Just seven Leeds University students test positive for Covid in first week of mass-testing

The university releases weekly figures online in what it says is a 'bid to improve transparency' about transmission rates at the university.

The latest figures show that 10 people at the university tested positive for the virus between Monday November 30 and and Sunday December 6.

Of those, seven are students and three are members of staff.

The university offered all students a free asymptomatic test between November 30 and December 9, allowing those with a negative test result to travel home for Christmas.

Students still living in Leeds were encouraged to book a lateral flow test during this period, which returns results in 20 minutes.

The number of Covid-19 infections at the university has plummeted in recent weeks, after 558 cases were recorded during the first week of term.

There are now just 11 active cases of coronavirus at the university - people who tested positive for the virus in the 10 days to December 6.

What is the student travel window and how does it work?

Students at universities across the country were allowed to travel home between December 6 and December 9 to reunite with their families for the festive break.

This includes students at universities in Leeds, but universities are expected to set staggered departure dates during this “student travel window” and work with other institutions in the region to manage pressure on transport infrastructure.

It is hoped the risk of transmission will be reduced as students will be travelling after the four-week period of national restrictions in England.

Universities have been told to move learning online by December 9 so students can study from their family homes.

The travel window excludes students who have tested positive or been notified by the NHS test and trace system and are isolating.

Those students who don’t return home by December 9 are advised to undertake a further period of restricted contact either before or after returning home to minimise the risk of transmission.

Lateral flow tests which can test for Coronavirus with results given within an hour are being made use of across the country at universities so that students are able to get tested before returning home.

The tests are being offered to detect any asymptomatic cases that might be taken home unintentionally.

The testing is being targeted based on a range of factors including local prevalence rates, whether testing is available already and the percentage of high-risk students in each institution.

What will happen after the Christmas break?

Students will go back to university in staggered phases after the Christmas break, with most starting the new term at home.

Education Secretary John Swinney announced that with “limited exceptions” those studying for their first degree will commence learning again while at home and will only return to campus when told to do so by their university.

Their return will be staggered over a period of at least six weeks, he said, in a bid to avoid a repeat of coronavirus outbreaks that hit student halls of residence earlier this year.

Once they return to campus, students will be encouraged to get tested for coronavirus with lateral flow devices – the same type of testing being used just now as students prepare to head home for the Christmas break.

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