, a drop of three from the previous week. It had discharged 20 patients in the same time period, bringing the total number treated and discharged to 554.
The number of vaccinations administered in the district has risen this week to almost 60,000, according to data from the NHS. Across the UK, people aged 56 and above are now being invited to book appointments for the first dose of their vaccines.
Parents volunteer to help Ripon school with covid testsSchools across the Harrogate district are preparing to begin a major covid testing programme as they plan to reopen their doors to all pupils next week.
At Ripon Grammar School, testing begins next Monday, with small groups of students brought in to carry out their tests before going home again.
They will continue with home learning for the first two days until everyone has had one test, before returning to classrooms on Wednesday.
Each pupil will receive a second test in school that week, followed by a third the following week. They will then carry out their own tests at home twice a week.
Deputy headteacher Helen Keelan-Edwards said:
“The staff tests will be delivered before they come back and they’ll be able to do those at home. Students are doing them in school to begin with so they know how to do it properly at home.”
In-school testing has been recommended by the government for all secondary age pupils, followed by home testing. It has also advised students and staff to wear masks in all areas of buildings where social distancing is not possible.
Primary school pupils will not be tested routinely, but staff will be given two tests to take at home each week. Routine testing is being introduced after significant outbreaks of coronavirus in schools when they were open before Christmas.
To get through enough tests to enable students to return, Ripon Grammar School will have 30 volunteers on site each day to help deliver the programme. While they do not have to be medically trained, they will work throughout the school day and are asked to commit to as many days as possible.
Mrs Keelan-Edwards said the number of volunteers had been higher than expected, adding:
“We have been overwhelmed by parental support. It has been absolutely amazing. – we can’t believe it.
“We’re really lucky with the parents we have and the support they give the school.”
Other secondary schools in the Harrogate district told the Stray Ferret they are still preparing the final details of their testing programmes, which will be announced this week.
31 new positive coronavirus cases in Harrogate districtThirty one new people have tested positive for coronavirus in the district. It brings the total number of people who’ve had covid in the district to 3,381 since the start of the pandemic.
There have been no further reported deaths of patients who tested positive for covid-19 at Harrogate District Hospital.
Meanwhile, the district’s seven-day rate continues to track below the national average.
Currently, it stands at 203 per 100,000 people compared with the England average of 248.
The weekly covid rate fell below the England average this week for the first time since October.
Seventy new positive covid cases in Harrogate district
The latest figures from Public Health England show there have been 70 new positive covid cases in the past 24 hours.
It brings the total number of cases since the start of the pandemic in the district to 2, 835. In Yorkshire and North East NHS figures published today showed 82 further deaths of people who had tested positive for coronavirus — none were in the Harrogate district.
On Thursday, the district reported its record daily case increase with 96 positive tests confirmed.
Health bosses said this week that 24 patients were being treated for coronavirus at Harrogate district hospital and that it is coping with the increased number of patients.
Meanwhile, care home visits will continue in North Yorkshire. The county council restricted visits during October but advised homes they could relax the rules in November to allow one designated visitor for each resident.
Officials have said the measure will continue through lockdown, but homes which report an outbreak will have to restrict visits.