COVID-19 testing site opens at Whiteknights

We are pleased to confirm that the NHS test site on the Whiteknights campus is now open and available for appointments, which can be booked through the NHS website.

Colleagues from the University have been working alongside partners at Public Health England and Reading and Wokingham Borough Councils to secure the new facility at Whiteknights, which will make it even easier for our students and colleagues to access testing if they have COVID-19 symptoms.

The new facility, which is located in Car Park 11, will replace the site at London Road, enabling us to regain use of the Great Hall. The London Road facility has now closed and it will be subject to a period of deep cleaning and ventilation before the Great Hall is fully handed back for university activity.

Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms, however mild, can get a free PCR swab test that takes less than a minute. Tests should be booked or ordered via the government website as soon as symptoms begin, or by calling 119, and you can expect your result the next day.

If you have symptoms, please do not come onto campus for a test without booking an appointment in advance. Postal test kits also continue to be available through the government website.

Health & Safety

The new site will be completely self-contained and kept separate from all other areas of the campus. Symptomatic testing continues to be by appointment only and there will be signs at entrances and around campus clearly indicating the route to the facility, so that there is appropriate safety consideration and minimal impact on university operations.

As with the London Road site, the Whiteknights facility will comply with all Public Health England safety measures and operating procedures. These include:

• Social distancing measures. Those being tested will be required to follow public health measures, including social distancing, not travelling by taxi or public transport, practising good personal hygiene and wearing a face covering throughout (including travelling to and from the testing centre). Clear directions will be sent to anyone who books a test.
• Personal Protective Equipment on site. Staff who are required to interact with test subjects wear PPE. The on-site operational staff do not wear PPE as this is not required. These staff do not come into direct contact with any test subjects.
• Cleaning regime. There is a strict cleaning regime for the whole site which means that facilities are cleaned multiple times a day to ensure very high standards of hygiene. Waste is removed on a regular basis.
• Designated areas. The testing areas are segregated from all other areas. All efforts have been made to reduce the disturbances to local communities and only operational staff will be in the designated area of the testing site.