119 University of Bristol students and two staff test positive for COVID-19

By Teddy Coward, Co-Editor-in-Chief

The University of Bristol has confirmed that 119 of its students have tested positive for coronavirus in addition to two staff members, as it states it will now publish weekly results on the number of infections.

The University of Bristol, which has a community of 28,000 students and 7,000 staff, has released the figures today having previously declined to issue such information.

Updated figures will be released every Wednesday.

The University says both staff members who have tested positive for coronavirus have been working remotely from home and not attended campus.

The move to provide regular updates follows other universities, such as Leeds, Oxford and Durham, who provide weekly or daily figures on the number of Covid-19 cases.

On Friday, the University had confirmed multiple cases of Covid-19 among its student population, but said the number of students who had tested positive was ‘very low’ and that it was ‘monitoring the situation very closely’ and would provide more information if the situation ‘escalates’.

University of Bristol confirms multiple coronavirus cases among students

Bristol UCU pass motion demanding all ‘unnecessary’ in-person teaching be moved online

The announcement comes just three days into the start of the first teaching week, where online learning is coupled with some face-to-face teaching.

Bristol UCU, the union that represents teaching staff at Bristol University, had previously criticised the University for not releasing regular updates.

Last week, Bristol UCU passed a motion demanding the ‘immediate cessation of unnecessary face-to-face, in-person teaching at the University of Bristol’.

Featured Image: Epigram / Filiz Gurer / Siavash Minoukadeh

For more information if you have coronavirus symptoms and are a University of Bristol student, click here.