International students under strict quarantine as they touch down in Scotland
31 August 2020, 13:20
International students begin two-week quarantine to start Uni course
International students arriving at Stirling University in Scotland are among some of the first in the UK to quarantine in university accommodation.
Many are touching down in Scotland today from countries not on the coronavirus safe travel list and will need to self-isolate in their halls for 14 days.
Their arrival comes before the teaching semester starts next month, and they will need to adhere to their residence's quarantine guidance.
This includes:
Not leaving accommodation - even for essential items and groceries. Those must be ordered.
Only entering the kitchen to cook food alone, before eating in individual rooms.
Organising a rota for kitchen access with flatmates.
Cleaning shared bathrooms with disinfectant after every use.
Students are also being given extra bedding because they won't be able to visit the laundry area until their isolation ends.
They'll also receive a 'welcome pack' with some basic food items until an online grocery order is set up.
Susanna, 19, is from Italy - which currently does not have quarantine orders in place - but is travelling through countries which have been removed from the government's safe travel list.
She told LBC: "I still have a lot of questions because I don't know my flatmates are, I don't know how i'll be grocery shopping and I don't know how I can interact with other people.
"I don't know how the new rules will be so I'm a bit nervous."
Alessia, also 19 and from Italy, says she's "scared" of the moving in process, as she also doesn't know what to expect.
However, the quarantine does not scare her, she says, as she was used to a strict lockdown during the height of the pandemic in Italy.
"In Italy we had a really strict lockdown," she said.
"I'm actually used to living alone."
The Scottish Government's guidance surrounding COVID-19 and university accommodation can be found HERE.
