As students return to schools in Victoria and New South Wales after months of lockdowns, many people may be worried about the risks to their kids – and transmission overall.
The role that schools play in transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19 has been difficult to work out, but new evidence can finally answer that question. Schools do amplify community transmission, but the good news is that some relatively simple mitigation measures can make schools much safer places.
To successfully navigate the next phase of the pandemic and protect our kids, we need to switch to a so-called “vaccine-plus” strategy – vaccination together with measures to clean the air.