THERE is one universal question troubling parents of school-age children across England this week: Should I send my child back to school?

But for Dr Ed Wernick, the GP leading Farnham’s response to Covid-19 and himself a dad of three school-age children, the answer is clear.

He told the Herald: “It is a moral, ethical, health dilemma – but with these tricky ones, I often ask myself the same question.

“So ‘would I be comfortable sending my children to school?’ The answer is yes. I think the benefits outweigh the risks.

“For me personally, I think we have enough information – there are a lower number of diagnosed cases of children compared to adults, and for those who are infected they generally have a milder condition and consequently have lower individual health risks.

“The World Health Organization has said children are less likely to spread the virus, and they have a lower risk of getting ill from the virus.

“Weighed against the benefits of returning to school, I think that tips the balance.”

Much has been made of the ‘R’ rate in recent weeks, in deciding whether lockdown measures should be relaxed or scaled up.

This relates to the reproductive rate of the virus, as Dr Wernick explains: “For every person who has the virus, it’s how many other people they pass it on to.”

But an added complexity of using this ‘R’ rate lies in the fact this factor can differ between areas and populations.

“What we don’t know, although it’s hypothesised, is whether children are less likely to pass it on,” the GP said.

“So as an individual population, their R rate could be lower. And if they do get it, they’re having a milder illness with fewer fatalities.

“But what we do know, factually, is there’s been only two deaths in children under the age of 15, compared to over 34,000 deaths in total.”

Much has also been made of the Covid-linked inflammatory ‘Kawasaki’ disease and its risks to children. But again, Dr Wernick says this has to be put in context. “We think 100 children have had this – a tiny number in proportion to the total number of children and people affected.”

Ultimately, Dr Wernick belives it’s a case of “balancing the risk to an individual and the population, against the risk of not going to school”.

But he acknowledges it “cannot be one model fits all”, and so families and schools must make the right decision for themselves.