Reopening and Covid-19

NCG Manchester, NCG Liverpool and NCG Dublin will reopen on Tuesday 1st September 2020. This is subject to government guidelines and requirements.

All NCG courses will be running. The only difference is that we will be using a blended learning approach to minimise the number of fellow students you share a classroom with. Our main classes (15 hours per week) will be face to face, and skills classes (5 or 10 hours per week depending on your course) will be online.

We will be using blended learning. 15 hours per week for all college-based courses will be taught face to face. Skills classes which are taken as part of 20 or 25 hour courses will be taught online. This is to limit the number of classmates each student has contact with as part of our social distancing risk assessment.

Both residence and homestay accommodation options will be available. In Manchester and Liverpool, we recommend choosing residence at this time, and the residential halls we work with are within walking distance of the college so public transport can be avoided. In Dublin, the residence is a 60-minute bus journey from the school, whereas host families live closeby. 

The residential halls strictly adhere to all official regulations and guidelines in terms of measures for the reduction of the risk of Covid-19 transmission.  With regard to homestay, NCG will issue homestay hosts with clear guidance/advice for keeping their homes clean and share regular government updates with them on social distancing measures. We will avoid using those hosts who are in a high risk group and ensure any relevant personal medical information from students is shared with the relevant accommodation provider.

Guidance on self-isolation (when applicable) will also be provided to students, homestay hosts and residential accommodation providers if a student/host/staff member is displaying symptoms of Covid-19.

We will continue offering the airport transfer service via our trusted providers. To avoid taking public transport, we encourage all students to book this service.

We have made sure that our providers have stepped up their cleanliness measures and are following the most recent guidelines set out by the UK and Irish Governments (e.g. the driver must wear a face covering).

Students will have to wear a face covering when in the taxi and will be able to share the same taxi in very limited circumstances (e.g. if they are part of the same family and have been travelling together on the same plane).

Under-18 students from outside the EU are required to have medical insurance cover for the entirety of their stay. We strongly recommend that all students get travel and medical insurance cover for the entirety of their stay.

Travel and medical insurance can be purchased from NCG’s trusted partners. To ensure maximum flexibility, our partners allow for the dates of the insurance policies to be changed free of charge at any point prior to the start of the policy.

Medical insurance purchased through NCG’s trusted partner will NOT cover any medical or other expenses incurred, directly or indirectly, with relation to Covid-19.

You will have to bring a stock of face masks or other face covering with you, as they will have to be worn when taking a taxi, bus, tram, train, etc.

We also recommend that you pack some extra alcohol-based hand sanitizer to keep with you at all times, so that you can clean your hands even when water is not available.

We will not make it mandatory for students to wear a face covering when on the school premises, however students who wish to wear some form of face covering will be more than welcome to do so.

Wearing a face covering is currently compulsory in the UK and Ireland on all forms of public transport (e.g. buses, trams, trains, etc.) and it is recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that it is worn in those situations in which social distancing is not possible.

We therefore recommend that students equip themselves with face coverings before travelling. Further advice from the WHO on how to use face coverings can be found here: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/question-and-answers-hub/q-a-detail/q-a-on-covid-19-and-masks

• UK: The UK has published a list of countries whose citizens do not need to self-isolate for two weeks when entering the country. A list of such countries can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-travel-corridors#travel-corridors-countries-and-territories-exemption-list. If you are from a country that is not included on the list, you have to self-isolate for 2 weeks on arrival. The list of exempt countries is being continually reviewed, and by September your country may be included if it is not yet. If you do have to self-isolate on arrival in the UK, you will need to book a room in the residence or arrange your own accommodation for the isolation period. More information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/uk-border-control

• Ireland: Currently, everyone entering Ireland from another country must self-isolate for 14 days. A green list of countries is due to be published on 20th July. Anyone travelling to Ireland from a green list country will not have to self-isolate. More information can be found here: https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/coronavirus/travel.html#Restrict-movements-travel

If the quarantine requirement is still in place when you arrive, you will be able to access our online classes while self-isolating. These online classes will be in addition to the face-to-face course you have booked and, even better, will be free of charge!

NCG has carried out a comprehensive risk assessment based on government guidance and regulations. Our key measures include:

• Limiting the number of fellow students and staff you study with, which is known as a bubble. If there were a case of coronavirus at NCG, fewer students will come into contact with the individual by using this approach.
• Staggering the class start times and break times so as to minimise contact in entranceways and corridors.
• Providing hand sanitiser stations in all classrooms and other spaces so students can regularly clean their hands. Anti-bacterial wipes will also be made available to students to wipe desks and chairs before use. Our facilities have ventilation in every room and they are cleaned regularly.
• Adhering to social distancing measures within the classroom in line with the guidance of the UK government. This is currently 2 metres, but may be reduced.
• Limiting the access to shared areas such as IT suites, games rooms and other social areas.

Those NCG staff and homestay hosts who develop symptoms of COVID-19 will be asked to take an antigen test.

Information on what to do if you think you have coronavirus can be found here if you are in the UK:

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/symptoms/

If you are in Ireland, you can find more information here: https://www2.hse.ie/coronavirus/

Please do not come to the college if you think you have coronavirus. Please call the college’s emergency phone – you can find the number on your lanyard.

Supermarkets will be open and there are several located close to the college and residence. Many restaurants are offering take-away services – a range of options are available on services such as Just Eat or Uber Eats.

Yes, restaurants and bars have now reopened with social distancing measures in place.

Yes, many of the UK and Ireland’s sights are outdoors in public spaces and can be visited. There are some restrictions on entering buildings, but they may have been lifted when the college reopens.

NCG has continued its social programme for our students studying online classes and it will continue when the colleges reopen with safety precautions in place.

• UK: Currently many UK visa application centres are closed until further notice. You will have to check with your local visa application centre for the latest information on the services they’re offering. You can find your local visa application centre here: https://www.gov.uk/find-a-visa-application-centre

• Ireland: You can apply for a study visa if you are planning to come to Ireland to undertake a course of study for more than 3 months.

You can apply for a study visa up to 3 months before your date of travel to Ireland. For more information on how to apply, visit: http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/Study

We understand this is a time of uncertainty and are offering flexibility to students unable to travel. If the college is closed or you can’t travel due to government restrictions in either the UK, Ireland or your home country, you can re-book your course for a later date.

NCG’s terms and conditions can be found here:
https://www.newcollegegroup.com/terms-conditions/

Additional terms and conditions for the current closure can be found here:
https://www.newcollegegroup.com/covid-19-terms-conditions/

Yes, we’ve had so much positive feedback from our online courses that we’ve decided to keep them indefinitely!