Covid-19: Wilsthorpe School shut after more than 100 test positive

Wilsthorpe School has about 950 pupils

A secondary school will stay shut until next week after more than 100 pupils and staff tested positive for coronavirus.

Wilsthorpe School, in Long Eaton, Derbyshire, did not reopen following the bank holiday after infections were confirmed.

Now the school, which has about 950 pupils, has said further cases mean it will not fully reopen until 11 May.

Derbyshire County Council said it is "monitoring the situation closely".

A spokesman for the authority said all cases and contacts have been told to self-isolate and the school will undergo a deep clean.

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Two mobile testing units opened exclusively for staff, pupils and people with a direct link to the school on Thursday.

The school is also postponing assessments for GCSE and A-level years.

Latest figures show Erewash, where the school is located, has the third highest infection rate in England at 65 per 100,000, a near five-fold increase on the previous week.

Health authorities are helping the school deal with the outbreak

In a letter to families, the school said its "cautious approach" was designed to limit the spread of Covid-19.

A spokesperson for the school said the safety of staff and pupils was an "absolute priority".

They said: "We appreciate this is a challenging time for our school community and we have not taken this decision lightly.

"We will continue to be in regular contact with our pupils, parents and staff to facilitate live lessons and teaching remotely, and provide reassurance and up-to-date information."

The school said though it had moved to remote learning, the timetable would remain the same.