ECJ EUROPEAN Cleaning Journal

A survey by The Global Hygiene Council (GHC) has found 42 per cent of children are not following proper hand hygiene procedures in school by using soap when they wash their hands.

The research assessed primary school children's hygiene awareness and habits across seven countries during COVID-19 and in all countries, usage of soap was higher at home than in school settings.

Hygiene experts are now stressing the importance of effective hand hygiene measures and education in schools as children start returning.

The survey showed that at schools, less than half of children (44 per cent) said someone ensures they always wash their hands prior to eating, with the vast majority (71 per cent) stating this happens at home.

The experts also emphasised the importance of supplying schools with hand soap, as on average just 60 per cent of children said soap was always available in school, with one in 10 stating soap was never available.