Thousands of children are now self-isolating after at least 32 Greater Manchester schools reported Covid cases

“We have taken this decision to protect our pupils and staff, whose safety is always our highest priority."Some schools which already had a number of children isolating have sent further groups home, including Fairfield High School for Girls in Droylsden where there's been another confirmed case in Year 10 and at Corpus Christi RC Primary in Oldham, where the Nursery and Reception bubble is now also isolating.Elton High in Bury has also had another confirmed case, which has affected a small

reported last weekend that a number of students were already self isolating at the Birley campus, in Hulme, days after a 100-strong party was reported in the courtyard.Since then, case numbers have soared to 127 across that site and Cambridge Halls, with a number of other students also recording symptoms.

a fifth of schools across the region, comes little over a fortnight after pupils started the new academic year. And with no official list available of all the bubble closures - and the Manchester Evening News only able to confirm cases after being alerted by parents - it's likely there are many more.

a fifth of the region's schools (247) have had confirmed cases - among either pupils, staff or both. At one secondary - Philips High in Whitefield, Bury - there have been 18 positive tests and the whole of Year 11 has been sent home.

Manchester Evening News brings the total to 247. While some of those affected have now returned to class, we have not been alerted to every bubble closure, so the true figure is expected to be even higher.

Ladybridge High in Bolton where every year group has been affected.

the nebulous concept of local lockdowns surfaced and nearly three months after they were applied to Greater Manchester, the pendulum could be about to swing back towards where it started.

Local leaders are seeking tougher powers to clamp down on businesses that flout Covid rules.Infection rates in Greater Manchester remain stubbornly high, with all ten boroughs currently on ‘red alert’.Bolton has the most cases per 100,000 people in the country while Tameside and Oldham are also among the ten worst hit areas, according to the most recent ‘surveillance report’.Rochdale’s director of public health, Andrea Fallon, has warned it is ‘entirely possible’ there could be a return to the

risen again today - to 177.Among the cases confirmed today is the full closure of a second primary school in Greater Manchester.St Luke's Primary in Heywood had already sent home pupils in Years 2, 3 and 6, but now it's been forced to shut to all year groups amid 'staffing issues'.While some schools continue to send home entire year groups, others have more recently been restricting self-isolations to close contacts of confirmed cases - using seating plans to help identify those individuals they

full closure of a second primary school.St Luke's Primary in Heywood had already sent home pupils in Years 2, 3 and 6, but now it's been forced to shut to all year groups amid 'staffing issues'.Other primary schools have been sending home bubbles after confirmed cases, including Broadoak Primary in Swinton, where there's been a positive case, and Charlestown Primary, in Blackley, where Year 5 are isolating.Some schools which already had a number of children at home have had to tell more to stay

herePhilip Tron's family, meanwhile, paid tribute to their 'bonny lad' and said: "Heaven has a new Geordie ambassador."The much-loved Newcastle United fan worked for a water conservation company and a video tribute delivered by his uncle, Ken Mullen, was peppered with jokes and cherished anecdotes from Philip's childhood and life."He had some dislikes," Ken said with a wry smile on the video after speaking passionately of a 'family-loving guy with a huge personality'."He disliked having to pay

new helpline has been set up by the government to make it easier for settings to get advice on what steps to take following a positive case.

risen again today - to 133. Testing problems are continuing to make things even more stressful for teachers and families, with many unable to book tests.

Manchester Evening News that if there is a positive case at their child's school, they 'have a right to know'. Among the cases confirmed today is the closure of an entire primary school in Oldham, the first confirmed shutdown in Greater Manchester.

new confirmed cases in the last 24 hours, the biggest daily total since May 8.That means Greater Manchester has contributed around 14pc of the total, considerably bigger than the region's proportion of the total UK population.The total number of coronavirus cases confirmed after testing in the UK since the pandemic began has now hit 374,228.In addition, the Department of Health has recorded a further 20 deaths in the UK in the last 24 hours, bringing the death toll to 41,684.Separate figures

Manchester Evening News has kept an up-to-date list of every school impacted in recent days.This is the full list, as things stand, on the evening of Tuesday, September 15.How has sending your child back to school been for you so far? Let us know in the survey below. If it fails to load click here.Use the handy search tool here to find out where cases have been confirmed, or see the full list below:Schools where cases and self-isolations have already been confirmed include:ManchesterSt Peter's

struggling to access tests, it's causing even further disruption and delay. At some high schools hundreds of pupils are being affected as whole year bubbles are sent home following a positive test.Oasis Academy Oldham has confirmed that students in Year 10 and 11 are self-isolating for the next fortnight and teachers will be supporting their learning at home.

we reported how the number of schools with confirmed cases had risen to more than 65.

Manchester Evening News to criticise those schools that are not sharing the information across the year groups, saying they should be able to make informed choices.The parent of a pupil at Co-op Academy North Manchester, where one child is isolating after testing positive, said: "My annoyance is that the school have not officially confirmed through email or letter to the parents, so many still don't know and have had the choice to make decisions taken away."For me, transparency is extremely

coronavirus infection rates soar in the last few weeks. Bolton NHS Foundation Trust and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust both recorded one more death.The total number of coronavirus deaths at hospital trusts in Greater Manchester, as of Friday, September 11, currently stands at: Meanwhile in Greater Manchester, the latest figures show there are sharp increases in coronavirus infection rates in every single borough.