A SPECIAL SCHOOL in Farnham is set to close for a deep clean, after a member of staff was told to self-isolate by Public Health England.

The Ridgeway School will be closed on Tuesday, March 3 for a deep clean, after an employee was "exposed to an individual carrying the COVID-19 virus outside of school".

In a letter to parents, headteacher Darryl Morgan wrote: "The staff member was contacted at the weekend by Public Health England as part of their tracking back of contacts. The staff member had no knowledge that they had been in contact with someone who has now tested as positive for the virus.

"The staff member had contact with the person on the 25 February and would have been in school last week undertaking their usual role as a member of support staff. As staff will circulate in a small school and use the same staff room and toilet facilities it is not possible to isolate their contact to any one group of children or staff.

Continuing, Mr Morgan wrote: "I understand this must cause anxiety, but we are following the advice from Public Health England.

"Recognising the nature of our children and that many of them may have a compromised immune system, we have decided to take the additional precaution of closing for a deep clean on Tuesday 3 March 2020."

The school confirmed they would re-open on Wednesday, March 4.

It comes after All Hallows Catholic School, Farnham, closed as a precaution last week for a deep clean after students returned from a ski trip to northern Italy.

Four more cases of the COVID-19 virus were confirmed in the UK today (March 2), bringing the total number of cases to 40.