Schools to test impact of air purifiers on reducing Covid
Schools in Bradford, West Yorkshire, will take part in trials of air purifiers and ultraviolet lights to see if they reduce the spread of Covid-19 in classrooms.
The £1.75m government-funded research involves 30 primary schools in Bradford, with ten of the schools given high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters and 10 given UV purifiers. The other 10 will be a control group with no devices, researchers said.
The Centre for Applied Education Research is behind the trial, which is a collaboration involving the universities of Leeds, Bradford and York, Bradford Council and the Department for Education.
The study will also look at the practical issues of getting the units installed.
The pilot is due to start in September and the first results should be available before the end of the year. If successful, the technology could be rolled out across the country in 2022.
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