A parent at one of the two Perthshire schools where pupils have tested positive for Covid-19 has warned against mass hysteria.
Causing panic to children at Oakbank and Newhill primary schools could be even more harmful to their wellbeing than the risk of infection from the virus, he said.
The Oakbank parent, who wanted to remain anonymous, said he was concerned that heightened anxiety among fellow parents would be upsetting for youngsters still adjusting to the return to school five months after the start of lockdown.
He said: “My biggest concern is that a form of hysteria kicks in which could be more detrimental to the children.”
One pupil at Oakbank Primary School, in Perth, and another at Newhill Primary School, in Blairgowrie, are isolating at home with their families after having contracted coronavirus.
Most parents learned the news, released by Perth and Kinross Council and NHS Tayside just before midnight on Monday, on Tuesday morning, some as they arrived at the school gates.
The parent said: “The school has done everything it can to keep people safe and not to overreact.
“Of course, we are worried about the news but there is nothing we have heard from the school or anywhere else that makes me think they haven’t done everything exactly as it should have been done.
If all our children come home from schools in a state of panic that would also have an adverse impact on their health and wellbeing.”
Oakbank parent
“The public health guidance up to this point has been really clear that this would happen.
“It’s really important that everyone follows the public health advice.
“The advice is that schools are safe but we have to wear masks in shops and not gather in large groups.”
He said he believed the best way to keep children safe and ensure schools remain open was to follow the advice given by the Scottish Government to the population at large.
He said: “If all our children come home from schools in a state of panic that would also have an adverse impact on their health and wellbeing.
“Let’s not double up the harm from this.”
