A number of pieces of Covid guidance have been updated. You can find links to the relevant documents below but key points are:
- The new ‘stay at home message’ replaces self-isolation for people who have symptoms or have tested positive for Covid-19.
- Testing for the general population has ended and with it all test sites. However testing will remain available to certain groups to protect high risk settings, support clinical care and for surveillance purposes. These groups include health and social care workers and care at home workers.
- All contact tracing has ended.
- The High Risk list – formerly known as the Shielding list – will end on the 31st May. The Chief Medical Officer will write to everyone on this list to advise them of the change and sign-post them to ongoing support.
https://www.gov.scot/news/new-stay-at-home-guidance-published/
https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested/pages/changes-from-1-may-2022/
https://www.gov.scot/news/end-of-the-highest-risk-list/
In terms of the 12 week protection period for Covid related illness – the previously agreed temporary amendment to the red book has now expired. COSLA proposed reducing the protection period to 10 days – we, along with the other SJC trade unions, have argued that the protection period should remain at 12 weeks until at least the end of this school term. COSLA have not agreed that. We are aware that some local authorities are bringing in the 10 day period anyway, arguing that since the Teaching unions had signed up to that it would bring SJC into line with them. We will continue to fight this but suspect they may impose it without our agreement.
Stirling UNISON 