Once the virus is established in the country, the UK’s general policy is not to close schools.

ほら、学校を閉鎖するという、全く不必要で、国民を加害する、世紀の大愚策を政府が行うものだから、イランやイラクと同列に並べられている。バカなリベラルなんてこんなものだよ。人類を危険に陥れる野蛮人どもが、というわけだ。 https://t.co/tfTTM2f5sT

— buvery (@buvery) February 28, 2020

Why are some schools closing over coronavirus? 26 February 2020 Schools not being advised to shut over coronavirus, says PHE Public health agency outlines general guidance after at least a dozen schools sent pupils home Coronavirus – latest updates Lucy Campbell Wed 26 Feb 2020

 “What we are clear about is if you have been in the area of northern Italy of concern and you have symptoms – it is a cough, shortness of breath or fever – then you do need to self-isolate, you need to phone NHS 111 and await advice for further assessment or testing.

　イギリスでも学校が自主的に閉鎖しているところもあるのだが、 イギリス公衆衛生局は閉鎖を勧めているわけではない、と。


Will shutting down UK schools stop coronavirus? It’s complicated Schools are closing their doors in response to coronavirus cases. It might help stem initial outbreaks, but won't do much good in a full pandemic By WILL BEDINGFIELD Friday 28 February 2020 

While the document completely rules out banning mass gatherings or internal travel – saying this would do little to stem transmission and cause unnecessary panic – it’s more equivocal when it comes to schools.



Despite this, the PHE advice is currently not to close schools. David Heymann, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine emphasises that, in general, school closures are usually avoided – it’s a strategy kept as a possibility, and the influenza document is advisory only.

There are multiple reasons for this. Closing schools comes with severe economic costs, the document explains, and has “a disproportionately large effect on health and social care because of the demographic profile of those employed in these sectors”.

Plus the window in which closing schools might have a positive effect is vanishingly small and fast moving. Once the virus is established in the country, the UK’s general policy is not to close schools.

This is largely because, once the virus is widespread, closing schools doesn’t reduce the impact on health services. A 2011 study by the University of Warwick found that, though there was a marked reduction in cases during school holidays observed across the world during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, demand for hospital beds didn’t ease up.

　要するに、疫学的な効果がそれほどないし、経済的、社会的な悪影響のほうが大きいから、学校閉鎖しないのが方針で、感染地域に行った人たちが、保健所と連絡とって、自宅謹慎してもらっているのが一番いい・・・みたいな。