Parents across Norfolk and Waveney are gearing up to send their children back to school from next week after an October half-term like no other.

Usually youngsters would play with their friends outside and spend Halloween trick-or-treating to get their annual haul of tasty treats, but that has changed this year with virtual events advised instead.

And as the time nears for children to head back to school, parents are being asked to follow Norfolk County Council risk assessments and advice when deciding whether or not to send their child back.

According to figures from the authority, the Public Health team is investigating 10 coronavirus outbreaks at schools across the county.

In an attempt to prevent further outbreaks, NCC has created a symptom checking guide to provide clarity for parents in terms of what they should do in any given situation.

If your child has any coronavirus symptoms – a high temperature, a new, continuous cough or a loss or change in sense of smell or taste – they should not be sent to school.

In this situation, parents are asked to call the school to let them know, and the whole household should isolate until the child feels well and everyone in the household has tested negative.

A child should also not be sent to school if:

• They have tested positive for coronavirus

• A person in the same household has symptoms or has tested positive

• Contact tracing services have contacted to say the child has been in close contact with someone who has tested positive

• They have just travelled back from a country on the Government’s quarantine list

• They have received medical advice saying they must shield

• Their school bubble has closed because of coronavirus

Parents are also asked to let their school know when their child has returned to full health or has completed their period of isolation, so it can prepare for their return.

The advice for parents comes after ‘a handful’ of pupils at King Edward VII Academy in King’s Lynn tested positive for Covid-19, prompting the school to undergo a deep clean over the half-term break.