Confirmed cases of Covid19 at the University of Sheffield reaches highs of 163 in a single day during the last week, data from the University’s website shows.
Currently, the rolling seven-day average of confirmed cases at the University is 81.7 per day, with 78.9 of those coming from the student community.
However, on Thursday 16 December, the University of Sheffield declared 162 confirmed cases of Covid19 amongst the student population still in the city.
Before 12 December, daily confirmed cases reported to the University didn’t top double figures this academic year but have since risen dramatically.
A number of students who planned to travel home for the holidays will now be required to isolate in Sheffield over the Christmas period as a result of positive Covid19 tests.
Yesterday, the University received reports of 43 confirmed cases amongst students and staff. The daily numbers for today have not yet been announced.
The rapid rise in confirmed cases at the University and across the country has come as a result of the Omicron variant of the virus.
As a means to combat the increasing spread, the government introduced rules requiring face masks be worn on all public transport and in shops, and has opened up booster vaccinations to all adults who received their second dose of the vaccines at least three months ago.
On Tuesday 21 December, Boris Johnson confirmed there would be no additional restrictions before Christmas, but did not rule out the possibility of enhanced restrictions after.
According to the Mirror, one of the options the government is considering is a lockdown emulating ‘Step Two’ of the lockdown easing earlier in the year.
This would mean higher education is required to be taught remotely, which could have a significant impact on student life if the restrictions were to continue into the new semester.
The University of Sheffield will stop recording confirmed cases on their website from 23 December, before returning in January.