Full findings have been published here
School-based COVID-19 mitigation strategies such as wearing face coverings, two metre distancing and no mixing of children greatly impacted the primary school day. We examined these mitigation measures and association with COVID-19 infection, respiratory infection, and school staff wellbeing between October to December 2020 in Wales, UK.
Our findings suggest school staff reporting more direct contacts outside of the household was associated with an increased likelihood of COVID-19 outbreaks in the school and a trend to self-reported cold symptoms. We did not find evidence that wearing face coverings, 2-metre social distancing or stopping children mixing was associated with lower odds of COVID-19 or cold infection rates in the school. Wearing a visor and reporting more contacts outside of the household was also associated with depressive symptoms using the validated PHQ-9 scale.
Primary school staff found teaching challenging during COVID-19 restrictions, especially for younger learners and those with additional learning needs. For example, wearing face coverings meant standing closer and speaking louder to pupils to be heard.
“I find it extremely difficult to wear a mask/visor whilst teaching. They are young children and need to see facial expressions. It also affects my hearing and their ability to hear me clearly”
(Teacher)
Our study highlights the barriers and challenges schools faced in implementing measures within operational guidance at the time.