Friday January 22nd 2021
Mark Davidson, Newbattle High School Depute Head Teacher, taking the test.
Newbattle Community High is taking part in a Scottish Government pilot of the new, quicker ‘lateral flow’ Covid-19 tests in Scotland.
The lateral flow test involves a handheld kit that gives a result in about 30 minutes.
The school will initially be testing staff and key workers’ and vulnerable pupils once a week from Wednesday 20 January. The test is voluntary but pupils and staff will be encouraged to be tested.
Midlothian Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, Councillor Jim Muirhead said:
“Mass testing of this kind is designed to pick up cases of coronavirus in people without symptoms and is therefore crucial in getting pupils back into schools safely.
“We are very pleased therefore to have been working with the Scottish Government for a number of weeks now to finalise arrangements for Newbattle to become a pilot school for Scotland.
“Although the test is voluntary, we will be encouraging all staff and pupils to take part.”
The test will be supervised by trained staff. The test uses a swab of your nose and throat. Results will be shared directly with the individual participating, and their parents/carers if they are under 16 years old.
Although they give a result much more quickly, the LFD tests are not as sensitive as the PCR tests. This is mitigated by testing people regularly, because the more times someone with the virus is tested, the more likely they are to be picked up by the test.
More detailed information will be shared with parents, staff and pupils involved.
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