ESC stops community groups from using school facilities

The new measure is provisionally in place until 23 January with plans to conduct a further review closer to the time.

Limiting the mixing of staff and students between schools is hoped to allow for the general operations of sites throughout the school day to be prioritised.

‘We are aware that a number of our member sports will be adversely affected by the suspension of community use of these facilities, although we absolutely understand the need for Education to prioritise the operation of school sites and reduce the risk of cross contamination by stopping community use at this time,’ said Graham Chester, Guernsey Sports Commission operations director.

Alternative venues for sporting activities are currently being sought out by the commission.

‘We will also monitor the possible financial impact on these sports who may not be able to complete league fixtures or who may end up having to reduce the length of their playing seasons as a result of not being able to access appropriate facilities,’ said Mr Chester.

The re-purposing of the Beau Sejour sports hall as the vaccination centre means the availability of school sporting facilities are critical for the continuation of many extra-curricular sports clubs.

Guernsey Basketball Association head of development Patrick Ogier said that although the suspension on use of the facilities will cause logistical problems with fixtures, the decision was a sensible approach.

‘Players and teams will still go outdoors and play at places like Delancey – they want to play basketball but they’re very understanding of the situation. Everyone is doing their part to reduce the transmission, whether that’s working from home or wearing masks in shops,’ said Mr Ogier.

Guernsey Mountaineering Club members use the St Sampson’s school climbing wall on a weekly basis.

‘It’s going to have an impact because it’s the winter season, so we are climbing indoors,’ said the club’s president Steve Dorrity.

‘It isn’t for me to say whether it’s necessary, at the end of the day it’s their resources and they have to manage it.’

He added that they may use the commercial wall available at Up Climbing Guernsey.

‘It is just one of those things you have to deal with. It’s disappointing we won’t be able to use the wall but it’s not life-threatening. If the weather stays OK then we can always do some outdoor climbing,’ said Mr Dorrity.

Additional measures were recently announced for schools ahead of students returning in the new year, including the re-introduction of classroom bubbles for primary school children and Key Stage 3 students.

Face coverings are still strongly recommended in school settings and changes may be made to school pick-up times to stagger the number of people on-site at a time.

Director of Education Nick Hynes said: ‘While we understand it must be frustrating for community groups that normally use school facilities, the current priority must be on managing the implications of the current wave of Covid infections in such a way that minimises disruption to young people’s education as much as possible.

‘We are focusing on sustaining core education delivery and protecting the health and wellbeing of our students so that they can continue accessing education. As such we took the decision to stop community groups from using school facilities just for time being.

‘We are trying to limit the number of people attending school sites, other than staff and students, to reduce wherever possible the chances of spread. We also need to prioritise staffing levels from our facilities team to ensure that educational sites remain fully operational during the school day.

‘We will contact community groups as soon as we’re able to offer them use of the sites again.’