Swine flu spread as more than 30 Derbyshire schools report cases

MORE than 30 Derbyshire schools have pupils or staff or parents of pupils with swine flu.

Most of them are on the eastern side of the county, from Long Eaton through to Chesterfield, and so far there are no cases in Derby schools.

All of the 32 county schools are being advised to stay open by the Health Protection Agency and parents are being sent letters to advise them of the situation.

These include: South Darley Primary; Chaucer Infant, Field House Infant and St John Houghton Catholic School, all in Ilkeston; Heanor Gate Science College; Herbert Strutt Primary, Belper; Mill Hill, Ripley; Aldercar Community, Langley Mill; Brooklands Primary, English Martyrs' Catholic Primary, Wilsthorpe Business College, all in Long Eaton; Cloudside Junior, Sandiacre; Alfreton Grange Arts College and Tibshelf Community School.

Up to 10 cases have been confirmed at St John Houghton Catholic School, in Kirk Hallam.

Head teacher Bernard Monaghan said that most of the confirmed cases were confined to year-nine pupils.

He said: "We are hoping that parents won't keep their children away and we are ensuring that good hygiene procedures are followed."

Mark Blatchly, deputy head teacher at Heanor Gate Science College, said the school had one confirmed case and three other pupils are undergoing tests.

He said: "We have put our swine flu plan into action.

"We have been preparing for this possibility for several weeks and have posters and anti-bacterial gel available for pupils.

"We have two weeks until the term ends and the six-week holiday will come as a blessing to maybe halt the spread in schools."

Meanwhile two cases of swine flu have been confirmed at the University of Derby.

Two female students, living in private rented accommodation in the city, have had symptoms confirmed as swine flu after visiting their GP.

There is also a third suspected, but unconfirmed, case which is being investigated.

The university remains open as usual.

A Burton town hall worker was also confirmed as having the virus yesterday.

A spokeswoman for East Staffordshire Borough Council said staff had been told and given leaflets about the illness.

Five hospital workers, four pupils at Long Eaton's Trent College and an inmate at Sudbury Prison have all recently been confirmed as having swine flu.

John Grenville, secretary of Derbyshire Local Medical Committee, said GP surgeries had seen a rise in the number of patients calling or visiting of between five and 10%.

He said: "So far it hasn't completely swamped them but it's making them work harder."

A spokeswoman for NHS Derby City, which oversees healthcare in the area, said the symptoms – similar to those of seasonal flu – were relatively mild and many people will be able to recover from them without anti-viral drugs.

She advised those with symptoms to stay at home, to minimise the risk of spreading the virus, and telephone their GP.