Covid quarantines in schools lifted from Wednesday

Covid quarantines for close contacts will no longer be applied to Catalan schools from Wednesday, February 23.

The Catalan health department announced it on Monday evening, adding that relatives will not have to specify if the pandemic is the reason for their child not attending classes when testing positive.

Indeed, Tuesday will be the last day in which the exact number of students and teachers with covid or self-isolating will be counted by the education ministry.

In January, the regulation surrounding quarantines was already altered to say that children will no longer have to quarantine if fewer than five of their classmates have Covid-19. Yet, this scheme which meant already loosening the original one – all kids in a school group sent to self-isolation if one tested positive – will no longer be applicable from Wednesday.

Quarantines will still be applicable in special needs education, which will be the only kind of school where free antigen tests will be offered from Wednesday – teachers where until now also eligible.

Removing face masks from schools

This is just another step towards reaching a post-pandemic normality. From February 10, children have been allowed to enjoy their school breaks in playgrounds without face masks.

A couple of weeks ago, Catalan officials speculated with allowing children to remove face masks in classes by the end of this trimester, that is to say, before the end of March – something that for now has not been confirmed. 

Other measures that will continue in place will be prioritizing activities within the school group bubble, and ventilating classrooms.