Like many parents, we have had to subject our children to continual COVID testing throughout the pandemic, particularly my 3 year old daughter who attends nursery. With every test she becomes hysterical and it is traumatising for both her and us who have to administer the test. This is not a one-off procedure, this is a frequent occurrence particularly for children in early years settings where they often present with runny noses, coughs and temperatures. 

The purpose of this petition is to call on the Government to fund the production of non-invasive saliva COVID testing for children. The test would require a “spit” sample rather than nasal swabs that go deep into the nose and are incredibly uncomfortable. These tests already exist and studies have suggested that they can be just as accurate as deep nasal swabs.