A HIGH school in Herefordshire had said it has a "significant" number of staff off due to Covid.

Weobley High School, near Leominster, said it continued to be "an incredibly challenging situation" as Covid was "still very much present within the community".

Headteacher Dean Williams said the school, which has around 500 students, was trying to keep disruption to learning at a minimum for now, but due to the level of staff absence, pupils were not always being taught by their usual teacher.

He said the Plan B rules in England would be ditched on Thursday, meaning mask wearing would no longer be required in any part of schools.

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But he said children at the school in Burton Wood could still wear masks if they wanted to, and should cases rise, rules of face coverings would be brought in.

"There are also pupils still regularly testing positive in each year group; fortunately the majority of these cases are being picked up in advance using LFD tests," he said in a letter to parents on Wednesday.

"It is vital that these are still carried out and we have recently provided the students with more test kits.

"Testing twice-weekly at home, in the evening or before leaving the house in the morning, and then

following the self-isolation guidance before returning to school is the most effective way to minimise transmission in school at the moment.

"In school, we are continuing to keep rooms well-ventilated and have enhanced cleaning procedures in place.

"Pupils are also still encouraged to maintain social-distancing and to sanitise regularly."

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Mr Williams also thanked parents and added: "Please rest assured that the staff here are working incredibly hard to keep the school operational and to minimise disruption.

"I am extremely grateful to them; their dedication and commitment issecond-to-none and I am seeing staff going beyond their usual roles every day."

Plan B measures came to an end in England at midnight, meaning face coverings are no longer needed in shops and other public places.

Covid passes for nightclubs and other large events have also been dropped.

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