Q&A: What is the latest Covid advice for children in Wales?

Schools are closed until at least 18 January

Schools in Wales are closed until at least 18 January after the Welsh Government reversed an earlier decision to let schools start opening from Wednesday.

It came after unions threatened legal action over concerns about the new coronavirus variant.

Wales went into a nationwide stay-at-home level 4 lockdown the weekend before Christmas, with First Minister Mark Drakeford recently warning it was likely to continue until the end of January at least.

So what is the latest advice for children in Wales?

Can children meet other children outside school?

No. The advice from the Welsh Government is clear. Mixing is not permitted between households (unless in a support bubble) and no indoor or outdoor gatherings are allowed.

No children's activities like Scouts or dance classes are permitted to meet.

Here's the rule on outdoor play from the Welsh Government: "Children can play outside with members of their own household or support bubble but should not arrange to meet with children from other households. This applies to under-11s as well as to over-11s.

"Where children are old enough to understand the rules, they should be encouraged to follow them and to avoid mixing with other children outside their household or support bubble."

Has the new coronavirus variant affected transmission rates between children?

The new variant is spreading in all age groups

The new variant of Covid is "hugely more transmissible" according to an Imperial College study, raising the reproduction (R) number of the virus by between 0.4 and 0.7.

The Welsh Government's Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) said in a report on 23 December the role of children in transmitting the variant was being investigated.

Early results from the Imperial study had indicated that the virus was spreading more quickly among under-20s, particularly among secondary school age children.

But the very latest data indicates that it was spreading quickly across all age groups, according to Prof Axel Gandy who was a member of the research team.

"One possible explanation is that the early data was collected during the time of the November lockdown [in England] where schools were open and the activities of the adult population were more restricted. We are seeing now that the new virus has increased infectiousness across all age groups," he said.

So while children might transmit the virus more easily than the previous version of the virus, so will everyone else.

But the evidence is that there is limited spread of the virus in primary age children, with teenagers more likely to transmit it, although not any more so than adults.

Meanwhile, the most recent analysis by Public Health Wales has found 71.6 % of schools have had a Covid-19 case.

Of 3,157 school cases reported in the three weeks before Christmas, 832 were in schools in Cwm Taf Morgannwg and 702 were in Aneurin Bevan health board area.

What's the advice about social distancing with children?

Children under 11 do not have to social distance within their school bubbles - but schools are closed

The Welsh Government advice that children under the age of 11 do not have to socially distance is still in force.

However, as level 4 restrictions are in now in place, they clearly state that no-one, including children, should be meeting up either indoor or outdoors with other people, as stated above. Schools are currently closed and therefore class or year group bubbles, where social distancing does not apply, are not meeting. These bubbles are not allowed to meet outside of school.

In effect this means children should be socially distancing from anyone not in their household or support bubble.

What is the latest advice for childcare?

Childcare settings such as (non-school) nurseries, creches and child minders remain open.

People are still allowed to use relatives or friends for childcare but only "when no other options are available".

The Welsh Government advice adds: "Children should not be cared for outside of their home if they are ill, or by anyone who is ill.

"Adults dropping off children for childcare should not enter someone else's home."

Can children be near grandparents?

As stated above, the rules allow relatives to provide childcare but only as a last resort. Otherwise households are not allowed to mix, indoors or outdoors, unless you are in a support bubble with them.

The two scenarios for support bubbles with a grandparent would be if a grandparent lives alone, or if a single-parent household needed support from grandparents.

Families would have to make up their own minds in those scenarios whether the children could pose a risk to their grandparents' health and make decisions accordingly.