It helps to spend time in your own space so that you are less likely to pass the virus to other people. This could be a room that other people do not come into. (If you have young children to care for, it may not be possible to spend time in your own space, but you can try and spend less time in the shared areas of your home).
Can you arrange for one room in your home to be just for you – and try to spend as much time there as you can? It is particularly important that people at risk don’t sleep in the same bed as someone else.
Keep 6 feet/2 metres away from other members of your household (or as far apart as possible). The more distance you can keep between you, the fewer viruses will be shared between you.
Some of these ideas are easier to do than others. You may not be able to do all of them, but if you think you might have Coronavirus, trying at least one can lower the amount it spreads to others in your home.
Limit the time your child spends in a room with you. Although this will be difficult to do with young children, limiting the time a child spends in a room with someone who may have the virus reduces the chances of the child contracting, and potentially spreading, the virus to other people.
Eat separately. Eating your meals at different times and in different areas to the rest of the family will lower the risk of spreading germs. You may still want to be with your children when they eat because of the risk of choking so, if there isn't another adult in the house who can do this, you could sit in the room with them at a distance of 2 metres/6 feet.
Wearing a face covering when distancing is impossible. There will be times when your children want a cuddle. If you wear a face covering, that will lower the risk of passing viruses between you. It is not a good idea to ask young children to wear a face covering. Covering your face only works if it is worn properly and not touched, it is unlikely a young child would be able to do this, so it is better that the adult wears them.
These extra ideas could help to further reduce the risk of virus transmission around vulnerable children if you think you have the virus.
Young children will find it hard to understand what Coronavirus is and may be upset or scared by it. One way to try and avoid this is to make the things that you do fun.
Is there a room or an area of a room that you can make just for your child? If they have their own bedroom this would be easiest.
When you choose an area for them think about the following things:
- Can you limit the amount of people that go in that area/room? Try to find somewhere that doesn’t have to be shared with anyone else in your home.
- Does the room have a window? Having the window open will help, but of course it needs to be safe so that there is no risk of children climbing out.
When creating a space for young children, you could:
- Make an area their special castle or den and encourage them to spend as much time in it as possible
- Decorate it with sheets and put their toys in it
- Put in a little table or tray where they can eat
- Set up their bed so they can camp out in it.