Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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405. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the measures in place to ensure appropriate ventilation in schools; the person or body that has responsibility for inspecting schools to ensure compliance with standards around Covid-19 including ventilation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24765/20]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I wish to advise the Deputy that the Roadmap for the Full Return to School incorporating all the detailed guidance documents and communication material is available on www.gov.ie/backtoschool. This includes specific guidance, in line with public health advice and developed by my Department on Practical Steps for the Deployment of Good Ventilation Practices in Schools. The guidance makes specific reference to ventilation practices which schools should consider, and if appropriate to their specific school context, implement.

My Department's inspectorate will lead on visits to schools for the purposes of working with and advising schools in implementing the Return to Work Safety Protocol for addressing COVID-19 in the workplace and public health advice. The objective of the inspectorate visits in this context is to provide ongoing and continuous support to schools to sustain re-opening in a Covid-19 context.

Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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406. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the measures in place to address Covid-19 clusters that emerge in schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24766/20]

Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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487. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the case in which schools report a confirmed Covid-19 case the measures enacted by the schools once they are reported; whether or not the class deemed close contacts or not close contacts and if not, the rationale for the consideration; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25520/20]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 406 and 487 together.

My Department has published a suite of helpful guidance for the safe and sustainable reopening of schools. Each school is required to have a COVID-19 Response Plan for the safe operation through the prevention, early detection and control of COVID-19 in line with public health advice. This guidance is focused on the practical steps schools must take to minimise the risk of transmission of infection.

The Health Protection Surveillance Centre and the HSE have published guidance for managing potential cases of COVID-19 in educational settings, which includes the testing strategy within an educational facility ‘Schools Pathway for COVID-19, the Public Health approach’

This guidance provides that the HSE Department of Public Health will liaise directly with schools regarding any actions to be taken following a Public Health Risk Assessment. In practice, this involves the HSE Department of Public Health liaising directly with the designated contact, usually the school principal of the public health instructions. These instructions are for implementation of public health measures required under Infectious Diseases legislation.