School letters of absence
It has been brought to our attention that parents are asking their GP for letters of absence and advice on whether their child should attend school or not. We would like to highlight that it is not a GPs responsibility to decide if a child should be in school. Parents are advised to follow government guidance at this time:
‘The Government has stated that from September school attendance will be mandatory once again. This decision has been taken because the current level of risk of infection is low and therefore “perceived risk of COVID to child or parent” will not be considered adequate grounds for a child to not attend school’ https://www.gov.uk/government/news/schools-and-colleges-to-reopen-in-full-in-september
Please note that a small number of students will still be unable to attend in line with public health advice because they are self-isolating and have had symptoms or a positive test result themselves; or because they are a close contact of someone who has coronavirus (COVID-19).
‘Please note that it is not a GPs responsibility to issue school letters of absence for your children. Government guidance is that school attendance is mandatory unless your child is self-isolating, has symptoms of COVID-19 or is close to someone who has COVID-19.’
Please note that parents should still make arrangements to contact their GP in the normal way if their child is ill.
