If you have Covid-19 symptoms you must self-isolate and let us know using a simple form. All the details are available here.

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Self-isolation and quarantine

Check what to do if you have Covid-19 symptoms and need to self-isolate. Also check our quarantine support after travelling.

Contents

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What to do if you have symptoms

If you have the symptoms of Covid-19 (high temperature, new continuous cough or loss or change to your sense of smell or taste), follow this protocol:

  1. If you or another student in your accommodation have one or more symptoms, book a PCR test to check if you have Coronavirus as soon as possible. You can also call freephone number 119 for this.
  2. Report Covid-19 symptoms using this form to let us know and request the support package. Contact tracing is managed by a dedicated team who may contact you after completing this form.
  3. If you are already in self-isolation, stay in your room and follow government self-isolation instructions until you get your test result.
  4. If you’re not already self-isolating, stay in your room and alert your flatmates by phone/text etc. Ask them to remain or return to your flat immediately; you may all need to self-isolate for 10 days or until you get a negative test result.
  5. If your symptoms worsen, or you feel you can’t manage at home, visit 111.nhs.uk/covid-19 or call freephone number 111 if you don’t have internet access.
  6. In the unlikely event you are sent an ambulance, and you live on campus, call our Security team on 01273 873333 so they can guide the ambulance to you.
  7. If you or someone else in your accommodation is in severe medical distress, call 999 immediately and ask for an ambulance. If you live on campus, call our Security team on 01273 873333 so they can guide the ambulance to you.

Self-isolation guidance

Self-isolation is when you do not leave your home because you have or might have Coronavirus (Covid-19).

Important: If you don’t self-isolate for 10 days, you could face a fine of £10,000.

When to self-isolate

You must self-isolate immediately if you:

  • have any symptoms of coronavirus (high temperature, new continuous cough or loss or change to your sense of smell or taste)
  • have tested positive for coronavirus (PCR or LFD test). If you used a LFD test, you will also need to request a PCR test to confirm the results.
  • live with someone who has symptoms or tested positive and you’re not fully vaccinated or you’re told to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace or the NHS Covid-19 app. If you are fully vaccinated you should arrange for a PCR test, you do not need to isolate while waiting for the results.
  • If you are identified as a close contact by the NHS or UoS contact tracing team and you are not fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
  • If you've been in contact with an Omicron case, you must self-isolate for ten days, regardless of your vaccination status. You will be informed by NHS track and trace if that is the case.

Living with housemates? Check the Government guidelines for people living in the same household as someone with Covid-19.

If you need to self-isolate

Submit a report using this form if you need to self-isolate.

Staying in your accommodation

You can only leave your accommodation in limited circumstances. These include where you need:

  • urgent medical assistance or there is a fire or other emergency (continue your isolation as soon as it is safe to return to your accommodation)
  • access to food and medicines, but only in exceptional circumstances when you cannot arrange for these to be delivered
  • to deliver a test to a priority post box.

If you have a visa, do not leave to collect your BRP or any other documents. We will send them to you.

Food and shopping

If you’re a current student self-isolating at the student address you’d normally occupy during term time, you may be eligible for an allowance to help with food and other essentials.

You could be self-isolating because you have symptoms, have tested positive for coronavirus or have been in contact with someone who has.

The allowance for a 10-day isolation period is:

  • £36 if you’re living on campus
  • £60 if you’re isolating off campus (either in University-managed or privately rented accommodation) at the student address you’d normally occupy during term time.

It’s higher for those living off campus because on-campus students get other services.

See “Receiving the allowance” information below.

For supermarket deliveries:

  • Asda accepts credit and debit cards connected to a UK address and PayPal
  • Tesco accepts credit and debit cards connected to a UK address and PayPal
  • Morrisons accepts all major credit cards, UK debit cards and PayPal
  • Sainsbury’s accepts all major credit cards and UK debit cards
  • Ocado accepts all major credit cards, UK debit cards and PayPal
  • Waitrose accepts credit and debit cards connected to a UK address and Apple pay.

Plan ahead and book your delivery a few days in advance.

If you’re on campus, supermarkets will deliver right up to the front door of your flats and our porters will deliver post.

Also check:

Additional on-campus services

If you’re a current student self-isolating on campus, you get:

  • weekly laundry service: you will be provided with a dissolvable laundry bag, which will be returned to you with clean and dry clothes and bedding. Contact your reception to arrange a laundry collection
  • cleaning products to keep your accommodation hygienic, including disinfectant spray, disposable gloves, bin bags, disposable cloths and toilet rolls.

You must report symptoms using our form and begin your period of self-isolation. Our Residential Life Team can then contact you directly with more information.

If you live with someone who has tested positive for Covid-19 and we have asked you to self-isolate, or you have been told to self-isolate through the NHS app, you will also qualify for this support.

Additional services if you have Covid-19

If you are a current student and have tested positive for Covid-19, we want to ensure you have a hot meal delivered to you each day. A nourishing meal helps with a fast recovery.

If you are living:

  • on campus, a free meal will be delivered to you each day. You will be able to re-heat the meal when you are ready to eat
  • off campus (either in University-managed or privately rented accommodation) at the student address you’d normally occupy during term time, you get an additional payment of £5 a day towards a hot meal.

If you have tested positive for Covid-19, let us know using the online form. If you are living on campus, we will then be able to arrange for your free meal as well as other elements of the support package you need.

Receiving the allowance

We will arrange for payments to be paid into your bank account. Register up-to-date bank account details and term-time adresses in Sussex Direct.

If you do not have a UK bank account, send details of your bank account to FinanceServiceDesk@sussex.ac.uk.

If we do not have your bank account details, we will credit your student account.

Allow up to two weeks for credit to be applied. You may receive your payment in instalments and you may need to use existing funds in the meantime.

Staying in touch

If you are in University-managed accommodation, we will contact you within three days of your arrival as long as you’ve provided us with your phone number on the reporting form.

Email reslife.covid@sussex.ac.uk as soon as possible if you miss our call.

If you have any queries, email your telephone number to reslife.covid@sussex.ac.uk and we can call you back.

Quarantining after arriving from abroad

You must quarantine when you arrive in the UK.

If you are covered by a government-approved vaccine, follow the steps for entering the UK and take a pre-booked PCR test on or before day 2.

If the result is negative, you can end quarantine. If it's positive or unclear, you must self-isolate for 10 full days.

Important: If you’ve travelled from a red list country, jump to students from red list countries.

If you are not covered by a government-approved vaccine, follow the steps for entering the UK.

You can have your day 2 and day 8 Covid-19 tests sent to your University address (check page 8 of the accommodation handbook [PDF] for details on how to write your address including room and flat number).

If you meet the requirements for the UK Government’s test to release scheme, which involves an extra Covid-19 test on day 5 of isolation, you need to book this before you travel to England.

When you arrive in the UK, this day is classed as day 0. The next full day is day 1, then day 2 and so on.

Important: You are legally required to quarantine in your accommodation. We recognise that these are unusual circumstances and that this can be a frustrating time. While challenging, we expect all students to observe quarantine, not only because it is a legal requirement but also to minimise the risks of transmitting Covid-19 within our community. Under UK law, a penalty of up to £10,000 can be imposed if quarantine rules are broken. The University also reserves the right to revoke any rent waiver and/or credits given under the Support Package if students do not comply with quarantine requirements and may also take disciplinary action. If you are in University-managed accommodation, steps could also be taken to terminate your licence to occupy.

You should expect to be contacted by NHS Test and Trace staff to confirm you are following quarantine rules and complying with your legal duty to quarantine.

On day 2 and day 8, you take your pre-booked PCR tests. If you’re using the test to release scheme, you also take one on day 5.

If your testing kit has not been delivered to you in time to take a test on day 2, 5 or 8, or if your testing kit arrives broken, you must contact your test provider as soon as possible to request a new kit, take a new test and send it to be processed at the earliest opportunity.

You don’t need to tell us when you have taken tests. Where possible, we will collect them automatically.

Sending your PCR tests

If you live in on-campus University accommodation, one of our porters will visit flats to collect tests for posting by courier.

To get completed tests collected you must:

  • have a PCR test that needs to be returned using a “Royal Mail Priority Post Box”
  • package your test and make it ready for posting
  • place it on the floor just inside your flat door no later than 10am.

You must post your test yourself if you:

  • take a test on another day
  • use a test provider who requires you to return your test through another method that is not Royal Mail (for example, a laboratory drop box)
  • don’t do your test in time for our porter.

If, for unforeseen reasons, we miss your collection and it has not been picked up by 1pm, we recommend you post the test yourself to avoid delay.

UK government quarantine guidance states you can leave your accomodation to post self-administered tests but you must follow safer travel guidance and avoid public transport if you can.

The nearest Royal Mail priority post box to campus is North Moulsecoomb Post Office, BN2 4GB, which is about a 35-minute walk from campus. See more information about Royal Mail priority post boxes.

If you living in our Kings Road flats, one of our off-campus houses or in private accommodation, we cannot collect your test. Instead, follow the instructions on your test kit to return it.

Support payments

If you are required to quarantine, and you arrive before Friday 10 December 2021, you will be eligible for a support payment (£36 for University-managed accommodation and £60 in privately-managed accommodation) and a contribution of £50 towards a PCR test.

To receive this support, you must report your travel isolation to the University. Select the option: “I am required to self-isolate due to International travel to the UK”.

Download the Rest of World Quarantine Support Package policy [PDF 121KB] for more details on requirements and eligibility.

Students from red list countries

If you travel from a red list country (as identified by the UK Government), you must quarantine for 10 days in a government-managed hotel on arrival in the UK.

If you arrive between Saturday 16 October 2021 and Friday 10 December 2021, you can claim up to £1,145 towards the cost of quarantine (half the cost of an approved UK government quarantine hotel).

If you’re an international PhD student, you can claim up to £2,285 up until Friday 10 December 2021.

This scheme closes on Friday 10 December 2021. Applications received after this date will not be accepted.

Keep evidence of your quarantine booking and receipt, as you will need these for your claim. The University will provide a tuition fee refund in your second term to reimburse you for the costs of quarantining. How you get reimbursed will depend on how you paid your fees initially (for instance, whether you’re self-funded or your fees were paid by sponsors).

To submit a claim, email quarantine-support@sussex.ac.uk.

To be eligible for the payment, you need to meet the full criteria and satisfy the terms and conditions of our Covid-19 red list Quarantine Support Package policy [PDF 90KB].

Staying in touch

If you are in University-managed accommodation, we will contact you within three days of your arrival as long as you’ve provided us with your phone number on the reporting form.

If you have any queries or miss our call, email your telephone number to reslife.covid@sussex.ac.uk and we can call you back.

Food and essentials

See our guidance on getting food for students who are self-isolating or in quarantine.

Our porters will deliver post to your flat and place it inside your flat door.