Schools have been forced to close or take measures to reduce the spread of illness in recent weeks as a severe strain of flu sweeps through classrooms across the UK.
Headteachers have reported having to impose restrictions to stop the spread of what has been dubbed a “tidal wave of flu” in recent weeks, which has seen a surge in pupil absences.
Some have shut for several days to carry out deep cleans, while others have made major adjustments, such as cancelling singing in school assemblies.
Congleton High School in Cheshire was one of several schools forced to close due to a number of cases of the flu.
Writing on social media, the school said it had to shut on 26 and 27 November to carry out a deep clean of the premises after discussions with the UK Security North West Health Protection Team and Infection Control Team.
St Martin’s School in Caerphilly, south Wales, also closed for a “firebreak” period to allow a deep clean, the BBC reported after seeing an email from the school’s headteacher.
The email reportedly said 242 pupils and 12 members of staff have been reported absent due to illness at the school, and said the school would aim to reopen on Tuesday, 9 December.
Adam Finn, professor of paediatrics at the University of Bristol, who is a member of the government’s joint committee on immunisations and vaccinations, said the current dominant strain has mutated away from the strain used to make the vaccine.
Explaining why it may have affected schools in particular, he said: “In general, seasonal flu epidemics really get going among children and, broadly, spread amongst them and from them into the adult population.
“So I think that is probably what is happening – perhaps a bit more obviously than usual, but in a way that follows the normal sequence of events... that’s my impression so far.”
In Leeds, Wigton Moor Primary School’s headteacher told the BBC they had been forced to reduce singing in assemblies to stop the spread of illness.
“We’ve had assemblies, but we’ve not sung in assemblies because again, we know that that’s something that spreads it quite a lot,” Elaine Bown told BBC Yorkshire, adding that 70 children were off sick or were sent home in the past week.
“We are rehearsing for nativities at the moment and Christmas performances, and we know from Covid that singing in schools is one of the worst spreaders.
“But we are also trying hard not to cancel Christmas; we do not want to do that, so we are trying to make it as non-infectious as we can manage.”
The closures come as Britons have been urged to wear a mask in public if they feel unwell, amid warnings the NHS is facing a “tidal wave” of illness ahead of Christmas.
This year’s flu season started earlier than usual and is yet to reach a peak, meaning pressure on hospitals is likely to grow in the run-up to Christmas.
Experts said the early start to the current flu season and the emergence of a “drifted influenza A(H3N2) strain” have caused some concern.
Professor Adam Finn added: “The fact that the dominant H3N2 strain has drifted will also contribute to its ability to spread amongst and cause illness in children, of course, not just adults, and the paediatric nasal vaccine contains the same flu A(H3N2) strain as the non-live injected vaccines being given to adults.”
H3N2 is a strain of the influenza virus that is recognised as one of two widely circulating strains. Also known as subclade K, it is currently the most dominant strain in England, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
Hospital admissions for flu are already up 56 per cent when compared with the same week last year, with experts warning the peak of the season is yet to come.
Flu signs and symptoms develop very rapidly, and extreme tiredness is common, which differs from the symptoms of colds that occur more gradually, according to the UKHSA.
The symptoms and severity of H3N2 illness have been similar to seasonal flu, including fever, cough, runny nose and possibly other symptoms, such as body aches, vomiting or diarrhoea.
The Independent has contacted the Department for Education and the Department of Health and Social Care.
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