Back to school in England: CO2 monitors installed to curb spread of Covid


Paul Peachey
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Millions of children have started to return to school across Britain with new air and virus testing regimes aimed at preventing an explosion of cases among the least vaccinated section of the population.

The UK government will spend £25 million ($34.5m) supplying 300,0000 carbon dioxide monitors in England from this month to assess the air circulating in classrooms as part of an attempt to understand and limit classroom infections.

A similar measure has been announced in Wales after a surge in Covid-19 cases in Scotland, where pupils have already returned to the classroom. “We expect most schools to have exceptionally good ventilation,” UK Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said on Thursday.

He declined to say how many monitors had been delivered and did not exclude the possibility of some lessons and assemblies taking place outside during colder months in the event of coronavirus outbreaks in schools.

“It’s not something we would be expected to see an awful lot, especially in the autumn and winter,” he told the BBC.

Teaching organisations said many schools were unlikely to see the testing devices until the end of October.

Some schools complained that they had classrooms where windows could not be opened. Geoff Barton, head of the Association of School and College Leaders, said the devices merely detected whether there was a ventilation problem and did nothing to solve it.

Year 7 pupils arrive back at Great Academy Ashton in Manchester as schools reopen after the summer holidays. AP Photo
Year 7 pupils arrive back at Great Academy Ashton in Manchester as schools reopen after the summer holidays. AP Photo

“In truth, this equipment should have been in place ready for the start of the autumn term, and arguably a lot earlier in the crisis, but it is a case of better late than never,” he said.

Researcher Dr Rajesh Bhagat, of the University of Cambridge, said on Thursday that scientific studies showed that poor indoor air quality affected learning.

The outbreak of the viral respiratory disease SARs in China in 2003 highlighted the issue of indoor transmission but countries have been slow to learn its lessons, said the researcher.

Dr Bhagat said research had picked up in the past five years because of the growing awareness that indoor air quality was vital to health.

Previous studies for the airline sector had revealed the importance of air filtration systems, which could be retrofitted in the worst-affected schools. The UK has also launched a trial of air purifiers in 30 schools in Bradford to see if they will reduce the risk of transmission.

Dr Bhagat, who is currently involved in field studies in schools, was involved in a study by a team from Cambridge last year that found good ventilation and mask-wearing reduced the threat of transmission inside buildings. Wearing masks is not recommended under the current return-to-school measures.

But the study suggested that efforts to reduce energy consumption and keep temperatures comfortable during a new era of climate change and global warming could be in conflict with efforts to prevent Covid-19 transmission.

The pandemic has underscored the tension between energy efficiency and opening windows wide for good ventilation.

“The CO2 sensors will give us some idea where it’s better or worse and where some interventions will be implemented in time,” he said. “The pandemic has shown one thing – that we know less than what we need to know to solve these problems.”

A pupil at Copthall School, In Mill Hill, Barnet, is tested for Covid-19. Getty Images
A pupil at Copthall School, In Mill Hill, Barnet, is tested for Covid-19. Getty Images

The carbon dioxide monitors will allow schools to measure exhaled air and pinpoint where there are high levels of carbon dioxide concentration – and insufficient ventilation.

Airflow relies on a complex combination of vents, windows and doors and the heat and movement produced by people inside the rooms.

The monitors are only one solution being lined up by authorities in the UK to limit school-based infections. The Welsh government announced it would spend £3m on new ozone machines to disinfect classrooms but said it would look at early trials before going ahead.

The return to schools after the summer break will be accompanied by a testing programme for pupils and staff. The main difference will be if a child tests positive for Covid-19, their classmates will not be sent home as a precaution.

Schools and colleagues are being encouraged to increase hygiene and ventilation. Health officials are preparing to offer vaccines to all children aged 12 to 15 in England from this month if the move is approved by a scientific advisory group.

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Calvin Harris
Columbia

Tips to stay safe during hot weather
  • Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
  • Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
  • Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
  • Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
  • Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
  • Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
  • Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
Key changes

Commission caps

For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:

• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term). 

• On the protection component, there is a cap  of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).

• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated. 

• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.

• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.

Disclosure

Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.

“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”

Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.

Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.

“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.

Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.

Contracted list

Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine, Matt Renshaw, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye.

How to help

Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

'Midnights'
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion

Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)

Report to local authorities

Warn others to prevent further harm

Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

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Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

If you go

The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.

The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.

2019 Asian Cup final

Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi

Updated: September 03, 2021, 11:39 AM`