Paignton College

My old school hit the headlines today when one of the pupils was diagnosed with swine flu.

A 12-YEAR-OLD girl from South Devon has been diagnosed with swine flu and one family member has symptoms.

The girl's school has been evacuated and shut down and will remain closed for more than a week.

The girl, who was on the same flight as the Scottish couple confirmed as having swine flu, is one of three more confirmed UK cases of swine flu on top of two previously identified, Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the Commons today.

Paignton Community and Sports College was today evacuated and will be closed for more than a week.

The 12-year-old girl with swine flu has been named locally as Year 7 pupil Amy Whitehouse of Paignton.

Friends say Amy returned from a family holiday on a farm in Mexico at the end of last week.

Charlotte Cleverdon, aged 11, was in her class 7G1 when they were told Amy had swine flu.

She said: ''This afternoon at 1pm a teacher came in and told us what was happening and we were going home.

''Everyone started crying and holding their noses. I know Amy well. She's nice and I am worried about her.''

Charlotte's mum Lorraine, 36, said: ''It's a shock. I am really worried and I just want to get my daughter home.''

Every pupil from Amy's year was kept back at school to be given a dose of anti-viral drug Tamiflu.

Parents and pupils at Paignton College said they were ''very angry'' Amy had been allowed back to school.

One said: ''I am furious. We are not being given the information we need. We are not even allowed to ring our children on their mobiles.

''It is very worrying. I just want to get her home so there is less risk of infection.

''We were told the girl and her family have been to Mexico and staying on a farm.

''We have been here for hours but the kids are staying in until they have had a dose of the anti-flu medicine. It is chaos and everyone is scared.''

Mum Sheena Gill said: ''There are no words to describe it. It is frightening. Devastating and very scary.

''My daughter is very upset and we are off to the doctors to get her checked out.''


Her daughter Gordanne, 13, added: ''We were told one student has wine flu. I don't want to get it. Lots of children were crying.''

A father of a Year 7 pupil said: ''I can't believe they let somebody go on holiday to Mexico then return to school. It is unbelievably negligent.''

Amy is a pupil at the college's junior school for Years 7, 8 and 9 at the Waterleat Road Centre in Paignton.

Sources say she returned home from Mexico last week and initially felt fine but later began to suffer flu-like symptoms.

She is being looked after at home and the school is likely to stayed closed until May 11.

Anxious parents of children who attend the same school as the 12-year-old swine flu victim today said they were concerned for the youngsters’ safety.

The Year 7 girl, from Torbay in Devon, attends the college with more than 1,900 other children.

The two-site college will be gradually closed throughout the day as 230 pupils from Year 7 are given anti-viral drugs. The school will then remain closed for seven days.

Staff at the school referred all inquiries today to the local health authority, Torbay Care Trust.

Frantic parents today flocked to the junior site in Waterleat Road – attended by the ill schoolgirl – to check on their children.

Many aired frustrations that they were not aware of the outbreak until the Prime Minister confirmed the latest infections during his questions session at the House of Commons earlier today.

Lisa Walton, 36, who has two sons, Liam and Jack, at the school, said: “We just had no idea about what was happening here. The school had not told us about it, and my son said the pupils were told around 1pm today.

“Right now we just don’t know what to think. Obviously it’s a worry.”

Another parent, Michelle Buswell, whose 13-year-old daughter Emma attends the school, said it was “a shame” parents appeared to be some of the last to know.

“Obviously I’m concerned. We’re lucky we heard about it on the radio so we could come down,” she said.

“I can’t fault the staff here, it’s just a shame it hit the media before the parents.”

Debbie Hutton-Hands, 43, has two daughters, Amy, 13, and Zoe, 12, at the school.

Amy said: “The girl that’s ill is in Year 7. All the Year 7s were running around like maniacs shouting ’Cover your mouths’.

“At first we thought it was a prank. Now we just hope everyone is okay.”

Mrs Hutton-Hands said: “It’s a worry for us. My daughter already has a cough and a cold, and I work in the community with the elderly so obviously if we caught it, it would stop me from going to work.

“My husband will already have to stop work because he works at the school as a cleaner.”

Paignton Community and Sports College, which opened in 1992, has more than 1,926 pupils on roll, including 285 Sixth Form students. The majority coming from the Paignton area.

Schools Secretary Ed Balls said the school’s headteacher Jane English was supporting the child and family and making sure parents were well informed.

“Our clear advice is that schools and children’s services should continue to operate as normal,” he said.

The 12-year-old victim was on the same flight from Mexico as the Askhams, the Scottish couple who have also been diagnosed with swine flu, Health Secretary Alan Johnson announced earlier.

The case was highlighted by Gordon Brown during Prime Minister's Question Time.

The girl's school has been closed as a precaution and the pupils have been offered anti-viral medication. The girl is said to have 'mild symptoms'.

The girl is one of three more confirmed cases. Gordon Brown said that all new cases, including the girl, had recently been in Mexico. The other cases are in London and Birmingham.

The Prime Minister told MPs: “There are three further confirmed cases, one a twelve year old girl from Torbay; two other adults -- one from Birmingham and one from London.

"All of them have travelled recently from Mexico. All of them have mild symptoms. "All of them are receiving and are responding well to the treatment that has been effective so far, the use of Tamiflu.

"In the case of Torbay, the school in which the twelve year old is educated will close down for the time being and all the pupils will be offered the Tamiflu antiviral."

A spokesman said: "We can confirm that a single case of swine fever has been confirmed in the Torbay area.

"This concerns a secondary school pupil who recently visited Mexico. She returned to school last Wednesday and developed mild flu symptoms at the end of last week.

"She was seen by a local doctor who took throat swabs. These have now been confirmed as the H1N1 strain which is the same strain as identified in the previous two cases in Scotland.

"The patient is in isolation at home and has already responded well to treatment. She is said to be recovering well and is in good spirits. Her family have also been treated with anti viral drugs."

The trust confirmed that one close family member also has mild symptoms. Test results are awaited.

They added: "It has been agreed with the Health Protection Agency that those students who are most likely to have had close contact with the girl at the college will be offered anti viral drugs (Tamiflu).

"This is around 230 students in her year group. As an absolute precaution it has also been agreed that the college will be closed from the end of the day for seven days to minimise any risk of the virus spreading. "


Jim O’Brien, Deputy Director of Public Health at South West Strategic Health Authority, said: “These steps are strictly precautionary to minimise any risk to college students and staff. We are keen to reassure the local community that only those who have had close contact with the student need to be offered anti viral drugs.

“It is important to remember that the student is responding well to treatment and we would urge people not to be unduly concerned at this stage.

“We have worked hard in the South West to prepare for this type of event and we are now enacting our plans with NHS and local partners.

“This case is one of five now confirmed in the UK and the advice remains the same for everyone, which is to telephone your healthcare provider for advice if you develop flu symptoms and to exercise good basic hand hygiene and ensure that any used paper handkerchiefs are destroyed promptly to reduce the spread of germs.”

The symptoms of swine flu are similar to normal flu, and include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, chills and fatigue.

Some patients have also reported diarrhoea and vomiting. In very young children, the warning signs include fast or troubled breathing, a bluish skin tone, a failure to interact with others, and being highly irritable. As with seasonal flu, swine flu varies in severity, with the worst cases leading to fatal pneumonia and respiratory failure.

Lib Dem MP for Torbay Adrian Sanders said he would be working closely with his neighbouring Tory MP for Totnes Anthony Steen as the school drew pupils from both their constituencies.

Mr Sanders said: “I think people will be surprised but I think it’s an indication of the global world we live in. Nowhere can escape this sort of thing.

“What we need to ensure is there’s adequate supplies of antiviral drugs for everyone who’s going to require them.”

He would also be seeking clarification on the position of vulnerable groups who received the annual flu jab, and whether they would be receiving anti-viral drugs “as a matter of course”.

The new strain seems to be more lethal to those in the 25 to 45 age range - an ominous sign, as this was a hallmark of the Spanish 1918 flu pandemic that killed tens of millions worldwide.

Younger people were probably hit harder by the 1918 flu virus because their immune systems over-reacted.