Test Procedure
“First, click on ‘Start Test ’, then read the passage below. Select or write your answers on the right side corresponding to the questions. If you find any issue, please contact us.”
Sustainable School Travel Strategy
Over the last 20 years, the number of children being driven to school in England has doubled. National data suggests that one in five cars on the road at 8.50 am is engaged in the school run. Children are subject to up to 3.9 times more pollution in a car that is standing in traffic than when walking or cycling to school. Reducing cars around schools makes them safer places, and walking and cycling are better for health and the environment. It has been noted by teachers that children engaging in active travel arrive at school more alert and ready to learn.
The County Council has a strong commitment to supporting and promoting sustainable school travel. We collect data annually about how pupils get to school, and our report on the Sustainable School Travel Strategy sets out in detail what we have achieved so far and what we intend to do in the future. Different parts of the County Council are working together to address the actions identified in the strategy, and we are proud that we have been able to reduce the number of cars on the daily school run by an average of 1% in each of the last three years, which is equivalent to taking approximately 175 cars off the road annually, despite an increase in pupil numbers.
All schools have a School Travel Plan, which sets out how the school and the Council can collaborate to help reduce travel to school by car and encourage the use of public transport. Contact your school to find out what they are doing as part of their School Travel Plan to help you get your child to school in a sustainable, safe way.
Read the text below and answer Question 7-14
Flu: the facts
A Flu (influenza) is an acute viral respiratory infection. It spreads easily from person to person: at home, at school, at work, at the supermarket or on the train.
B It gets passed on when someone who already has flu coughs or sneezes and is transmitted through the air by droplets, or it can be spread by hands infected by the virus.
C Symptoms can include fever, chills, headache, muscle pain, extreme fatigue, a dry cough, sore throat and stuffy nose. Most people will recover within a week but flu can cause severe illness or even death in people at high risk. It is estimated that 18,500-24,800 deaths in England and Wales are attributable to influenza infections annually.
D Vaccination is the most effective way to prevent infection. Although anyone can catch flu, certain people are at greater risk from the implications of flu, as their bodies may not be able to fight the virus. If you are over 65 years old, or suffer from asthma, diabetes, or certain other conditions, you are considered at greater risk from flu and the implications can be serious. If you fall into one of these ‘at-risk’ groups, are pregnant or a carer, you are eligible for a free flu vaccination.
E If you are not eligible for a free flu vaccination, you can still protect yourself and those around you from flu by getting a flu vaccination at a local pharmacy.
F About seven to ten days after vaccination, your body makes antibodies that help to protect you against any similar viruses that may infect you. This protection lasts about a year.
G A flu vaccination contains inactivated, killed virus strains so it can’t give you the flu. However, a flu vaccination can take up to two weeks to begin working, so it is possible to catch flu in this period.
H A flu vaccination is designed to protect you against the most common and potent strains of flu circulating so there is a small chance you could catch a strain of flu not contained in the flu vaccine.
I The influenza virus is constantly changing and vaccines are developed to protect against the predicted strains each year so it is important to get vaccinated against the latest strains.
Speak to your GP or nurse today to book your flu vaccination.
