Management Information Sheet
Managing COVID-19 in education
Air cleaning units
Last week in our MI Sheet 217/21 we outlined the DfE plans to make 1,000 DfE-funded air cleaning units available for poorly ventilated teaching spaces and staff rooms in SEND and Alternative Provision settings, including SEN units in mainstream settings.
Eligible settings can now apply for a DfE-funded air cleaning unit. Applications will close at 5pm on Tuesday 7 December.
Before applying, please read the Applying for an air cleaning unit - 'How to' guide (which is located on the DfE Ventilation Google Platform). This guidance includes the eligibility criteria, the application process, and answers to frequently asked questions.
The guidance clarifies that Air cleaning units are not a substitute for ventilation and should never be used as a reason to reduce or not remediate poor ventilation in the long term.
If your setting is not eligible for a funded unit, an online marketplace will be available from early December, enabling you to purchase units at a suitable specification and competitive price. Guidance on how to access the marketplace will be available separately in due course.
Guidance on how to improve ventilation can be found in the following locations;
- Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) guidance for workplaces
- 'How to' guidance on using CO2 monitors in education and childcare settings
- Compliance code for all education settings
DfE Google Platforms
We recently promoted our Health, Safety & Wellbeing webpage as a great source of resources and information to help you manage COVID-19 in your setting.
We would also like to further heighten awareness of the following DfE Google Platforms that contain essential information to help your settings with Testing and Ventilation.
- DfE Ventilation Google Platform
- DfE COVID-19 Rapid Testing Dashboard Google Platform
- DfE Secondary Schools & Further Education Google Platform
- DfE Early Years and Primary Schools Google Platform
Lateral Flow Device (LFD) testing guidance
Government guidance for the general public has been updated moving away from recommending twice weekly testing to encourage the use of rapid lateral flow COVID-19 tests to manage periods of risk. This has been timed to coincide with the new 'Stop COVID-19 Hanging Around' campaign.
Please note that healthcare settings, social care, prisons and schools will retain their own testing guidance. Please continue to follow the existing twice weekly testing guidelines for staff and students in education settings.