![Covid-19: what new health protocol in schools?](https://img.passeportsante.net/1000x526/2021-02-02/i99453-covid-19-nouveau-procole-etablissements-scolaires.jpeg)
On May 11, 2020, the schools gradually reopened their doors, to welcome students and educational staff in good conditions. Indeed, a health protocol has been established since that date. However, since February 1, some rules have changed, especially because of variants.
In the school canteen
To avoid closing schools, as during the first confinement, the government has strengthened part of its health protocol, in particular in the canteen. From now on, a social distancing of two meters is required between two groups: “The two-meter distance between classes or between groups must be respected as soon as possible no later than February 8, 2021 “, can we read on the website of the Ministry of Education. Hygiene and ventilation measures in the premises are also tightened. The air must be renewed every hour for a few minutes, compared to every two hours previously. The tables must be cleaned and disinfected at least after each service and if possible after each meal. The mixing of pupils should be kept to a minimum. Moreover, faced with the circulation of emerging strains of Sars-Cov-2, the mask “General publicCategory 1 masks are now required for all students, including elementary school students. Category 2 masks are more permeable, and therefore less effective.
Closing of classes
If a case of infection with one of the variants is identified in schools, colleges or high schools, the entire class will now be closed, against a minimum of three cases before February: “upon notification from the ARS, if one of the variants is identified by a staff or a student, the class concerned will be closed“. If a case is suspected and pending confirmation by sequencing, the closure of a class depends on a number of factors (number of confirmed cases, number of classes and levels involved, etc.). Screening actions will be deployed in schools in which the variant is circulating in a suspected or proven manner. In kindergarten, the class can be closed as soon as a single case of Covid-19 is identified, whether it is of a variant or not . Moreover, a confirmed case among teachers “does not imply that the students in the class are considered to be contacts at risk “ as long as they wear a mask. However, “the appearance of a confirmed case among the pupils implies that the other pupils of the class are identified as contacts at risk “.