Illness and Absence

Updated 08/03/23

There are currently a number of infections of concern circulating, including CV19.  The general guidance is, ‘do not come to school if you are ill’.  The school is subject to the German requirements and sets policy by considering the stance of the UK, UKMOD, NATO, US and any known risks within the school community.  

If your child has any of the following signs and symptoms:

• A regular or new cough (that is not asthma or other notified condition)
• A high temperature (37.5+)
• A loss of, or change in, normal sense of taste or smell
• Shortness of breath
• Sore throat
• moderate cold symptoms
• Headache and aching limbs
• General weakness

The person in question should not come to school.  If you are unsure please call the office to discuss further.    

Due to the difficulties in recognising covid and for the general wellbeing of our school we ask that ill children remain at home.  When you inform us of your child’s illness we will normally discuss your circumstances.  A child who is ill with any of the above symptoms should have a Covid test to rule out or confirm Covid.  Parents are required to inform the school of any positive test regardless of test type. Recovered children/staff are able to return to school when they are no longer symptomatic (with the above symptoms) and are testing negative.  Please discuss your individual case with the office.        

The approach (being required to stay off school) may be modified based on clinical assessment and/or results (eg, a doctor’s note) that are shared and discussed with the school prior to a child or staff member returning.  

Medicine that may mask symptoms

If your child has had to take medications in the last 24hrs (such as paracetamol/acetaminophen, ibuprofen or aspirin) which may mask symptoms of infection please discuss this with the office prior to bringing them to school.  It will depend on the circumstances whether your child may need to stay at home.  

What are the objectives of these measures?

We are aiming to protect our staff, children and operational output by asking those that are ill to stay at home.  We are also seeking to protect a number of our staff team who are at high risk from respiratory infections and any members of our school and community who are more vulnerable.  Thank you for your continued vigilance and support with this.  

General Guidance

General guidance on infection control is accessed here although the final policy may be dictated or influenced by a number of factors including local requirements / NATO / MOD guidance etc.  

Please contact the office for the latest information. 

Q My child has had a close contact with a Covid positive person, what should I do?

All children:

• Watch for symptoms – if any Covid symptoms emerge they should stay off school until there are no symptoms,
• They can return to school as normal as long as symptoms do not emerge,
• The school request that children are tested for 5 calendar days (day 1 is the first day after the contact),  this is not required but is appreciated due to a number of staff who have a high risk for CV19 in particular.

If the close contact is a member of your family please see the additional notes in, ‘There is a covid postive person in my household.’

In all cases please contact the school to let us know the situation.

Q What happens if someone in my child’s class tests positive?

Currently there are no special arrangments for school based close contacts.

Q There is a covid positive person in my household, what should I do?

Your child can continue to attend as follows:

• Please contact our school office to discuss
• Watch for symptoms –  children should stay off school if they have any symptoms
• The school request that children are tested for 5 calendar days (day 1 is the first day after the contact),  this is not required but is appreciated due to a number of staff who have a high risk for CV19 in particular.
• Please provide your child with a clean mask each day, to be worn inside at school.

Q My child has tested positive, what do we do next?

• We ask that a positive child does not attend school.
• Before return we ask that you test your child to ensure that they are not still contagious.  If they test postive they should stay off until the test returns a negative result.  If this extends past 7 days please discuss with our office for further guidance.  In our experience most children clear the positive period after a few days – once negative they can return.  

Q How does St David’s set policy in this area?

The school carries out a risk assessment for all matters relating to health and safety.  Policy is set after consideration of RLP, UK, UKMOD, NATO, US, approaches and any known risks for children and staff in school.  We seek to strike a balance that achieves maximum attendance and maximum school opening whilst not putting individuals unessesarily at risk.  As a further consideration, in order to support the military mission in RAB, we aim to remain open as much as possible.  Previously sickness bugs and CV19 separately have caused the school to have to close one or more classes.  Keeping infection out of school as much as possible is supportive of the UK and NATO mission in Ramstein.    

To request a period of absence not due to illness, please complete the form below.  This form applies from FS1-Y6.

Ideally requests should be made at least 2 weeks prior to the absence.  The Head or Assistant Head Teacher may want to meet with you to discuss the absence prior to making a decision.  Please provide as much information on the form as possible to support a swift decision.

Please note: Visits to new schools are generally approved as long as the shortest possible time of visit is arranged and options to visit during holiday periods have been fully explored.

If your child is in good health but is off school due to our CV19 policy we provide enhanced remote support.  This is accessed via our remote learning hubs (password required) and includes activities set and reviewed by the teachers.  Please phone our office if you need support accessing these areas.

If your child is ill we do not routinely provide remote support for learning.

If your child is absent for exeptional reasons, and the absence has been notified via our form below, we will provide you, on direct request to the class teacher, with additional reading books and guidance.