Kettering school confirms positive Covid-19 case

A Kettering secondary school has confirmed a Covid-19 case.

Southfield School, a girls' school in Lewis Road, said a small number of pupils are self-isolating after being in contact with the single positive case.

In a statement, deputy headteacher Gareth Butcher, said: "We cannot disclose any further details about the individual.

"In accordance with our own protocols and in close consultation with the Department for Education we have identified a small number of students who have been in close contact with the affected case, who will now self-isolate for 14-days. The school remains open for all other students."

The school did not say how many pupils are self-isolating nor which year groups have been affected.

There are now at least 16 schools across north Northamptonshire with confirmed cases of coronavirus.

Mr Butcher added: "Our priority, as always, is the safety and wellbeing of our students, staff and the wider school community. We continue to be appreciative of their ongoing support."

It is the first confirmed case at Southfield since pupils returned to school after lockdown, but the school was closed in March before lockdown after an individual tested positive for Covid-19 after travelling abroad.

The infected person had presented symptoms the weekend before and self-isolated and had not been in school.

At the time, there were just six confirmed Covid-19 cases in Northamptonshire. There have now been 6,199 confirmed cases in the county.

It was not known if the infected person was a student or staff member, but Public Health England notified Southfield School of the case and the school closed on March 12 for the remainder of the week to undergo a deep clean.

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