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Private schools are being urged to advise their overseas students to “consider not travelling” during half-term due to fears over the spread of coronavirus.
The Girls’ Schools Association (GSA), which represents a group of fee-paying girls’ schools, recommended that staff advise against all travel to South-East Asia during half-term.
It also said schools should prepare for the possibility of “quarantine procedures” for the return of students who do decide to travel.
This follows the latest advice from the Boarding Schools’ Association (BSA), which said “appropriate arrangements” should be put in place to accommodate pupils over the February break.
A GSA spokeswoman said: “We have recommended that our schools advise parents, carers and guardians of any pupils proposing to travel to South-East Asia over February half-term to consider not travelling.
Wuhan, China: Convention Centre turned into a hospital for Coronavirus
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The view of the Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center on February 4th.2020 in Wuhan.Hubei Province,China. Wuhan epidemic prevention headquarters started converting three existing venues, including a gymnasium and an exhibition center, into hospitals to receive patients infected with the novel Coronavirus
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The view of the Wuhan International Conference and Exhibition Center on February 4th.2020 in Wuhan.Hubei Province,China. Wuhan epidemic prevention headquarters started converting three existing venues, including a gymnasium and an exhibition center, into hospitals to receive patients infected with the novel Coronavirus
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“We have also advised schools that, where possible, they should help to make suitable alternative arrangements with guardians.
“In the case of students who decide to travel, we have recommended that schools advise them and their families that protective measures could well be in place before they return and that they prepare for the possibility of quarantine procedures.”
In its guidance, the BSA said that schools must also consider the risk of any visits by parents or carers, avoiding “unnecessary restrictions” on anyone beyond the 14-day incubation period.
It also states that schools must ensure that boarders are protected both in and outside of school, following reports of children being targeted on the basis of their ethnicity.
China sends more pupils to UK fee-paying schools than any other country.
Wuhan, China: Coronavirus – In pictures
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A patient covered with a bed sheet at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital as it starts to accept patients displaying mild symptoms of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan
AFP via Getty Images
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The Costa Smeralda cruise ship of Costa Crociere, carrying around 6,000 passengers, is docked at the Italian port of Civitavecchia after a health alert due to a Chinese couple and a possible link to coronavirus on board, in Civitavecchia, Italy
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A medical official takes the body temperature of a man at the departure hall of the airport in Changsha, Hunan Province, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, China
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Officers in protective gear escort a person who was on board cruise ship Diamond Princess and had tested positive for coronavirus
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Quarantine Officials on the Diamond Princess cruise ship
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A chartered passenger jet carrying evacuated citizens from China taxis on the runway after landing at the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton
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A police vehicle enters the gates of the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton
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A plane carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, arrives at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire
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Passengers wear face masks as the push their luggage after arriving from a flight at Terminal 5 of London Heathrow Airport
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French citizens arrive and settle aboard of an evacuation plane with destination southeastern France, before departure from Wuhan Airport (WUH), China
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Staff members of a funeral parlour wearing protective suits disinfecting a colleague after they transferred a body at a hospital in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province, during the virus outbreak in the city
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Base personnel patrol inside a gate at the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton
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A member of staff at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside prepares for a bus carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China
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Police stand at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge that crosses from Hubei province in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China
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An ambulance carrying a South Korea citizen repatriated from Wuhan, China who has shown flu-like symptoms during in-flight screening for novel coronavirus leaves Gimpo airport
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Coaches enter RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where a plane carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China
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Medical staff walk to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases building at Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore
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Passengers wearing face masks are seen on a bus after disembarking from the Costa Smeralda cruise ship, after tests on a woman from Macau with suspected coronavirus came back negative, in Civitavecchia, Italy
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Empty racks where face masks are usually sold at a DIY store in west London. Pharmacies are working to boost stocks as demand for face masks in the UK appears to be on the rise amid fears about the coronavirus
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Workers produce masks at the Thai Hospital Product Company Ltd. factory in Bangkok
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People hoard bottles of alcohol after the Philippine government confirmed the first case of the new coronavirus in the country, in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines
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A man hoards the last few bottles of alcohol left in a pharmacy, after the Philippine government confirmed the first case of the new coronavirus in the country, in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines
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Taking precautions: with fears growing that the coronavirus will spread from China, a health official checks a woman’s temperature on the underground in Beijing
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An empty road is seen in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province on January 27, 2020, amid a deadly virus outbreak which began in the city
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Passengers in the arrivals concourse at Heathrow Terminal 4, London, as the Government’s Cobra committee is meeting in Downing Street to discuss the threat to the UK from coronavirus
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Students wearing masks meditate prior to a lesson at a high school in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
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An arrivals board showing a cancelled flight from Wuhan to Heathrow Terminal 4, London, as the Government’s Cobra committee is meeting in Downing Street to discuss the threat to the UK from coronavirus
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Paramilitary police wear face masks as they stand guard at Tiananmen Gate adjacent to Tiananmen Square in Beijing
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Medical staff at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital wear protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus
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Staff move bio-waste containers past the entrance of the Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, where some infected with a new virus are being treated, in Wuhan, China
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Buddhist monks wear masks as they walk near Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodi
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Workers driving excavators at the construction site of a field hospital In Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The builders will complete the 1,000-bed hospital by February 3 to cope with the surge of 2019-nCoV patients in the city
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A woman and a child wearing protective masks walk toward check-in counters at Daxing international airport in Beijing
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Medical staff transfer a patient suspected of having the new coronavirus at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Hong Kong
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Pedestrians wear face masks as they walk outside the New Orient Landmark hotel in Macau
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A Chinese passenger checked for a fever by a health worker at a Beijing railway station
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An employee works to prevent a new coronavirus at Suseo Station in Seoul, South Korea
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A policeman wearing a mask walks past a quarantine notice about the outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan, China at an arrival hall of Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan
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Excavators at the construction site of a new hospital being built to treat patients from a deadly virus outbreak in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province. – China is rushing to build a new hospital in a staggering 10 days to treat patients at the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak that has stricken hundreds of people, state media reported on January 24. (Photo b
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An employee sprays disinfectant on a train as a precaution against a new coronavirus at Suseo Station in Seoul, South Korea
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Medical staff carry a box as they walk at the Jinyintan hospital
Reuters
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CDC/Dr Fred Murphy
Coronaviruses are a group of viruses that have a halo, or crown-like (corona) appearance when viewed under an electron microscope
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The resident wear masks to buy vegetables in the market in Wuhan
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Staff sell masks at a Yifeng Pharmacy in Wuhan
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Masked workers disinfect a passenger throughfare at the Taoyuan International Airport
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A rescue worker walks past a notice about the virus that has broken out in China
Reuters
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A patient covered with a bed sheet at an exhibition centre converted into a hospital as it starts to accept patients displaying mild symptoms of the novel coronavirus in Wuhan
AFP via Getty Images
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The Costa Smeralda cruise ship of Costa Crociere, carrying around 6,000 passengers, is docked at the Italian port of Civitavecchia after a health alert due to a Chinese couple and a possible link to coronavirus on board, in Civitavecchia, Italy
Reuters
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A medical official takes the body temperature of a man at the departure hall of the airport in Changsha, Hunan Province, as the country is hit by an outbreak of a new coronavirus, China
Reuters
4/47
Officers in protective gear escort a person who was on board cruise ship Diamond Princess and had tested positive for coronavirus
Reuters
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Quarantine Officials on the Diamond Princess cruise ship
PA
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A chartered passenger jet carrying evacuated citizens from China taxis on the runway after landing at the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton
AFP via Getty Images
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Getty Images
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A police vehicle enters the gates of the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton
AFP via Getty Images
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A plane carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China, arrives at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire
10/47
Passengers wear face masks as the push their luggage after arriving from a flight at Terminal 5 of London Heathrow Airport
AFP via Getty Images
11/47
French citizens arrive and settle aboard of an evacuation plane with destination southeastern France, before departure from Wuhan Airport (WUH), China
AFP via Getty Images
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Staff members of a funeral parlour wearing protective suits disinfecting a colleague after they transferred a body at a hospital in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province, during the virus outbreak in the city
AFP via Getty Images
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Base personnel patrol inside a gate at the Royal Air Force station RAF Brize Norton in Carterton
AFP via Getty Images
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A member of staff at Arrowe Park Hospital in Merseyside prepares for a bus carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China
PA
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Police stand at a checkpoint at the Jiujiang Yangtze River Bridge that crosses from Hubei province in Jiujiang, Jiangxi province, China
REUTERS
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An ambulance carrying a South Korea citizen repatriated from Wuhan, China who has shown flu-like symptoms during in-flight screening for novel coronavirus leaves Gimpo airport
Getty Images
17/47
Coaches enter RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, where a plane carrying British nationals from the coronavirus-hit city of Wuhan in China
PA
18/47
Medical staff walk to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases building at Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore
AFP via Getty Images
19/47
Passengers wearing face masks are seen on a bus after disembarking from the Costa Smeralda cruise ship, after tests on a woman from Macau with suspected coronavirus came back negative, in Civitavecchia, Italy
Reuters
20/47
Empty racks where face masks are usually sold at a DIY store in west London. Pharmacies are working to boost stocks as demand for face masks in the UK appears to be on the rise amid fears about the coronavirus
PA
21/47
Workers produce masks at the Thai Hospital Product Company Ltd. factory in Bangkok
AFP via Getty Images
22/47
People hoard bottles of alcohol after the Philippine government confirmed the first case of the new coronavirus in the country, in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines
Reuters
23/47
A man hoards the last few bottles of alcohol left in a pharmacy, after the Philippine government confirmed the first case of the new coronavirus in the country, in Makati City, Metro Manila, Philippines
Reuters
24/47
Taking precautions: with fears growing that the coronavirus will spread from China, a health official checks a woman’s temperature on the underground in Beijing
Getty Images
25/47
An empty road is seen in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province on January 27, 2020, amid a deadly virus outbreak which began in the city
AFP via Getty Images
26/47
Passengers in the arrivals concourse at Heathrow Terminal 4, London, as the Government’s Cobra committee is meeting in Downing Street to discuss the threat to the UK from coronavirus
PA
27/47
Students wearing masks meditate prior to a lesson at a high school in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
AP
28/47
An arrivals board showing a cancelled flight from Wuhan to Heathrow Terminal 4, London, as the Government’s Cobra committee is meeting in Downing Street to discuss the threat to the UK from coronavirus
PA
29/47
Paramilitary police wear face masks as they stand guard at Tiananmen Gate adjacent to Tiananmen Square in Beijing
AP
30/47
Medical staff at the Wuhan Red Cross Hospital wear protective clothing to help stop the spread of a deadly virus
AFP via Getty Images
31/47
Staff move bio-waste containers past the entrance of the Wuhan Medical Treatment Center, where some infected with a new virus are being treated, in Wuhan, China
AP
32/47
Buddhist monks wear masks as they walk near Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, Cambodi
AP
33/47
Workers driving excavators at the construction site of a field hospital In Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The builders will complete the 1,000-bed hospital by February 3 to cope with the surge of 2019-nCoV patients in the city
Getty Images
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A woman and a child wearing protective masks walk toward check-in counters at Daxing international airport in Beijing
AFP via Getty Images
35/47
Medical staff transfer a patient suspected of having the new coronavirus at the Prince of Wales Hospital in Hong Kong
Reuters
36/47
Pedestrians wear face masks as they walk outside the New Orient Landmark hotel in Macau
AFP via Getty Images
37/47
A Chinese passenger checked for a fever by a health worker at a Beijing railway station
Getty Images
38/47
An employee works to prevent a new coronavirus at Suseo Station in Seoul, South Korea
AP
39/47
A policeman wearing a mask walks past a quarantine notice about the outbreak of coronavirus in Wuhan, China at an arrival hall of Haneda airport in Tokyo, Japan
Reuters
40/47
Excavators at the construction site of a new hospital being built to treat patients from a deadly virus outbreak in Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province. – China is rushing to build a new hospital in a staggering 10 days to treat patients at the epicentre of a deadly virus outbreak that has stricken hundreds of people, state media reported on January 24. (Photo b
AFP via Getty Images
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An employee sprays disinfectant on a train as a precaution against a new coronavirus at Suseo Station in Seoul, South Korea
AP
42/47
Medical staff carry a box as they walk at the Jinyintan hospital
Reuters
43/47
CDC/Dr Fred Murphy
Coronaviruses are a group of viruses that have a halo, or crown-like (corona) appearance when viewed under an electron microscope
CDC/Dr Fred Murphy
44/47
The resident wear masks to buy vegetables in the market in Wuhan
Getty Images
45/47
Staff sell masks at a Yifeng Pharmacy in Wuhan
AP
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Masked workers disinfect a passenger throughfare at the Taoyuan International Airport
AFP via Getty Images
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A rescue worker walks past a notice about the virus that has broken out in China
Reuters
Latest figures show that Chinese children made up around one in six of all international students at these schools.
Haberdashers’ Monmouth Schools said that their Chinese students would not be returning home in the half-term break, which is usually one week in the second half of February.
Principal James Murphy-O’Connor said boarders from China will remain at the group of five schools in Wales.
“As a family of schools, we have been monitoring the outbreak of the novel coronavirus in China very closely,” he said.
“We are supporting all our overseas children and parents at this difficult time, when there is still so much uncertainty about possible international travel restrictions to contain the spread of the virus.
“In light of the latest advice from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, our boarders from China will stay in the UK with their guardians over half-term.
“Our primary concern is the health and welfare of each and every member of the school and the wider local community.”
Students at the school will stay with guardians in the UK, or at a boarding house, where the school says appropriate staff will be in place.
A UK law firm that specialises in advising independent schools offered similar advice, suggesting that schools should make sure overseas pupils and their families “understand the risks” of travelling to the region.
Vicky Wilson, senior associate in the education practice at Wilsons, said every school must address coronavirus this week.
“The Foreign Office has advised people in the UK to avoid all but essential travel to China and independent schools must reinforce that to pupils and their families,” she said.
“Missing a family reunion is hard on everyone but it is preferable to pupils risking their education being seriously disrupted by coronavirus and its fallout.”
Figures from the Independent Schools Council (ISC) show that as of January last year, there were 9,585 pupils from mainland China at its member schools, out of a total of 55,280 international students.
This is based on data from 1,364 ISC schools.
Additional reporting by PA Media
