The Orkney Local Emergency Co-ordination Group (OLECG) has thanked people across the county for their response to the pandemic and urged that measures to slow the spread of infection continue to be followed.

The group involves representatives from a broad range of organisations, including the emergency and public services, transport providers, the utilities and voluntary sector, and met this week to consider latest developments in the pandemic

There were 45 children at St Andrews School today out of a school roll of 209.

At an incident meeting this afternoon with representatives from Public Health, the Council’s Education Directorate, Schools, Environmental Health, Safety and Resilience, Sport and Leisure and Community Learning and Development, the decision was made to maintain closure of the P4 class in the meantime.

For the second year running, Christmas will come early for many of Orkney’s most vulnerable families with a cash direct payment totalling £260 for every child entitled to free school meals.

Classes affected include P2, P4, P5, P6 and P7. A further 11 pupils are awaiting PCR test results.

There has also been a small rise in the number of positive Lateral Flow Test results, and we would stress the importance of everyone logging their lateral flow test results online whether negative or positive. This will allow Public Health to begin contact tracing straight away.

The P4 class at St Andrews Primary School will remain closed tomorrow, Tuesday, while the results of a number of PCR tests are awaited, and a clearer picture is known of the potential spread of the virus.

The class was shut on Monday as a precautionary measure following concerns about a rising number of positive Lateral Flow Tests. The numbers reported to the school differ from those logged online and this has, once again, highlighted the need for everyone to ensure they register their LFT results online – whether negative or positive. This will allow Public Health to begin contact tracing straight away.