Here at the ABCIS we use monitoring devices at each campus to monitor air quality twice every day, before any students arrive and just before lunchtime. The readings are posted in high visibility/footfall areas so all staff and students can read them. We use the internationally recognised Air Quality Index (AQI) as a reference. The SMT are responsible for advising all staff and students when the air quality may present health risks and for taking actions to protect all. If the AQI is consistently at or exceeds 150, red flags will be put out and all outdoor physical/sporting activities will stop, including all playground games. In this situation, all EYFS and KS1 children will stay in class during breaks, but older students will be able to access all indoor facilities as usual and move between them outdoors if necessary. If the AQI is still at or exceeding 150 by 1pm, all outdoor sporting fixtures will be cancelled or postponed. If the AQI is still at or exceeding 150 by 3pm, all outdoor ECAS will be moved indoors or cancelled. Office staff will then advise parents so alternative collection arrangements can be made from school. AQI 150 is generally recognised as the point at which continuing to engage in physical activities outdoors may have negative health implications, particularly for those with pre-existing respiratory or heart problems.
For reasons of accuracy, we take readings at each of our campuses at different times of the day using our own AQI reading devices so that we can be confident we are making the correct decisions based on our locality.
In the interests of protecting sensitive groups who may have pre-existing respiratory or other conditions and who are likely to be especially affected by poor air quality exceeding AQI 100+, if the AQI is between 100-149, outdoor physical activities/PE activities will be moved indoors where possible. In Secondary, students who fall into this sensitive group are responsible for monitoring the AQI reading on the student notice board and deciding whether to participate in outdoor sport at lunchtime or after school; we as a school will advise them to monitor the readings daily. For Primary (including the EYFS) children, parents of children identified with these pre-existing conditions will be asked to advise us in writing whether they would like their children to play outdoors as normal in such conditions or not.
Updated May 2020 June 2021
