A SCHOOL hit by floods has now been forced to close for the week because of a coronavirus case.

Chesham Primary was struck by flash floods which swamped the Talbot Grove school and the wider area a week last Tuesday.

And now a positive Covid-19 case in Year 5 has caused further problems for the school community.

Class 'bubbles' at Chesham had already been compromised because of the flooding damage and a decision was initially taken to close the school on Friday.

Now with 17 teachers having to self-isolate there, this closure is being extended into this week.

One parent has questioned why so many staff were being forced to self-isolate now.

But in a letter to parents, headteacher Peter Hudson said advice had been sought from Bury Council and Public Health England (PHE) before the decisions were taken.

He said: "This morning we received notice of a positive test for Covid-19 from within the Class 5 bubble.

"Unfortunately, due to the flooding situation on Tuesday, our class bubbles were compromised to the extent that it was felt the only appropriate measure was to close school today whilst we reset, take PHE advice and evaluate how best to plan for next week."

"Only children from the Class 5 bubble need to self-isolate however 17 members of staff are also going to have to self-isolate, which includes most of our teachers."

Remote learning will be employed for all Key Stage One and Key Stage Two youngsters, with parents being asked to ensure pupils follow the recommended lesson plan.

Mr Hudson added: "We felt so lucky to have got this far into the school term with little disruption (apart from flooding) but unfortunately there was an inevitability that a positive case would show itself sooner or later.

"We can only apologise for the inconvenience this will cause to our families but we have to follow Government advice to prevent a more rapid spread of the virus in school over the forthcoming weeks."

More than a dozen primary and secondary schools across the borough have been forced to close their doors for varying periods because of coronavirus outbreaks.

Teaching unions estimated at one point that 600 hundred students across Bury were not in classes because of the pandemic.