COVID-19 TESTING ASYMPTOMATIC TESTING SITE IN CENTRAL LONDON NOW RUNS UNTIL DECEMBER 11 AT STUDENT CENTRAL, WC1E
The Covid-19 testing site at Student Central on Malet Street, London WC1E 7HY will now continue testing until 11 December.
Students studying courses at Royal Holloway, University of London, which are based in London can book a test at Student Central. You can book a testhttps://london.ac.uk/test-and-trace
You can find more about the testing programme on the same page. Please remember to bring your email confirmation, your student/staff ID (or your halls ID if you live in UoL intercollegiate halls) to Student Central.
Royal Holloway students can also be tested at the Egham campus. More information about how to book your test is available here.
The test is for students who do not have symptoms of COVID-19. A negative test result will reassure you and your family and friends that you are unlikely to have the virus when you travel back home for Christmas. It helps prevent students who show no signs of the virus, but could inadvertently infect family members, friends or loved ones from passing the virus on.
Testing will be available when you return from the Christmas break and further details will be published shortly.
Our strong recommendation remains that you should take at least one test and, if the result is negative, travel as soon possible – ideally within 24 hours of receiving your result.
- Having one negative test gives you a reasonable basis upon which to make a safe decision to travel home.
- Having two negative tests gives you a stronger basis on which make this decision, but only if the two tests are 3-5 days apart and you avoid any social contact in the days between the two tests. This may be a better option if family members at home are at significant increased risk from COVID-19.
- If you don’t have a test at all, you will not have any information to reassure your family that it is safe for you to return home.
It is imperative that you continue to follow all rules and protocols put in place by your University and/or hall of residence to ensure the validity of your test result. Receiving a negative test is only useful if you continue to social distance, wear face coverings, avoid large groups, and wash your hands thoroughly and regularly after the test etc., to avoid transmission of COVID-19.
If you have recently (within 90 days) tested positive for COVID-19, you are likely to have developed some immunity, and therefore a repeat LFD test is unlikely to be necessary within this period. If having recently tested positive for COVID-19, you choose to have an LFD test as part of this programme, please ensure the LFD test is not taken whilst still within your period of isolation following the last confirmed test. If symptoms [other than cough or a loss of, or change in, your normal sense of taste or smell] persist, this could be longer than the normal 10-day self-isolation period for confirmed cases. This is described in Stay at home: guidance for households with possible or confirmed coronavirus (COVID-19) infection.
Processing of Lateral Flow Tests will be conducted at the testing site by trained personnel. The result will then be uploaded on NHS Test and Trace website and you should receive a text or email with your test result.
The University will not hold any data about your test result. If you test positive you will be asked to receive a more complex PCR test and if that confirms you are positive you will be asked to self-isolate for 10 days, still with enough time to return home for Christmas. Close contacts of those testing positive will also hear from NHS Test and Trace, asking them to stay at home for 14 days to prevent them from unknowingly spreading the virus. Before travelling you are advised to: book travel in advance, avoid busy times and routes and check your journey in advance to avoid disruptions. If you are travelling by car, you should only travel with members of your household or support bubble. On public transport it is important that you wear a face covering unless you are exempt, wash or sanitise hands regularly, use contactless payment and maintain social distancing where possible. If you intend to travel outside of the UK, we would still advise you to check the requirements laid out by the country of your final destination – as lateral flow tests are unlikely to be certifiable for international travel. You should also check the requirements of your airline or train company.