Safeguarding Children - Coronavirus (Covid-19) advice

The Government has provided updated advice on the Coronavirus.

The advice is to stay alert and safe (social distancing) alongside the UK Recovery Plan.

As part of this plan:

• People and employers should stay safe in public spaces and workplaces by following “Covid-19 secure” guidelines. This should enable more people to go back to work, where they cannot work from home, and encourage more vulnerable children and the children of critical workers to go to school or childcare as already permitted
• You should stay safe when you leave home: washing your hands regularly, maintaining social distancing, and ensuring you do not gather in groups of more than two, except with members of your household or for other specific exceptions set out in law
• You must continue to stay home except for a limited set of reasons but - in line with scientific advice - can take part in more outdoor activities from Wednesday 13 May

It is still very important that people stay home unless necessary to go out for specific reasons set out in law. These include:

• for work, where you cannot work from home
• going to shops that are permitted to be open – to get things like food and medicine, and to collect goods ordered online or on the phone
• to exercise or, from Wednesday 13 May, spend time outdoors for recreation
• any medical need, to donate blood, avoid injury or illness, escape risk of harm, or to provide care or to help a vulnerable person

Where parents or someone with parental responsibility do not live in the same household, children under 18 can be moved between their parents’ homes to continue existing arrangements for access and contact.

Self Isolation

The NHS guidelines say if you have coronavirus symptoms you should not leave your home, even to exercise, because self-isolation helps stop the virus spreading.

Do not leave your home if you have symptoms, or you live with someone who does. This is called self-isolation.

If you are self-isolating, you must:

• not leave your home for any reason – if you need food or medicine, order them by phone or online, or ask someone else to drop them off at your home
• not have visitors, such as friends and family, in your home

You can use your garden, if you have one. Any exercise should be taken at home.

For more information, read the NHS guidance on self-isolation.

Useful links

Thanks to the NSPCC for many of the the advice links above which were taken from their weekly update. Sign up for the service here.

We also have a poster to promote childsafeguarding during this period. Please use this freely. For adult focussed guidance and links please visit this page.